Affluent BNPL Users Embrace Interest for Longer Terms
Buy now, pay later gained traction around 2019 through “Pay in 4,” which splits a purchase into four interest-free payments and gave shoppers an alternative to revolving credit-card debt. The product is now moving beyond small-ticket retail financing into longer, fixed-term credit. PYMNTS Intelligence estimates the U.S. BNPL market reached $175 billion in 2025, underscoring why demand from high-income and super-prime consumers matters to providers including Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna, PayPal and Sezzle.
In a June 2026 survey of 218 U.S. adults who had used BNPL in the previous three months, PYMNTS Intelligence found 66% would pay interest for a longer repayment schedule. The share rose to 82% among users of four or more providers, versus 46% among single-provider users. Willingness reached 79% for purchases of $500 to $999 and 76% among super-prime borrowers, compared with 50% for subprime users, pointing to mainstream demand beyond the traditional interest-free model.
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The history behind this eventAmericans Urge Policymakers to Protect BNPL Access
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) “Pay in 4” plans typically split a purchase into no more than four installments over six to eight weeks, with an average loan size of $135, according to the Financial Technology Association. The product has gained importance as households contend with cost-of-living pressures and high credit-card interest rates. Supporters say its fixed schedules and lack of revolving balances offer flexibility, while its growth has sharpened the policy debate over access, underwriting and consumer safeguards.
On July 22, the FTA released a HarrisX survey of 1,890 U.S. adults conducted online from June 18 to June 23, 2026. It found 91% of BNPL users and 77% of all adults viewed the plans as a net positive, while 87% of users said they helped reduce reliance on high-interest credit cards. Some 88% of users, versus 75% of Americans overall, said elected officials should protect access. The industry group said it supports appropriate regulation that preserves payment flexibility while maintaining consumer protections.
BNPL Users Embrace Multiple Providers as Competition Tightens
Buy now, pay later is evolving from a single-provider relationship into a financial toolkit for U.S. consumers. PYMNTS Intelligence said shoppers increasingly compare BNPL services by loan size, repayment period, interest rate, fees and merchant availability. That flexibility gives borrowers more control over cash flow, but fragmented accounts can leave lenders with an incomplete view of customers’ obligations while increasing underwriting, identity-theft and application-fraud risks.
A PYMNTS report published July 20, 2026, drawing on 10 surveys of U.S. adults between April 2025 and May 2026, found that 74% of BNPL users had used at least two providers in the previous three months as of May, up from 68% in April 2025. Some 49% used two or three providers and 25% used four or more. Affirm led with 45% usage, followed by Klarna and PayPal Pay Later at 44% each and Afterpay at 42%. The report disclosed no aggregate transaction or loan amount.
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