Klarna vs. Affirm: Which Should You Choose?

Klarna vs. Affirm: Terms

Both Klarna and Affirm offer Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) financing for purchases at participating retailers. Four-way financing is Klarna’s main option, while Affirm’s repayment terms vary by lender and the size of your purchase.

When you make a purchase with Klarna’s quarterly payment loan product, you pay 25% immediately and then the remaining balance is split into three payments made every two weeks. Within six weeks, your entire purchase is refunded without incurring interest or fees if you pay on time.

Affirm offers several refund terms that customers can choose from at checkout. The repayment term varies and ranges from popular four-pay loans to loans of up to 36 months. Affirm offers loans up to $17,500, but depending on the retailer you’re buying from, you may need to pay a deposit at the time of purchase.

Klarna vs. Affirm: Credit Requirements

During the four-way payment approval process, Klarna performs a soft credit check on your credit report. It does not affect your credit score and does not appear on your credit report. Klarna does not have a minimum credit score requirement for its pay-in-four credit product. Although Klarna does not report on-time loan payments on four to the credit bureaus, it can report missed payments.

However, if you wish to take advantage of Klarna’s longer term financing options of up to 36 months, a thorough credit check is required. Approval will be based on your credit score and payment history.

When you create an account with Affirm, it will perform an indirect credit check to prequalify you for purchases. Your credit score can be affected by a purchase, your payment history, the amount of credit you’ve used, and how long your account has been open.

Klarna vs Affirm: Interest and Fees

Klarna charges no interest or fees as long as your payments are made on time. When you miss a payment, Klarna will try one more time to collect the payment. If the payment is not made on the second attempt, the missed amount will be added to the next payment with an additional $7 fee added.

There are no hidden fees with Affirm. They don’t charge late fees on their loans, even if you pay late. Affirm has funded over 17 million transactions to date and has yet to charge late charge. The company makes money by charging companies a commission for handling the funding, and some customers pay interest on their loans.

Klarna vs. Affirm: mobile app

With Klarna and Affirm, you can shop online or via a mobile app. On the mobile app, you can perform standard actions such as view your purchase history, track deliveries, view your payments, and update your payment method.

Klarna’s app is available for both Apple and Google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.myklarnamobile&hl=en_US&gl=US” data-component=”link” data-source=”inlineLink” data-type=”externalLink” data-ordinal=”2″ rel=”sponsored nofollow”>android. In the app you will find new offers every day with exclusive offers and discounts for Klarna users at more than 250,000 retailers. And if a US online retailer doesn’t carry Klarna, you can create a virtual card number to make a purchase and pay in four. When you join Klarna’s free rewards club, you earn rewards on your purchases.

The app provides automatic price drop alerts, and the more you use four-way payment when shopping with Klarna and pay your bills on time, the more purchasing power you’ll unlock with a higher spending limit and receive even more exclusive deals and offers. .

Affirm’s app is available for both Apple and Google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.affirm.central&hl=en_US&gl=US” data-component=”link” data-source=”inlineLink” data-type=”externalLink” data-ordinal=”2″ rel=”sponsored nofollow”>android as well. Over 207,000 merchants offer financing through Affirm. You can shop online or in a physical store with the mobile app. In the app, you can browse offers from participating merchants and receive exclusive offers with financing as low as 0%. The app also lets you open a high-yield online savings account with no minimums or fees.

Klarna vs. Affirm: other products

Whereas purchases paid in four at checkout are growing in popularity, Klarna and Affirm also offer other financing options to their customers.

Pay in 30 days or Financing from 6 to 36 months: If you don’t want to use Klarna’s quarterly payment financing, you can choose “Pay in 30 days” or financing from 6 to 36 months. Pay in 30 loans are interest free and best for people who want to order items to try on, return what they don’t like, and then pay for the rest. The balance of your loan will be automatically debited from your bank account or credit card 30 days after the date of purchase. The interest rate for Klarna’s 6 to 36 month financing options ranges from 0% to 19.99%.

Virtual card: For stores that don’t offer Klarna at checkout, you can create a virtual card online or in the app that works like a credit card. This is a single-use card that can be used at any online store in the United States.

Affirm’s loan periods often extend beyond the four bi-weekly payments of traditional buy-it-now-pay-later services. When you make a purchase, you are presented with options and you can choose how many payments you want to make. This makes it easy to lock in payments that fit your budget. You’ll never pay more than what you see at checkout because Affirm doesn’t charge any hidden fees.

Confirm savings account: In addition to loan products, Affirm also offers the Affirm Savings Account, which is FDIC insured, high yield savings account which has no minimum balance or fees. Interest rates vary over time, but as of August 9, 2022, the interest rate offered is 1.25%. You can open your account with just one penny.

Credit card: Affirm will soon launch a debit card that will allow customers to split large purchases into smaller, more cost-effective payments. Every qualifying purchase over $100 can be split into four easy payments, just like quad-pay loans. The card will have no annual fees, no late fees and no prepayment fees. Although you cannot open this card today, you can join a waiting list.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How do Klarna and Affirm work?

Klarna and Affirm are point-of-sale finance companies that allow customers to buy now and pay over time, similar to a credit card. The main difference is that most buy-it-now and pay-later services make instant credit decisions on every transaction and don’t charge interest if you make your payments on time. You’ll pay 25% upfront and then be charged 25% of the original purchase amount every two weeks until your balance is paid in full six weeks later.

What is the minimum credit rating for Affirm and Klarna?

Neither company discloses the minimum credit score you need to be approved. In general, higher credit scores are more likely to be approved for a loan. Since quarter-repayment loans are short-term in nature and 25% is repaid immediately, these loans usually have a high approval rating. Because quarter-repayment loans are so short, they are usually not reported to the credit bureaus unless a borrower begins to miss payments. For longer-term loans, your credit score is a bigger factor in the decision with Affirm and Klarna.

Does Klarna or Affirm affect your credit score?

Like most buy-it-now, pay-later services, Klarna and Affirm use a soft credit check when approving your transactions. They do not report your quarterly repayment loans or your payment history to the credit bureaus. Since these loans are closed within six weeks, if you make all payments on time, the payment history is not long enough to be worth reporting to the bureaus. However, missed payments can be reported to the credit bureaus, which could negatively affect your credit score.

Longer term loans generally require a firm credit check and these loans are reported to the credit bureaus. Provided you make every payment on time, these loans could help you establish a stronger credit history.

Methodology

To determine whether Klarna or Affirm is the best app to buy now and pay later, we analyzed each service’s features, interest rates, fees, and more. We researched their lending options, how many stores accept their financing, and their impact on users’ credit scores.