Klarna reported to have a GMV of over *********** U.S. dollars in 2024, which translates to a processing volume of about *********** U.S. dollars. This is according to a compilation from Statista using the company filing of some of the world's main brands in buy now, pay later. BNPL is a relatively untracked market, as many countries do not have regulation in place for this new type of payment. Klarna's figures, for example, are shared by the company itself, even if it is not publicly listed. Affirm, on the other hands, is listed on the U.S. stock exchange, and has to share both its user count and processed volume.

As of June 2024, Klarna reported to still have *** million users - a figure it reported since 2022. This is according to a compilation from Statista using the company filing of some of the world's main brands in buy now, pay later. BNPL is a relatively untracked market, as many countries do not have regulation in place for this new type of payment. Consequently, accurate figures are difficult to come by. Afterpay, for example, was taken over by Block (formerly Square) and does not share its user count anymore. Klarna is not publicly listed, although rumors appeared in 2024 it might do so in the future. Affirm is publicly listed, however, and shared a growing interest of BNPL in the United States.

Klarna's MAU increased by over *** percent in Italy in Q1 2025, despite months of decline in several countries after holiday shopping. This can be observed when looking at estimates on the app's monthly active users. Notable are the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, and Canada - as the Klarna MAU in December 2024 was far higher in these countries than it was in December 2023. This contrasts figures in the United States and Germany, where MAU was slightly lower, despite the end-of-year rally.

Klarna is one of the leading fintech companies offering buy now, pay later services, which let consumers pay (BNPL) for things in a series of instalments instead of all upfront. Launched in Sweden in...

The US Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services market is experiencing robust growth, fueled by increasing consumer adoption of digital payment methods and a preference for flexible financing options. The market's Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 27.50% from 2019-2024 suggests a significant expansion, indicating strong consumer demand and the successful penetration of BNPL services across various sectors. This growth is primarily driven by the convenience and accessibility offered by BNPL platforms, particularly among younger demographics. The online segment dominates the market, reflecting the increasing shift towards e-commerce. However, the Point-of-Sale (POS) segment is also witnessing considerable growth as merchants increasingly integrate BNPL options into their physical stores. Popular product categories benefiting from BNPL include fashion and personal care, kitchen appliances, and healthcare, indicating its versatility across different consumer goods. Competition is fierce, with established players like Afterpay, Affirm, Klarna, and PayPal facing challenges from emerging fintech companies. The market is expected to continue its upward trajectory, driven by technological advancements, partnerships with merchants, and expanding regulatory frameworks that address consumer protection concerns. While precise market size figures for 2025 are not provided, extrapolating from the 27.5% CAGR and considering the significant growth already observed, a reasonable estimate for the 2025 US BNPL market size could range from $80 billion to $100 billion. This estimate factors in market saturation in some segments and the potential for continued expansion in others, particularly as BNPL adoption extends to new demographics and product categories. The forecast period (2025-2033) promises continued market expansion, influenced by ongoing digital transformation, the rise of omnichannel commerce, and potentially increased regulatory oversight promoting responsible lending practices. Future growth will depend on factors including sustained economic growth, evolving consumer preferences, and successful navigation of the competitive landscape by market players. Recent developments include: In May 2022, Affirm and Fiserv announced a partnership to make Affirm available to Fiserv enterprise merchant clients by the end of the year. With this partnership, Affirm will become the first buy now pay later provider fully integrated into the Carat operating system from Fiserv., In May 2022, Afterpay and trusted care retailer Rite Aid announced their partnership, offering Rite Aid's online shoppers a new way to pay for everyday items in four installments at no additional cost when payment is made on time. This partnership will help customers access and spend responsibly on everyday goods with Afterpay's powerful budgeting tool.. Notable trends are: Income of US Households Affecting the BNPL Market.

American adults with low or middle income were more likely to use BNPL than adults with higher incomes. This is according to an annual household survey in the United States, that asked about how and why consumers would be using the alternative payment option. ***** percent of respondents who had an income of 100,000 U.S. dollars or more used buy now, pay later. This was noticeably different from all other income levels, where ** percent of respondents said they used BNPL. The source observed major difference between races, with Black and Hispanic users being significantly more common than White or Asian users.

The global buy now, pay later (BNPL) market size is predicted to increase by nearly ** percent between 2024 and 2030. Regardless, BNPL reached a global market share of around **** percent in 2024 - with ***** out of 10 top global buy now, pay later markets worldwide being located in northwestern Europe. The market share of BNPL services in domestic e-commerce payments in both Sweden and Germany, for instance, was around *** times higher than the market share in global e-commerce payments. Big international names, local competition? Common names that spring to mind when it comes to BNPL include Klarna (Sweden), Affirm (United States), and Afterpay (Australia), as all three providers had millions of active users in 2021. The three are sometimes joined by Quadpay/Zip (United States) in some sources. These apps are popular in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Europeans, for instance, downloaded Klarna significantly more than other BNPL apps available to them. That is not to say all countries prefer BNPL through Klarna, however: In Switzerland, it is expected that one of the country’s most popular payment methods - mobile payment option TWINT – will implement payments in installments to compete with Klarna. Uncertainty going forward It is uncertain whether the initial success of buy now, pay later will hold. In May 2022 – shortly after the figures provided here were released – Klarna announced it would cut roughly ** percent of its global staff. CEO and co-founder Sebastian Siemiatkowski cited an expected decline in consumer spending, caused by the war in Ukraine and growing inflation worldwide since. Regardless, some experts still fear that having the option to make payments might be too enticing for low-income households – especially in a time of uncertainty when it comes to personal finance.

The United States had the highest number of merchants who offered Klarna up to 2025, whilst the relative use in Europe was far higher. Estimates based on website tracking and the technologies used within them reveal that merchants from Klarna's home country Sweden, and especially its neighboring countries, offered the payment method relatively more often than anywhere else in the world. For example, estimates are that nearly ****** merchants until February 2024 had Klarna on their website - a number that equaled ** percent of all Swedish domains with a buy now, pay later (BNPL) option and almost ** percent of websites in Sweden that had offered a payment technology. United States and UK merchants both do offer Klarna but relatively less regularly than card networks Visa, MasterCard, or American Express.

The Klarna app was downloaded the most in the United States, although relatively speaking the Buy Now, Pay Later app was much more popular elsewhere. Downloads were especially high in Klarna's home country Sweden, its surrounding Nordic countries, and Germany. This is because the brand was available in these countries as early as 2016, whilst the app arrived in the United States in November 2018. That said, downloads of the BNPL application peaked in late 2021 and in March and April 2022.

In 2024, ***** out of 10 top global buy now, pay later (BNPL) markets worldwide were in northwestern Europe as consumers looked for new e-commerce payment methods. The market share of BNPL services in domestic e-commerce payments in both Sweden and Germany was around *** times higher than the same market share in global e-commerce payments. The popularity of Sweden's BNPL provider Klarna may be at the heart of this, as it ranks among one of the most used online payment methods among German consumers. Is BNPL still growing? The global buy now, pay later market size will increase by nearly *** billion USD between 2021 and 2026. This would mean a further acceleration of growth. Whether the cost of living crisis impacts these figures is not immediately clear. Some believe it may drive consumers to use buy now, pay later more often. On the other hand, a global economic downturn led Klarna's private-market valuation to fall by ** percent in 2022. Consequently, the company laid off *** employees. Brand preference varies per country The country of origin of a BNPL brand can impact its adoption. Estimates based on website tracking and the technologies used within them reveal that merchants from Sweden, and especially its neighboring countries, offered Klarna relatively more typically than anywhere else. This extended beyond the Nordics. Merchants from Australia and New Zealand were more likely to offer Afterpay - which comes from Australia - than e-commerce websites from other parts of the world. The United States is home to several major brands like Affirm, Sezzle, and Zip. These face competition from PayPal.

The value of BNPL transactions made - referred to as gross merchandise volume or GMV - on Klarna was several times bigger than that of Afterpay. This according to information from the companies themselves, as reported in their financial reporting for 2020. The Swedish company, for example, reported the value of transactions made using its payment platform grew by more than ** percent between 2019 and 2020, helped by its expansion into the United States and other markets. Klarna's operating revenue also grew markedly between 2019 and 2020 - as the coronavirus pandemic changed shopping behavior worldwide.