RateHerald

No link on RateHerald pays us today. When some do, they'll say so, and they'll never change a ranking. How we make money

Buy Now Pay Later Calculator

What a buy now, pay later plan really costs against putting the purchase on a credit card and paying it off over the same months.

Spreading $1,200 over 12 months costs $0 of interest on a 0% plan, against $162 carrying it on a 24% card. Late fees, and missed payments that some plans report to credit bureaus, can change that.

Plan: interest
$0
Card, paid off over the same months: interest
$162
Plan payment a month
$100.00
Card payment a month
$113.47

Interest on a $1,200 purchase paid over 12 months

Plan or card APRMonthly paymentInterest
0%$100.00$0
10%$105.50$66
20%$111.16$134
24%$113.47$162
30%$116.98$204

How this calculator works

Both are compared as equal monthly payments over the same months at their APRs. Pay-in-4 plans with no interest cost nothing if every payment is on time.

What it assumes

  • No late fees. Many plans charge them, and some report missed payments to credit bureaus.
  • The card balance gets no grace period, as for any carried balance.

Questions people ask

Is buy now pay later free?

Pay-in-4 plans and 0% promotions cost nothing if you pay on time. Longer monthly plans often charge APRs from about 10% to 36%, and late fees apply on many.

Is BNPL better than a credit card?

At 0% it beats carrying a card balance: $1,200 over 12 months at 24% costs $162 on a card. But a card paid in full each month costs nothing and may earn rewards.

Does buy now pay later affect my credit score?

Some providers run a credit check or report payments and missed payments to credit bureaus, and newer scoring models can include BNPL loans. Check the plan's terms.

What happens if I miss a BNPL payment?

Expect a late fee, and possibly paused access to the service, collections or a credit report entry. Autopay from an account with enough in it avoids most of this.

Related calculators

  • Credit Card Payoff CalculatorHow long a card balance takes to pay off at a fixed monthly payment, what the interest costs, and what paying a little more saves.
  • Credit Card Minimum Payment CalculatorHow your card's minimum payment is worked out, how long paying only the minimum takes, and what it costs in interest.
  • APR CalculatorA loan's APR counts its fees as well as its interest rate. Enter the rate, term and upfront fees to see the true yearly cost and the monthly payment.

Sources

Updated by the RateHerald team. The maths is tested against worked examples; report a problem.

Embed this calculator on your site

Free to use. Copy this code; the link back is appreciated, not required.