8 Best Buy Now, Pay Later Apps in Canada For 2022

Are you looking for the best buy now, pay later app in Canada?  Your search ends here!

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) apps are some of the popular emergency funding tools in Canada.

Besides emergency funding, BNPL apps also save us the disappointment of cutting our shopping lists due to insufficient funds.

While there are no shortages of BNPL or pay-after-delivery apps in Canada, some  Canadians find it challenging to pick the best ones.

I have taken my time and researched the best buy now, pay later companies in Canada to help you make the best choice.

Let’s get started!

Understanding Buy Now, Pay Later 

Before signing up with a BNPL app in Canada, it’s essential you first understand what buy-now-pay-later entails.

While the concept of “buy-now-pay-later” may be self-explained, its practical meaning could be complex for newbies.

By definition, buy-now-pay-later refers to the act of buying something and paying later. 

To this end, a BNPL app partner with different stores through which shoppers will make purchases. 

Instead of paying cash or deducting funds from your credit/debit card, you can use your BNPL app as the form of payment provided that your store supports the app.

At inception, some BNPL apps (such as Klarna) allowed shoppers to make purchases and pay the full price later.

But with the growing interest in the BNPL industry, most BNPL apps now require shoppers to make an initial deposit and pay the remaining balance later. 

The experience of BNPL in Canada varies from one company to the other. This is because different apps have different spending limits, fees, and interest on their pay-after-delivery services.

With these differences come the need of comparing and choosing from the best BNPL apps out there 

Buy Now, Pay Later in Canada: The Pros and Cons

As with other credits, pay-after-delivery has its own pros and cons. 

Understanding the pros and cons of buy-now-pay-later will help you determine whether it’s worth using the service.

That being said, the following are the top pros and cons of buy-now-pay-later apps you need to consider.

Pros

• Installment payments: BNPL apps allow you to make installment payments on your purchases, helping you maintain your shopping list. This could also be your umbrella in terms of emergency funding.
• Less interest rate on purchases: Most BNPL apps in Canada don’t charge interest on purchases. While some charge late payment fees, the fees are usually lower than the average interest on credit cards.
• Quick access: Buy-now-pay-later apps provide quick loan access compared to credit cards and other traditional credits.

Cons

• No reward on purchases: Purchases through BNPL will not earn you a reward as with a credit card. As a result, you would have to pay the BNPL loan in full without any waiver.
• No insurance and warranty: BNPL apps don’t have purchase security, extended warranty insurance and other coverage available on credit cards.
• No impact on credit score: Repaying your BNPL loan can’t directly improve your credit score as most pay-after-delivery apps don’t report to credit bureaus.

8 Best Buy Now, Pay Later Apps in Canada

The buy-now-pay-later industry in Canada is on the rise as more companies join it.

While this motivates competition among BNPL apps, it serves as a challenge for Canadians looking for the best app.

Fortunately, I have done the hard job for you by identifying 8 best buy now, pay later apps in Canada.

Let’s go over each of them below.

1. Afterpay Canada 

Afterpay is a household name in the pay-after-delivery industry of Canada.

With 85,000+ partner stores, Afterpay offers access to multiple local and international stores.

This app allows you to buy now and pay later in four installment payments. However, you’re required to make the initial payment at checkout.

While Afterpay doesn’t charge interest on purchases, it charges up to 25% of the initial order as late payment fees. This is one of the highest late payment fees among BNPL apps in Canada.

However, you can extend your repayment schedule on Afterpay to bypass the late payment fees.

That being said, you can spend up to $1,500 at a time using Afterpay as a form of payment. 

Moreover, Afterpay repayment methods range from domestic AMEX and Mastercard to Visa cards. 

Learn more: Afterpay Canada Review

2. Klarna Canada

Klarna is also a top name in the Canadian pay-after-delivery industry. 

By partnering with over 450,000 stores, Klarna makes it possible for shoppers to buy now and pay later across domestic and international stores.

Klarna also allows you to buy now and pay later in four installment payments. The initial payment is required immediately at checkout.

With Klarna, you don’t have to worry about purchase interest or late payment fees because they don’t exist.

However, over-defaulting your repayment with the app could lead you to debt collection which can be more costly.

Like Afterpay, Klarna also allows shoppers to extend their loan repayment schedule to avoid penalties.

That being said, you can repay your Klarna loan using a credit or debit card. 

Learn more: Klarna Canada Review

3. Zip Pay

Zip Pay (formerly Quadpay Canada) is one of the popular buy-now-pay-later apps in the Great White North.

This app partners with over 90,000 stores including some of the big retailers in Canada such as:

• BED BATH & BEYOND
• 18WAITS
• FANATICS
• NEWEGG
• NOURISH
• VITRUVI
• GLAMNETIC

With Zip Pay, you can buy now and pay later through four installment payments without worrying about interest rates.

Like Klarna and Afterpay, Zip Pay also requires you to make the initial payment at checkout. 

The remaining three payments will be charged automatically after every two weeks.

What I like about this app is that it offers up to a $5,000 credit limit, which is one of the highest in Canada.

In addition, you can repay your Zip Pay loan with any credit or debit card. 

The main drawback of this app is that it charges late payment fees and a $1 fee on installment payments. This makes it one of the most costly BNPL apps in Canada.

Learn more: Zip Canada Review

4. PayBright

PayBright is a Toronto-based pay-after-delivery service in Canada. 

The app partners with over 7,000 domestic and international stores in Canada.

PayBright also allows you to make four installment payments on BNPL with the first payment starting immediately.

What distinguishes PayBright from the competition is that it doesn’t charge late payment fees and it offers up to $25,000 credit.

While PayBright doesn’t charge interest on 3-month installment payments, it charges 9% for 6-month payments and 19% interest for 12-months+ payments.

Loan repayments on PayBright can be made using a credit and debit card from Visa and Mastercard. 

5. Affirm Canada

With over 102,000 retail partners, Affirm is regarded as one of the top pay-after-delivery apps in Canada.

The app allows you to take up to $17,500 credit and pay in four installments or monthly. 

Bear in mind that you will be required to make the first payment if you will be going with installment payments.

With four installment payments, you don’t have to worry about interest on purchases. However, monthly payment plans have up to 30% interest. 

That being said, Affirm doesn’t charge late payment fees unlike other BNPL apps in Canada.

6. Sezzle Canada

Sezzle Canada is a highly-rated pay-after-delivery service provider in Canada with a 4.7/5 rating on G2, a 4.7/5 rating on Capterra and a 4.5/5 rating on Trustpilot.

This company allows you to buy now and pay later through 47,000+ stores, including:

• Hatley
• bentley
• Hillberg & Berk
• Altitude Sports
• Hobbiesville
• Hush Blankets

When you choose Sezzle as your checkout, you will be required to make the first installment payment immediately and make the remaining three payments biweekly.

While Sezzle doesn’t charge interest on purchases, it charges a late payment fee of $10.

7. humm Canada

humm is a multinational pay-after-delivery service with more than 2.7 million customers and 60,000 partners.

This app allows you to make purchases of $1,50 and pay later in 6 biweekly installment payments.

In addition, you can make big purchases of up to $30,000 and pay within 6-60 months. 

With the biweekly installment payments, you don’t have to worry about monthly fees. However, a $5 monthly fee applies on 6-60 monthly payments.

Moreso, the app charges $6-$48 late payment fees depending on the purchase amount.

8. Best Buy 

Best Buy is the last but not the least pay-after-delivery app on this compilation. 

This app offers Canadians access to pay-after-delivery service through its Best Buy Financing program.

Through its partnership with Fairstone, Best Buy offers Canadians the opportunity to buy now and pay later in 3-18 month periods.

Like the above BNPL apps, Best Buy also requires you to make the initial payment at checkout.

The following is a breakdown of Best Buy Financing plans with their purchase type and administration fees.

*The administration fees apply to all the residents of Canada except Quebec. Learn more about Best Buy fees here.

Best Buy also has unique repayment methods as it allows you to repay your loan with cheques, at a Fairstone branch or through online banking.

Note: Best Buy Financing is currently in the Beta stage. So it’s not available to all customers yet. It’s only available to customers that make purchases through Guest Checkout.

How to Choose the Best Buy Now, Pay Later App in Canada

By now it should be clear to you that not all buy-now-pay-later apps are the same in Canada. 

From the number of stores, credit limits, interest charges and late payment fees to repayment methods — buy-now-pay-later apps differ considerably in Canada.

These differences beg the need to compare and contrast before narrowing your selection. 

But how do you compare and contrast? By considering the key factors that impact the cost and usage of a pay-after-delivery app. 

Below is a brief look at the key factors to consider when choosing the best buy now, pay later app in Canada.

• Number of partners: Different pay-after-delivery services partner with a different number of stores as shown above. This means not every pay-after-delivery service offers access to your favourite stores. As such, choosing a company with thousands of partners will provide you with greater accessibility.
• Repayment type: From the above review, it’s obvious that pay-after-delivery services in Canada have different repayment options. Most of the stores allow you to make four installment payments with the initial payment starting immediately. On the other hand, some apps allow you to make monthly repayments, giving you more time.
• Credit limit: Regardless of your spending habit, you need to consider the credit limit of a pay-after-delivery app before signing up. It makes no sense to sign-up with an app that could not meet your purchase size.   
• Interest and fees: It is obvious that most of the buy-now-pay-later apps in Canada don’t charge interest on purchases. However, some charge late payment fees, monthly fees and administration fees. Even if you’re going to shun all the selection criteria, ensure you pay critical attention to interest rates and fees when making a choice.
• Repayment methods: As shown above, each buy-now-pay-later app in Canada has its acceptable repayment methods. You want to choose the app that supports the repayment methods that are accessible to you.  

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• 8 Proven Ways on How to Get Out of Debt in Canada Faster

The Bottom Line

Buy-now-pay-later apps have revolutionized shopping by making it more accessible even in an emergency.

While this development is intended to be in favour of shoppers, some pay-after-delivery apps in Canada are barriers due to the interest and fees they charge.

Above are the top buy-now-pay-later apps in Canada that stand out from the competition.

But following the foregoing in-depth analysis, you can see how even the best buy-now-pay-later apps in Canada differ from one another. 

Thus, it’s your responsibility to compare and contrast to choose the perfect app that suits your needs. 

Above every other thing, you should consider the applicable interest rates and fees when narrowing your selection.

Which buy-now-pay-later app are you going with? Kindly let me know in the comment below. 

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