The buy now, pay later industry—widely known as BNPL—has become so popular and competitive that Javelin Strategy & Research is rolling out its first scorecard of the major players in the space. The scorecard assesses five companies examined in a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report: Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna, PayPal, and Zip.

Klarna achieved the highest overall score based on five weighted categories seen by Javelin as the keys to success for BNPL providers and their customers. Those categories are Reach, Ease of Use, Ecosystem, Financial Fitness, and Payments. The industry’s rapid growth—and the possibility of greater regulation—is likely to lead to more entrants, more users, and greater payments volume in the years to come.

Key questions discussed in this report:

• Who are the major players in the BNPL space?
• What are the differentiators among the major BNPL providers?
• How can BNPL providers continue to hone their offerings and appeal to more customers?
   

Companies Mentioned:

Adidas, Affirm, Afterpay, Apple Pay, Best Buy, Cash App, Happy Returns, Klarna, Mastercard, Nike, PayPal, Returnly, Sezzle, Splitit, Venmo, Visa, Zip