Almost half of BNPL users—and two-thirds of Gen Zers—report problems

The news: About half (49%) of US BNPL users have experienced at least one problem with the payment method, per a Bankrate survey conducted in March 2025.

• Almost one-fourth (25%) of respondents said using BNPL made them overspend.
• 16% said they have missed a payment.
• 15% regretted a purchase.
• And 14% said they had difficulty returning a purchase and obtaining a refund.

Diving into Gen Z’s attitudes: Gen Zers were most likely to have a problem using BNPL, at 66%. Their most common problem was overspending (30%).

This is likely contributing to Gen Z’s overall uneasiness about BNPL.

• Only 14% of US consumers ages 18-25 said they would prefer paying for something in installments, according to a survey from the University of Southern California's Center for Public Relations and the Day One Agency.
• 59% of respondents said they'd rather pay for goods up front, and 27% said they fall somewhere in between.

Our take: A poor experience with BNPL could push consumers to other payment options like credit cards, dampening already slowing growth. We forecast BNPL payment value growth will slow from 20.8% in 2024 to 15% in 2025 and 12.5% in 2026.

And given Gen Zers will make up 30.2% of US BNPL users this year, per our forecasts, their unease with the payment method could be particularly damaging.

To combat this, BNPL fintechs could add budgeting tools to their apps and streamline their return processes.