How to Use Afterpay? Complete Guide for Shopping

Have you seen Afterpay offered as a payment option by your favorite online stores or local retailers? As “buy now, pay later” services explode in popularity, more shoppers are using Afterpay to split purchases across interest-free payments over 6 weeks.

But how does Afterpay work exactly? And how can you use it to responsibly finance purchases both online and in physical stores?

In this detailed guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know, including:

• What Afterpay is and how their payment plans and processes work
• Safety considerations around using Afterpay vs credit cards
• Step-by-step instructions for using Afterpay online and in-person
• Managing your account payments, returns, fees, rewards programs and more
• Which major retailers accept Afterpay today

Let’s dive in!

What is Afterpay and How Does Buy Now, Pay Later Financing Work?

Afterpay is a “buy now, pay later” service that allows shoppers to split purchases across 4 equal interest-free installments, paid every two weeks. They partner with thousands of popular retailers to offer this payment method online and in physical stores.

Here is an overview of how Afterpay financing works:

• No upfront costs or credit checks – Unlike credit cards, Afterpay approves shoppers to finance purchases without any upfront fees, deposits or hard credit checks when signing up.
• Split payment over 6 weeks – Your total order amount gets divided into 4 payments, each 25% of the total price. You pay the first chunk at the checkout counter, then the remaining 3 over the following 6 weeks.
• Payments happen automatically – When you check out with Afterpay, you link a debit or credit card to automatically charge each installment on its scheduled payment date every 2 weeks.
• On-time payments = 0 fees or interest – As long as you pay each bi-weekly installment on schedule, Afterpay charges 0% interest or additional fees on your order.
• Late fees apply if you miss installments – If your Afterpay payment fails for any reason, they will charge a late fee up to 25% of the total order cost (varies by location). Your account is also blocked until you get caught up.
• No direct impact on credit score – Since Afterpay doesn’t run credit checks or report payment data to bureaus, using their service does not directly affect your credit score or history (unless sent to debt collectors after severely late payments).

In short – When checking out with Afterpay, you take home your items immediately, while the payment for your actual purchases gets divided into a 6 week, interest- and fee-free installment plan automatically charged to your card every two weeks.

Is Using Afterpay Safe Compared to Credit Cards?

When considering any new payment method or financial service, it’s natural to ask – “Is this safe?“

As a payment option directly handled by retailers you already know and trust, Afterpay is just as safe as paying with your credit or debit card.

However, it comes with different benefits, drawbacks, and risks compared to credit cards:

Afterpay Safety Benefits:

• Does NOT affect credit score – Since Afterpay doesn’t report payment history to credit bureaus or do hard credit checks, on-time payments and missed installments don’t help or hurt your credit.
• Fraud protection – Afterpay payments require two-factor authentication. If fraudulent charges occur, customers have fraud liability protection.
• PCI Level 1 certified – Afterpay’s data infrastructure meets the payment industry’s highest standard for consumer privacy and transaction security.

Potential Afterpay Drawbacks

• Account restrictions over time – Making late payments and carrying order balances close to your limit can prompt Afterpay to revoke account privileges.
• Overspending risk – Interest-free installments also mean zero buyer friction at checkout. Some shoppers overextend without realizing it.
• Can send unpaid orders to debt collectors – While extremely rare, if your balance remains unpaid for a prolonged period despite extreme lateness, Afterpay does reserve the right to involve debt collectors on severely delinquent accounts as a last measure.

The bottom line — Afterpay is considered safe thanks to its security standards, fraud protections and separation from your credit score. But as with any line of third-party credit, you give up some control over payments, restrictions, fees and debt responsibility compared to one-time purchases made in full.

Step 1: Using Afterpay Online

If you shop at an online store that accepts Afterpay, their payment option at checkout is easy to use.

Follow these steps when financing an online purchase with Afterpay:

1. Add desired items to your online cart – Shop online as you normally would, adding the items you intend to buy to your cart over time. Afterpay can pay for goods from a single store only – so ensure everything is from the same retailer website before checking out.
2. Select Afterpay at checkout – If your online merchant has integrated Afterpay payments, you’ll see it as a payment option when you go to finalize your cart and enter shipping/billing details. Choose Afterpay to finance your purchase across 4 installments.
3. Create account or sign-in – First-time Afterpay users are prompted to create a shopper account by entering their payment card, phone number, email address and password on the spot. No long application or approval process exists. If you already have an account, simply sign into Afterpay at this step.
4. Review your installment schedule – You’ll then see a clearly outlined payment plan listing your order total divided into a 25% down payment today, then 3 remaining payments extracted from your card every 2 weeks. Review these dates and dollar amounts closely before confirming the order.
5. Place order – Finish confirming your shipping, billing and payment details to place the order as normal. If your Afterpay purchase exceeds your current order or dollar limits, it may be declined during this final step – in which case standard forms of payment would be needed.

Once the transaction processes successfully, two things happen:

• The retailer fulfills and ships your purchase just like any normal order
• You receive email and app confirmations from Afterpay outlining your exact payment dates and amounts

Tip: Log into your Afterpay shopper account anytime post-purchase to review your installment plan details or make additional payments before deadlines to pay orders off early.

Step 2: Use Afterpay In Stores with the Mobile App

Beyond e-commerce stores, over 100,000 bricks-and-mortar retailers now accept Afterpay at the register as well. But doing so requires downloading their mobile app:

Follow these steps when paying with Afterpay’s app in physical stores:

1. Download the Afterpay app (available for iOS and Android devices).
2. Create an account or sign-in – Provide your email, password, name, mobile number and a payment card to link to the account during first-time setup.
3. Navigate to “Card” tab – Access the digital card section within your mobile Afterpay app.
4. Follow prompts to add Afterpay to Apple/Google Pay – Confirm adding Afterpay as a payment card into your phone’s digital wallet for contactless checkout usage.
5. Look for Afterpay acceptance sticker in-store – Know that retailers now process Afterpay by checking for acceptance signage displayed inside the physical store itself.
6. Pay using your phone – Open your digital wallet, choose Afterpay, hold your phone near the contactless terminal, authorize with biometrics/PIN and tap to pay.

Your phone essentially acts as the 4-part installment financing card when shopping in real life. An Afterpay payment confirmation gets sent to your email inbox, while in-app order history tracks upcoming due dates per usual.

Tip: You can manage and make Afterpay card payments early as needed directly through your mobile app account dashboard for both online and offline purchases.

What Happens if I Miss My Afterpay Payments?

Life happens! Sometimes you forget or funds come up short when Afterpay payment dates come around every 2 weeks for your orders.

When you miss scheduled installment payments, a couple scenarios unfold:

• A fee applies – Afterpay charges a late fee up to 25% of the total unpaid purchase value (varies by location). So the later the missed payment, the larger your penalty cost.
• Account suspension – Further shopping with Afterpay gets blocked until unpaid balances and any fees get cleared in full from past orders.
• Outstanding balances remain – Your order amount always remains owed – just like with any other credit service. Afterpay will follow up periodically about resolving your past due repayment status.
• Must update expired payment cards – If your card on file has expired since checkout, update it through your account so scheduled installments keep processing.

If you communicate proactively about missed payments or need adjusted payment schedules before deadlines are crossed, Afterpay does offer some flexibility in rescheduling dates before suspending accounts temporarily. Just reach out to their customer support team for exactly how they can help in your specific situation.

Can I Return Afterpay Purchases or Get Refunds?

Yes, you can return goods and get refunds on Afterpay purchases!

The return and refund process works similarly as if paying the standard cash way:

1. Initiate return with retailer – Follow the store’s standard return policy and process. Ship items back per provided instructions – or return locally if bought in a physical store location.
2. Refund gets sent to Afterpay first – Once received and approved per policy, retailers process refunds on credit card on file – in this case, your Afterpay account.
3. Afterpay adjusts payment amounts owed – Based on the refund amount and installment status at time of return, your account either gets impacted in one of two ways:
   • Full refunds – Remaining installment payments get cancelled and any amounts already paid back to your funding card.
   • Partial refunds – Payment schedule gets adjusted lower based on the refunded amount, while paid sums either stay applied or get shifted backwards per balance owed.
4. New payment schedule updates in account – Within few days, your Afterpay account reflects adjusted installment plans or a $0 balance if fully cancelled orders out. Check email notifications too about refund confirmations.

Tip: If awaiting refund word from a retailer before upcoming Afterpay payment deadlines hit, you can request a payment due date delay within your account dashboard to avoid late fees.

Reaching out to Afterpay’s support team works too for questions specific to your refund or account status overall post-return.

Does Afterpay Offer Purchase Protection or Extended Warranties?

No – When you use Afterpay at checkout, your payment method changes but the existing purchase protections and warranties provided by retailers stay exactly the same.

Afterpay does not offer or alter item condition guarantees, extended manufacturer defect warranties, damage protections or similar buyer security benefits offered at major merchants. All policies like free return windows, price matching guarantees and insurance plans remain dictated fully by individual stores.

Afterpay simply collects the total owed in 4 installments as an alternative financing approach to single upfront payments. Retailers ship orders, handle exchanges and issue refunds per their own published policies – while Afterpay adjusts remaining balances behind the scenes per credit on file.

So always review store terms and protections closely first before relying on specific coverage, regardless of choosing Afterpay at checkout.

How Do Afterpay Payment Amount Limits and Account Restrictions Work?

Given the nature of their 6 week, interest- and fee-free installment credit offering, Afterpay must implement certain safeguards for responsible spending around maximum order sizes and total balances carried simultaneously.

As you use Afterpay over time, here are key limitations around dollar amounts and account suspensions that govern usage:

• Payment amount ceiling per order – Maximum purchase limit is $1,000 per individual order (with minimum order requirements $35). Retail partners can set proprietary custom limits below this based on average order values they see.
• Introduced spending limit when starting out – Initial purchase allowances start lower for first orders (often around ~$600), before incremental dollar amount increases unlock with on-time repayments of your balance.
• Total current balance ceiling – New ceiling amounts only free up and raise as existing installment plans pay down, preventing extreme dollar sum concentrations across unpaid orders.
• Only a handful of active installment plans allowed simultaneously – Similar to total ceilings, you can’t stack excessive simultaneous open repayment plans across too many new orders before addressing current tabs.
• Limited usage during extreme delinquencies – As mentioned earlier, severely late existing order repayments restrict purchasing new items with Afterpay unless you cover overdue sums and associated fees first. This aims to prevent buried revolving debt.
• Why limits fluctuate order to order – Algorithms and evolving purchase history deem maximum dollar approval eligibility – not fixed tiers. So amounts can go down per risk models, not just always upwards.

In summary – starting spending allowances should never be viewed as guaranteed forever approval amounts. Both order-specific approvals and general account ceilings raise and lower dynamically based on your unique purchasing pace, repayment timeliness, current unpaid balances and other creditworthiness signals.

Expect early restrictions that incrementally ease with responsible usage over year(s), but can drop again if late payments and overextended credit balances accumulate suddenly.

Does Using Afterpay Impact Your Credit Score or Credit History?

Great news – paying with Afterpay does not hurt your credit score or report history in any capacity!

That’s because Afterpay never actually checks your credit file or reports any information to rating bureaus based on your account status.

You simply provide your debit/credit card upfront to link installments to over the 6 weeks post-purchase.

The one indirect risk comes if you stop making Afterpay payments altogether for prolonged periods. As a last resort, they may engage debt recovery services to attempt collection of severely delinquent accounts.

In that extremely rare worst case, the involved collection agency could report unpaid account statuses to bureaus – damaging your score at that later stage.

Otherwise, under normal purchase and repayment circumstances, your credit reports and scores see 0 impact from splitting any retail purchase costs with Afterpay. Just make your 4 installments properly every 2 weeks and your credit profile remains untouched!

Additional Afterpay Loyalty Program Benefits

On top of providing interest-free financing, Afterpay also offers enrolled shoppers the ability to unlock rewards through their loyalty program called Pulse Rewards.

Here’s an overview of how their post-purchase member perks work:

• Points earned for on-time repayments – Afterpay shoppers gain points over time by responsibly making installment payments on schedule without late fees (10 points per $1 spent).
• Welcome rewards – New members get signup perks like cashback offers, free delivery codes and partner store discounts just for joining.
• Unlocking new tiers over time – Hitting point milestones lets you elevate through different VIP member levels (Silver, Gold, Platinum), each bringing better reward multipliers and birthday freebies.
• Instant discount and cashback redemptions – Earned points can redeem for instant savings like cashback deposited to your account or single-use promo codes applied at checkout.

If you plan on shopping with Afterpay regularly, their loyalty program kicks back free perks and savings simply for paying installments on time. Consider signing up to Pulse Rewards from the start before checking out to maximize points earned across all purchases.

Which Stores Support Afterpay Payments Today?

With over 100,000 global retail partners across business categories like fashion, beauty, homewares, electronics, groceries and more, many popular merchants allow using Afterpay in 2022 both online and in-store.

To shop Afterpay stores available in your area:

• Browse the full merchant directory on Afterpay’s website
• Use the mobile app’s “Explore” tab showing nearby physical stores
• Look for Afterpay branded payment markings on brand ecommerce sites

Some of the major stores accepting Afterpay today include:

• Clothing Brands: Nike, Under Armour, Forever 21, Express, Nordstrom
• Beauty Stores: Sephora, Ulta, Kiehl’s, Glossier
• Home & Tech: Wayfair, Overstock, Dyson, Samsung
• Activewear: Lululemon, Athleta, Sweaty Betty
• Jewelry: Pandora, Kay Jewelers, Zales

With most leading apparel companies, beauty retailers, online marketplaces and specialty brands across verticals now offering Afterpay, it pays to always have their mobile app on hand before checkout for easy split payments.

How Do I Get Support Help with My Afterpay Account?

If questions ever arise about your account status, upcoming payments, refund coordination or purchase eligibility, don’t hesitate to contact Afterpay’s customer service team:

📞 Phone: +1- 855-289-6014 (24/7 support)

📧 Email: [email protected]

🤝 Live Chat: Available via Afterpay’s support site during business hours

Their online knowledge base also provides extensive FAQs around using Afterpay from setting up accounts to making repayments and more.

The Bottom Line – Shop Smarter with Afterpay

In closing – when used properly, Afterpay delivers shoppers everywhere a responsible way to split costs over time to align large purchases with future pay cycles.

Just focus on sticking to repayment schedules after that initial 25% down installment, and you can avoid any financial headaches down the road.

At its core, Afterpay simply automates the same manually split payment plans you’d make with friends or family. But with far stronger fraud protections, purchase guarantees and account management perks layered on top.

The key takeaways around maximizing Afterpay benefits while minimizing hassles include:

• Treat account limits dynamically – spending allowances can decrease over time as well as increase based on your unique order pace and on-time repayment consistency.
• Budget upcoming payments accurately – factor the 3 repeating charges hitting every 2 weeks into your personal cash flow planning.
• Use loyalty rewards from the start – join free programs upfront to earn points towards discounts and cashback with every qualifying order.
• Know return policies beforehand – connect directly with retailers first about guarantees and warranties regardless of choosing Afterpay later on.
• Set payment reminders – calendar or app alerts help avoid forgetting installment due dates and risking fees.
• Contact support with questions – Afterpay offers 24/7 customer service via phone, email and chat to help users manage accounts.

At the end of the day, pay later solutions like Afterpay simply inject greater flexibility into how you spread out costs over time for larger discretionary purchases.

When leaned on responsibly within your true budget and repayment means, enjoy the interest-, fee- and credit score-free perks of modern financing!