It’s no secret that buy now, pay later (BNPL) services are transforming how consumers around the world shop online. While consumers may have once reserved pay-over-time options for large, occasional purchases, they are now using BNPL for everything from travel, electronics, and home goods to everyday expenses like groceries. According to our Digital 2025: April Global Statshot Report, 15.8% of internet users aged 16+ use BNPL services each week, up from 15.3% in January. But what are consumers saying, and how are they feeling, about this new wave in financial behaviors? We used our social listening and analytics solution to find out.
How big is the online buzz around buy now, pay later?
Mentions of buy now pay later (BNPL) from January 1 to April 30, 2025 across 16 social media sources, including X, Reddit, and Bluesky.
In the first four months in 2025, there were about 94,700 social media mentions of BNPL and related keywords and phrases. This is a slight decrease from the four months prior, however online buzz about BNPL so far in 2025 is still more than 20% higher than it was over the same time period a year ago. (From January 1 to April 30, 2024, there were about 77,000 social media mentions of BNPL.)
This increase in volume reflects the growing popularity of BNPL services, with the discussion being a mix of excitement about new payment options and debate about what BNPL popularity means about consumer behavior, financial stability, and the state of the economy. All of this, plus the expected dose of online humor, has fueled mentions and engagement.
The biggest day for BNPL buzz so far this year was on March 20 with the announcement of Klarna’s new partnership with DoorDash. Meanwhile, the social content that generated the most engagement came from X: a post using a screenshot of Christian Bale from the 2015 film The Big Short in reaction to news that 60% of Coachella general admission ticket purchasers used BNPL.
https://t.co/K5jD14wiKG pic.twitter.com/j0QyHZ8d2W
— Dac (@daclaration) April 14, 2025
For anyone who hasn’t seen the movie, The Big Short tells the story of several finance professionals, including investor Michael Burry played by Bale, who foresaw the 2008 housing bubble burst and took advantage of it for personal profit. The joke of the X post is that similar predation is due to happen again as young people’s reliance on BNPL services continues to grow, potentially sparking another economic crisis. This wariness is reflected in the sentiment of the conversation overall.
Sentiment of mentions of buy now, pay later (BNPL) from January 1 to April 30, 2025 across 16 social media sources, including X, Reddit, and Bluesky.
About a quarter of the overall BNPL conversation is negative, driven by concerns about increasing usage for everyday expenses like groceries, high interest rates, and consumer debt. For some context, in January, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reported that about 60% of BNPL transactions came from consumers with subprime or deep subprime credit scores. Still, as costs and price sensitivity among consumers continue to increase, demand for BNPL payment options, partnerships, and integrations likely will, too.
What is the most popular buy now, pay later service?
Mentions of select buy now, pay later (BNPL) services from January 1 to April 30, 2025 across 16 social media sources, including X, Reddit, and Bluesky.
Globally, Klarna is the most talked about BNPL service on social media, generating about 136,000 mentions from January 1 to April 30, 2025. That’s about five times more than the second-most talked about service, Afterpay/Clearpay with about 25,300 mentions.
Mentions of select buy now, pay later (BNPL) services over time from January 1 to April 30, 2025 across 16 social media sources, including X, Reddit, and Bluesky.
Klarna’s social media dominance over the four other services we analyzed is largely due to its previously mentioned partnership with DoorDash. On March 20, with the partnership announcement, Klarna’s social media mentions spiked 38x higher than average.
When we break the discussion down by the top 10 locations for BNPL service mentions, Klarna was the clear winner in the US, UK, China, Sweden, Netherlands, Germany, Canada, France, and India. However, Afterpay/Clearpay was the most mentioned service in Australia.
Takeaways for marketers
Social media conversations in 2025 solidify that BNPL usage isn’t a fleeting trend, it’s an expanding consumer behavior (particularly among young people) with several important implications. First, price sensitivity is high as consumers everywhere are feeling the crunch of the rising cost of living. Brands that offer BNPL need to be careful in their messaging, with transparency around terms, risk, and responsible use. Those that aren’t proactive in addressing consumer concerns risk blowback and reputational damage as public scrutiny continues. Next, expect to see increased regulation of BNPL services in countries and regions that haven’t implemented them already. Finally, brands should look into strategic partnerships with financial influencers and educators. These creators know the best ways to craft campaigns and messaging for finance-savvy and budget-conscious consumers looking to learn more about flexible payment options and financial security.
