The news: More than half (54%) of US buy now, pay later (BNPL) users say they wouldn’t have been able to make ends meet without installment loans, per a Lending Tree survey. That includes 62% of parents with young children who use BNPL and 59% of millennials who use BNPL.

The share of BNPL users who pay for groceries with installments has doubled since 2024, rising to 29% of US BNPL-using households. Major BNPL for grocery users include Gen Zers (38%), parents (34%), and consumers making more than $100,000 (33%). 

Thirteen percent of US BNPL customers have used loans for rent, and 61% of all renters would at least consider the “pay in two” installment method. Gen Zers and millennials (73%) and parents (76%), again, were most interested in the rent financing.

Why this matters: As consumers feel more pressure from rising costs of everyday goods and services, BNPL players’ ubiquity across online checkouts and BNPL-enabled cards have made it easier for younger and more financially vulnerable consumers to buy essentials.

While multiple demographics have embraced BNPL, their history of defaults or regret around these purchases also signal that BNPL can also introduce its own financial risks:

• Nearly half (47%) of users have paid late on one of their installment loans in the past year—up 6 percentage points from 2025 and 13 percentage points in 2024.
• 1 in 4 users had three or more installment loans active at the same time.
• 68% of users believe BNPL makes them overspend, and 54% regret using the payment method to finance their shopping.

PYMNTS Intelligence has similarly found that 1 in 3 installment users who rely on the financing don’t know when their next payment is due. This lack of awareness may be a consequence of why these users are more likely to select BNPL at checkout: Roughly 43% of consumers name approval speed and ease as a major determinant for their choice at checkout, making impulsive buying for higher ticket items easier.

Implications for installment loan providers: Demand for installments is up, but the consumers who want it often are economically fragile. 

While new national campaigns are trying to reaccelerate slowing BNPL adoption rates, providers need to balance the things that make consumers opt for installments (fast approval and access) with robust tools that help shoppers see what BNPL loans they have outstanding and how much of their available credit line they can actually afford to use.