Walmart Lets Customers Buy Now, Pay Later at Self-Checkout

Through an expanded partnership with payments network Affirm, Walmart is giving its customers pay-over-time options when they use self-checkout kiosks at more than 4,500 of its stores in the United States. Affirm’s services are also available on walmart.com and in the Walmart app, as well as at Walmart Vision and Auto Centers. 

According to recent Affirm research, 54% of Americans want retailers to offer a buy now, pay later option at checkout, and 76% of consumers would either delay or not make a purchase without Affirm’s services. Affirm asserts that its customers are shown the total cost of their purchase and never pay more than they agree to, and the company never charges late or hidden fees.

“Expanding our partnership with Walmart and bringing Affirm’s transparent monthly pay-over-time options to their self-checkout kiosks in the U.S. will help even more consumers increase their purchasing power during the holiday shopping season and beyond,” said Pat Suh, SVP of revenue at Affirm. 

Walmart, meanwhile, is betting that the American grocery shopper’s preference for personal contact with products in-store will not only persist, but also persevere. The retailer recently celebrated the largest single-day rollout of re-grand openings in company history, which represent more than half a billion dollars in capital investments in local communities across 30 states. 

Each store’s reopening is part of Walmart’s Signature Experience, which seeks to inspire customers and provide them with a seamless, high-quality shopping experience. Upgraded features include improved layouts, expanded product selections, and innovative technology that allows Walmart associates to better support customers and make shopping more convenient and enjoyable.

Each week, approximately 230 million customers and members visit Walmart’s more than 10,500 stores and numerous e-commerce websites under 46 banners in 24 countries. The Bentonville, Ark.-based company employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart U.S. is No. 1 on Progressive Grocer’s 2023 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. PG also named Walmart one of its Retailers of the Century.