By : 
Mr Credit Card
Mr Credit Card
Sezzle is a Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) app that allows that gives you multiple payment options. Aside from the standard "pay over 4" installments, they also offer "pay over 2" payments and a monthly payment option ranging from 4-48 months. Sezzle has a program called Sezzle Up and is one of the rare BNPL apps that reports to the three major credit bureaus. They also have a Virtual Card when you sign up for the Sezzle Anywhere program where you can use the card anywhere Visa is accepted. If you are looking for a BNPL app that helps you build or rebuild your credit, Sezzle is an app you should consider.
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Sezzle Details
| Payment Structure |
Pay-in-4 Plan Pay-in-2 Plan Pay in Full Monthly Pay over 3-48 Months |
| APR |
0% for Pay-in-4 and Pay-in-2 Plans 0% to 34.99% for Monthly Plan |
| Credit Limits |
Not Specified and may vary with merchant. Up to $15,000 for Monthly Payment Plan |
| Failed Payment Fees | Up to $5.00 |
| Late Fees | Up to $15, not more than 25% of original order amount |
| Rescheduling Fees | Up to $7.50 |
| Convenience Fees | Up to $1.50 if you pay via debit card or credit card |
Pay-in-4 Payment Option with 0% APR
Like most other Buy-Now-Pay-Later apps, Sezzle offers consumers the standard pay-in-4 payment option. Under this option, you will pay 25% of the purchase price 4 times over the course of 6 weeks. The first 25% is paid upon checkout and subsequent payments are paid every 2 weeks. The purchase will be fully paid in 6 weeks under the pay-in-4 scheme. No interest rates will be charged (ie APR is 0%).Pay-in-2 Payment Option also available
Sezzle also offers Pay-in-2 payment plans for certain purchases. For the pay-in-2 payment plan, you will pay 50% down at the time of purchase. The remaining purchase will be paid 2 weeks later. Hence, purchase will be paid off in 2 weeks. The interest, like the pay-in-4 plan is 0%.Pay-in-2 plans are only available with some merchants and are not usually offered if your orders are above $500.
Monthly Payment Plans
Sezzle also offers longer term monthly payment for higher priced items and the ability to pay over time with no down payment. Longer term payment options are only available for items purchased above $150. Your term may range from 3 - 48 months. Interest rate will vary from 0% to 34.99%. Sezzles long term lending partners are Bread and Opportun. If the monthly payment option is offered to you and you decide to take it, you would need to set your payment methods in Sezzles partners's website (which can be accessed from the Sezzle portal).Pay in Full
You are also given the option to pay in full. When you shop online, simply select "1 payment" at checkout in your Sezzle app. For in-store checkout with your Sezzle Virtual Card, go to to the Sezzle app, "Virtual Card", select "Payment Plans" and choose "Pay in 1".Spend Powers
Spend Power is the estimated amount that you can spend on Sezzle. This is not a guaranteed amount and may increase and decrease at any time depending on where you are shopping at. Furthermore, each order is treated on an individual basis and is determined at the Sezzle checkout. Sezzle's system considers factors like how long you have been a customer, information they obtained during the soft credit check and your order history with Sezzle to determine your Spend Power. The amount is determined algorithmically and cannot be changed by Sezzle's customer service.Your Spending Power is revised regularly and the more you spend on Sezzle, the more likely your Spend Power will increase.
Sezzle Up: Get Your Payments Reported to Credit Bureaus
- Pay off one order on time and in full
- Link your bank account as the default for scheduled payments
- Enter your SSN and confirm your personal information
You can sign up for Sezzle by clicking the account tab in your app and selecting "Sezzle Up".
Sezzle Anywhere - Sezzle's Virtual Visa Card
- Use Sezzle Virtual Card online anywhere Visa is accepted
- use Sezzle Virtual Card anywhere Apple Pay or Google Pay and Visa are accepted at the payment terminal
- Earn 1% back in Sezzle Spend on eligible Pay-in-full transactions
- Earn $5 in Sezzle spend every month your Sezzle anywhere subscription renews
You can sign up for Sezzle Anywhere by navigating to Memberships under the "Accounts" tab in the app.
Competition with other BNPL Apps
| BNPL App | Payment Options | Credit Bureau Reporting | Hard Inquiry | Credit Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sezzle |
Pay-in-4 Pay-in-2 Monthly Payment 3-48 months |
Yes | No | Up to $15,000 for Monthly Payment Option |
| Perpay | Monthly up to 6b months | Yes | No but need $1,800 min income | Up to $2,500 |
| Affirm |
Pay-in-4 Monthly Payment 3-60 months |
No | No |
$50-$1,000 for Pay-in-4 $50-$5,000 for Monthly Payment |
| Afterpay | Pay-in-4 | No | No | No predefined limit |
| Klarna |
Pay Now Pay-in-3 Pay-in-30 days |
No | No | No predefined limit |
Sezzle competes with many Buy Now Pay Later apps. These includes apps like Afterpay, Affirm, Klarna and Perpay. There are two aspects that I want to highlight.
Sezzle reports to credit bureaus whiles others do not
Sezzle is one of the rare BNPL apps that actually reports to credit bureaus. You have to enroll in Sezzle Up (which is free), and link your bank account for autopay. Other BNPL apps like Afterpay, Klarna and Affirm do not report to credit bureaus. Affirm will actually report only your first installment payment to Experian, and that's it. Perpay does report to credit bureaus though you have to sign up for Perpay+ and it will cost you $3/month for this service.No Hard Inquiry - Similar to Other BNPL apps
Like most other BNPL apps, Sezzles does not perform any hard inquiries when you sign up. But like other (Afterpay, Affirm and Klarna), if you opt for their monthly payment and financing plan, a hard inquiry will be performed since you will be paying them back over a much longer period of time.It is interesting to note that though Perpay does not perform any hard inquiries, they do require you to have a minimum income of $1,800 and you have to pay Pepay directly from your payroll direct deposit. Sezzle, like most other BNPL platforms do not have any minimum income requirements.
Sezzle's Virtual Card has monthly fee
Most other BNPL apps can issue their customers a Virtual Card. All of them seem to have the same characteristics. For example, these virtual cards can be used anywhere (online or in-store) Visa is accepted and where Apply Pay and Google Pay is accepted. You would have to add your virtual card to your phone's digital wallet.Most other BNPL apps do not charge any fees for their virtual cards. Sezzle, however charges a monthly subscription fee. And the fee is also not disclosed and varies with different users. Some have reported being charged $17/month while others have reported being charged $8/month.
Summary: Sezzle vs Competitors
In terms of features, Sezzle is very similar to it's competitors in that most offer some sort of Pay-in-4 options with 0% interest rates. What sets Sezzle apart is that they do report your payments to the three major credit bureaus (TransUnion, Equifax and Experian) while other do not. The only other BNPL app that does is Perpay.Sezzle's virtual card is inferior to it's competitors because you have to pay a monthly fee for it. No one else has that requirement.
Popular Comparison
Sezzle vs AffirmSezzle vs Afterpay
Sezzle vs Perpay
Our Take: Sezzle is a great BNPL app for rebuilding your credit
However, most BNPL apps do not report your installment payments to credit bureaus and you cannot build or rebuild your credit with them. However, Sezzle does report to your installment payments to all three major credit bureaus (TransUnion, Equifax and Experian). You simply have to enroll in Sezzle Up (from your app) and link your bank account when you set up your payment method. They will start reporting once you have completed paying in full your first purchase. This makes Sezzle an ideal Buy Now Pay Later app for those who are looking to build or rebuild their credit scores.
I do not like the fact that Sezzle's Virtual Card comes with a monthly subsription fee that varies with different customers as most other BNPL apps offer virtual cards with no fees at all. The way Sezzles spending power works can be confusing to many people as well. It is actually easy to understand but Sezzle reports your spending power on your app depending on whether you have used it or not and some folks get confused over that.
To sum up, based on our evaluation and review of Sezzle, I am giving it a 4.3 stars out of 5 for it's ease of approval (no hard inquiries or income requirements) and most important of all, it's reporting to all three major credit bureaus. The fees they charge for their Virtual Card prevents us from giving it a higher rating.
If you are looking for a BNPL app and want it to use it as a tool to rebuild or build your credit, then Sezzle is a no brainer as it is one of the rare Buy Now Pay Later apps that does so.
Some Customer Reviews
I use Sezzle for emergency purchases. For example I use it on instacart and Walmart. They also do not charge you any interest and you have the option to pay it off early. Sometimes, it makes sense when I do not want to pay a large amount upfront. As long as you can pay it off, using Sezzle is ok. And btw, they also report to credit bureaus if you enroll in Sezzle Up.
Sezzle reports to all 3 credit bureaus. For me this is a no brainer since Affirm, Afterpay and Klarna all do not report at all.