What is Affirm?

Affirm is a Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) finance option available exclusively to US retailers. It allows customers to spread the cost of a purchase over a series of fixed, scheduled payments rather than paying the full amount upfront at checkout.

Unlike some other BNPL providers, Affirm typically offers a range of repayment terms — often between 3 and 36 months — and may charge interest depending on the loan amount and repayment period selected. This makes it slightly different to providers like Afterpay or Zip Pay, where payments are always interest-free. Affirm performs a soft credit check at the point of application, which does not affect the customer's credit score.

What will this look like on my website?

Customers will see Affirm in numerous places across your website, including:

On the Product Detail Page:

Within the cart page:

And during the checkout:

Each widget will include a link to a calculator, which estimates monthly payments, depending on the finance plan and length of plan:

How does an Affirm order work?

When your customer selects Affirm at the checkout and clicks Confirm purchase, they are redirected to Affirm's website to complete their finance application. Affirm handles the application process, including the soft credit check and the choice of repayment plan.

Once the customer confirms their finance plan, they are redirected back to your website and, provided the payment is authorised, they land on the order confirmation page as normal.

If the customer exits the Affirm application before completing it, the payment is cancelled and they are returned to the checkout, where they can start again or choose a different payment method. If the payment is declined or fails, the customer is returned to their cart with an error message.

The order will appear in your Cloud POS Back Office once Affirm's payment provider confirms the funds have been secured — the same way card and Apple Pay orders from your website work. This usually happens quickly, but it does mean there can be a short delay between the customer completing their purchase and the order downloading to your Point of Sale.

How do I get set up with Affirm?

If you'd like to activate the Affirm integration, please reach out to your Success Team.