Yes, but only on newer scoring models. FICO's BNPL-inclusive scores (FICO Score 10 BNPL and 10 T BNPL) began rolling out in late 2025, and lenders adopt them gradually. For most people, a joint FICO/Affirm study found the effect is small — a change of roughly ±10 points — but that can matter right at a lending threshold, and missed BNPL payments carry the same risk as any other missed payment once they're reported.
"Buy now, pay later" services like Affirm, Klarna, and Afterpay grew popular partly because they sat outside the traditional credit system — no hard inquiry to apply, and (until recently) no effect on your score either way. That's changing, and the shift has caught a lot of regular BNPL users off guard, since the marketing around these products for years leaned heavily on the idea that they were essentially consequence-free. Here's exactly what's different in 2026, which providers report to which bureaus, and what it actually means for your credit.
What actually changed
Until 2025, BNPL loans mostly existed in a blind spot: they weren't reported to the major credit bureaus the way credit cards, auto loans, and mortgages are, so they didn't show up on your credit report and had no bearing on your score either way. That's shifted on two fronts. First, individual providers started reporting directly — Affirm reports to Experian and TransUnion, and Klarna reports to TransUnion, for at least some loan types. Second, and more significant, FICO built dedicated scoring models — FICO Score 10 BNPL and FICO Score 10 T BNPL — specifically designed to incorporate this data once it's present on a credit report.
How your score can actually move
The mechanism matters more than the headline. FICO classifies a BNPL loan as either installment credit or revolving credit depending on the specific product structure, and that classification affects how much weight it carries. A handful of on-time, paid-off BNPL loans can help fill out a thin credit file by adding to your payment history and credit mix — two of the largest factors in any FICO score, together accounting for roughly two-thirds of the score in traditional models. On the other hand, several BNPL loans open at once can look like credit-seeking behavior or overextension to a lender, even if every payment is made on time, and a missed BNPL payment is scored the same way any other missed payment is once it's actually reporting.
| Provider | Reports to bureaus? | Which bureau(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Affirm | Yes, for many loan types | Experian, TransUnion |
| Klarna | Yes, for some loan types | TransUnion |
| Afterpay | Limited reporting as of 2026 | Varies |
| PayPal Pay Later | Limited reporting as of 2026 | Varies |
Reporting practices change frequently and vary by loan type (pay-in-4 vs. longer installment plans) even within the same provider — check directly with your specific provider before assuming either way.
Most lenders are still pulling older FICO models that don't include BNPL data at all — adoption of the new models across the lending industry is expected to be a multi-year rollout, not an overnight switch. Don't assume your BNPL activity is affecting every score a lender might pull.
Why this is happening now
BNPL usage has grown fast enough that lenders and credit bureaus started treating its absence from credit files as a blind spot rather than a neutral feature. A borrower juggling several BNPL installment plans alongside credit cards can look, on paper, far less leveraged than they actually are — traditional credit scores simply couldn't see that debt. The new models exist to close that visibility gap for lenders, not specifically to help or hurt consumers, and the shift mirrors a broader pattern in credit scoring where new data sources (rent payments, telecom bills, and now BNPL) are gradually being incorporated as the industry looks for a more complete picture of how people actually manage money day to day.
What to actually do about it
The practical guidance doesn't change much from standard credit management, but a few BNPL-specific habits are worth adopting now, before the newer scoring models become the industry default.
Treat every BNPL payment like a bill with real consequences. Set up autopay wherever the provider allows it — a missed BNPL payment is no longer a "no harm, no foul" situation once it's reporting.
Avoid stacking multiple BNPL loans at once. Several simultaneous plans, even if each is individually small, can resemble the kind of credit-seeking pattern that dings a score under both traditional and BNPL-inclusive models.
Check your credit reports periodically for BNPL entries. Since reporting varies by provider and loan type, pulling your free reports from all three bureaus is the only reliable way to know what's actually showing up on your file.
Curious how a BNPL balance compares to paying with a 0% or low-interest card instead? Our Debt Payoff Calculator can help you compare payoff timelines side by side.
The bigger picture: BNPL and overall credit health
Whether or not a specific BNPL loan shows up on a credit score, it still counts as real debt against your budget, and the habits that build a strong credit profile generally — on-time payments, reasonable utilization, not opening too much new credit at once — apply just as much to BNPL as to any other form of borrowing. If you're using BNPL specifically because a purchase doesn't fit your current budget, that's a signal worth listening to regardless of how the loan eventually gets scored.
BNPL vs. a credit card: which builds credit better?
For someone specifically trying to build or rebuild credit, a traditional credit card used responsibly is still the more proven tool, mainly because reporting is universal and consistent — every major card issuer reports to all three bureaus every month, while BNPL reporting is still inconsistent across providers and loan types as covered above. A secured credit card or a credit-builder loan, both of which report predictably, generally produce a more reliable and better-understood credit-building effect than relying on BNPL activity that may or may not show up on any given bureau's file. This is a meaningful distinction for anyone specifically working on a thin or damaged credit file who might otherwise assume BNPL activity is quietly helping in the background — it may not be reporting at all, depending on the provider and loan type chosen.
That doesn't make BNPL a bad choice for its intended purpose — splitting a specific purchase into manageable, often interest-free installments. It just means BNPL shouldn't be treated as a credit-building strategy in the way a secured card can be, at least not yet, while provider reporting practices remain this inconsistent.
What lenders will actually see
Even once BNPL-inclusive scoring becomes standard, a lender pulling your credit for a mortgage or auto loan will typically also review your bank statements and any BNPL activity directly during underwriting, separate from whatever appears on your credit score. This means BNPL debt can already factor into a lending decision today, through manual underwriting review, even on loans where the credit score itself doesn't yet reflect it. If you're planning a major purchase like a home or car in the near future, it's worth winding down any open BNPL balances beforehand regardless of whether they're currently affecting your score, since an underwriter reviewing your bank statements will see the recurring payments either way, and unexplained recurring debits are a common source of underwriting delays and follow-up questions during the approval process.
Sources & further reading
This article draws on figures and rules published directly by the following primary sources. We link to them so you can verify the underlying data yourself.
- myFICO — what's in a FICO Score
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — credit reports and scores
- AnnualCreditReport.com — official free credit report site