Apple has launched its Pay Later service in the United States, which, according to the company, is "designed with users’ financial health in mind." The new service will allow users to make purchases and split the total over four even payments that will be spread out over six weeks. During this time, there will be no interest and more importantly, there will no fees as long as it's all paid off in the six-week span. For the time being, Apple Pay Later will roll out to select users as a prerelease of sorts, with plans to make it available to everyone located in the United States in the coming months.

Jennifer Bailey, who is Apple’s vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet stated:

“There’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to how people manage their finances. Many people are looking for flexible payment options, which is why we’re excited to provide our users with Apple Pay Later. Apple Pay Later was designed with our users’ financial health in mind, so it has no fees and no interest, and can be used and managed within Wallet, making it easier for consumers to make informed and responsible borrowing decisions.”

Apple makes the sign-up process seamless, directing eligible users to head into the Wallet app to apply for a loan. A soft credit check is run, and once everything checks out, the user will be approved for the amount requested. Once approved the Apple Pay Later option will become available as a payment option during checkout through the Wallet app. After the initial setup, Apple will also allow users to apply for a loan in the checkout process, making it even more convenient to borrow money on the fly.

Apple Pay Later Main interface screen

Apple's Pay Later service is a seamless and convenient way to pay, giving users the option to take a loan, ranging in the amount of $50 up to $1,000. This money can be used anyway that you want, as long as you make your purchases online, or with merchants that support Apple Pay. All the necessary and important financial figures show up in your Apple Wallet, so you can visually see and keep track of payments and amounts owed. Apple will show amounts that will be due in the next 30 days and even deliver notifications to keep users on their toes. When it comes time to paying back these loans, users will be required to pay using a debit card, which needs to be linked in their Wallet.

Apple Pay Later Calendar view showing upcoming payments and payment breakdowns

As you might expect, you'll get all the security features you've become used to using Apple's services and products, with the company taking advantage of its Face ID and Touch ID technologies to authorize payment. Those that are particular about their finances should know that Apple does plan to report loans from Pay Later to United States credit bureaus starting in the fall. This feature is making its debut today but will only be available to those invited to test it out. This invite should come as an email that is associated with the user's Apple ID and users will need to be running iOS 16.4 or iPadOS 16.4 to take advantage.


Source: Apple