Affirms FAQs

How do I find items I can buy with financing?

Look for the Affirm badge

When you're on a listing page, look for the Affirm badge alongside the other payment methods accepted by the seller. You might not see Affirm available on all listings though, as financing is only available on items with a purchase price between $50 and $20,000.

Who is eligible to apply for Affirm financing?

Affirm customers must:

• Be a resident of the U.S. (including U.S. territories.)
• Be at least 18 years old (19 if you’re a ward of the state in Nebraska.)
• Have a Social Security number.
• Own a phone number that receives SMS and is registered to the United States or U.S. territories.

FAQs

Affirm Overview and Application Process

What is Affirm?

Affirm is a financing alternative to credit cards and other credit payment products. Affirm offers instant decisioning for purchases online. With Affirm, you can buy and receive your purchase now, and pay for it in fixed monthly installments over the course of 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, or 36 months.

Why buy with Affirm?

Here is what Affirm offers:

• Buy and receive your purchase now, and pay for it over 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, or 36 months. This allows you to split up the price of your purchase into fixed payment amounts that fit your monthly budget.
• You don’t need to have a credit card to make a purchase.
• You may be eligible for Affirm financing even if you don’t have an extensive credit history. Affirm bases its loan decision not only on your credit score but also on several other data points about you.
• The application process is secure and efficient. Affirm asks for a few key details from you. Once provided, Affirm will notify you of the loan amount you qualify for, the interest rate, and the repayment term—all with a quick loan decisioning process that delivers results within seconds.
• Affirm does not charge hidden fees. If Affirm approves you for a loan, Affirm discloses your loan terms before you make your purchase. You’ll know exactly how much you’ll owe each month, the number of payments you must make, and the total amount of interest you’ll be paying over the course of the loan.

How does Affirm approve borrowers for loans?

Affirm will ask you for a few pieces of personal information – your name, email, mobile phone number, date of birth, and the last four digits of your social security number. Affirm uses this information to verify your identity and to make an instant loan decision. Affirm will base its loan decision not only on your credit score but also on several other data points about you. This means you may be able to obtain financing from Affirm even if you don’t have an extensive credit history.

How does Affirm work?

Here are the steps in the Affirm loan application process:

1. Select to pay with Affirm at checkout.
2. Affirm will prompt you to enter a few pieces of information – your name, email, mobile phone number, date of birth, and the last four digits of your social security number. Please ensure that all of this information is your own and is consistent information otherwise you may experience difficulty with your checkout.
3. To ensure that you’re the person making the purchase, Affirm will send a text message to your cell phone with a unique authorization code.
4. Enter the authorization code into the application form. Within a few seconds, Affirm will notify you of the loan amount you’re approved for, the interest rate, and the number of months you will have to pay off your loan. Rates vary from 0-36% APR over 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, or 36 months depending on the seller and based on creditworthiness. Affirm will also state the amount of your fixed, monthly payments and the total amount of interest you’ll pay over the course of the loan.
5. If you would like to accept Affirm’s financing offer, click “Confirm Loan” and you’re done.

Going forward, you’ll get monthly email and SMS reminders about your upcoming payments. You can also set up autopay to avoid missing a payment. Your first monthly payment will be due 30 days from the date the merchant completes processing your order.

Does Affirm do a credit check, and how does it impact my credit score?

When you first create an Affirm account, we perform a ‘soft’ credit check to help verify your identity and determine your eligibility for financing. Checking eligibility will not impact credit. If you apply for more loans with Affirm, we may perform additional ‘soft’ credit checks to ensure that we provide you with the best financing options available. If you choose to pay with installments through Affirm, your payment plan and repayment activity may be reported to credit bureaus. For more details, please visit Affirm's Help Center.

Why was I denied financing by Affirm?

Please contact Affirm at https://helpcenter.affirm.com/us/s/contact-us or by calling (855) 423-3729 for assistance on denials.

Why can't customers outside the U.S. use Affirm?

Regrettably, Affirm is available only to shoppers residing in the United States. Affirm hopes to expand its services to customers outside the U.S. in the future.

Interest Rate and Fees

What are Affirm’s fees?

Your rate will be 0-36% APR based on credit and is subject to an eligibility check. For example, a $700 purchase might cost $63.18/mo over 12 months at 15% APR. Payment options through Affirm are provided by these lending partners: affirm.com/lenders.

Options depend on your purchase amount and a down payment may be required.

Why is my Affirm interest rate so high?

When determining your annual percentage rate (APR), Affirm evaluates a number of factors including your credit score and many other pieces of data about you. If you finance future purchases with Affirm, you may be eligible for a lower APR depending on your financial situation at the time of purchase.

When considering Affirm, you should carefully evaluate the loan terms Affirm offers you and determine whether the monthly payments fit your budget.

How is interest on an Affirm loan calculated?

Affirm calculates the annual percentage rate (APR) of a loan using simple interest, which equals the rate multiplied by the loan amount and by the number of months the loan is outstanding. This is different from compound interest, in which the interest expense is calculated on the loan amount and also the accumulated interest on the loan from previous periods. You can think about compound interest as “interest on interest,” which can make the your loan amount grow larger and larger. Credit cards, for example, use compound interest to calculate the interest expense on outstanding credit card debt.

Making Payments and Refunds

How do I make my payments?

Before each payment is due, Affirm will send you reminders via email and SMS that will include the installment amount that is coming due and the due date. You can also sign up for autopay so you don’t risk missing a payment.

Please follow these steps to make a payment:

1. Go to affirm.com/account
2. You will be prompted to enter in your mobile number where you will be sent a personalized security pin.
3. Enter this security pin into the form on the next page and click “Sign In.”
4. You’ll now see a list of your loans and payments coming due. Click on the loan payment you would like to make.
5. You can make a payment utilizing a debit card or ACH bank transfer.

How long does it take to get my money back in the event of a return?

You should see a refund from Affirm post within 3 to 10 business days, depending on your bank’s processing time.

How do refunds work on items I return?

A refund will post to your Affirm account if we process your refund request. In the event that we issue you store credit instead of a refund, you will still be responsible for paying off your Affirm loan.

If you have already made loan payments or a down payment, Affirm will issue you a refund credit to the bank account or debit card that you used to make the payments. You should see a refund credit within 3 to 10 business days, depending on your bank’s processing time.

Can I amend my order after my purchase has been processed? Can I be approved for a higher loan amount if my purchase amount increases?

Unfortunately, you cannot edit your order after you have confirmed your loan. If you would like to add items to your purchase, you can apply for another loan with Affirm or use a different payment method.