BNPL lingers as a Gen Z thing

Buy Now, Pay Later may not be done and dusted in Australia after all.

New research from Equifax finds 33% of Australians said they use credit cards, and 24% say the use Buy Now, Pay Later services.

“Among younger Australians, BNPL is even more prevalent with 38% of Gen Z nominating it as their preferred way to manage costs” Equifax said yesterday.

“In line with the research, we’ve seen the demand for unsecured credit products significantly increase year-on-year, suggesting Australians are relying more and more on credit to cover daily living expenses” Melanie Cochrane, CEO Equifax ANZ said.

The credit bureau said its research shows 38% of 18 to 30-year-olds nominate BNPL as their preferred way to manage costs.

The Equifax research also shares some data central to its business model.

The firm said 23% of Australians’ credit scores saw a decline over the last year, while (perhaps surprisingly) credit scores increased for 52% of people – lifting the average score by three points from last year’s average result of 861.

Unsurprisingly, the youngest group, Australians aged 18 to 30, hold the lowest average credit score at 715. The score sees a significant jump in the next decade, rising to 839 for those aged 31 to 40.

Equifax’s Cochrane said: “Combined with credit delinquencies remaining stable in the third quarter of this year, these are encouraging signs.

“We understand that with cost-of-living pressures, maintaining good credit health can be challenging, but building financial resilience means that Australians are protecting their credit scores – and therefore enabling their access to credit when they need it most.”

The Equifax Credit Scorecard draws on analysis of the credit scores of the Australian banking population, combined with consumer research undertaken across 1010 Australians conducted by Qualtrics in September 2025.