Affirm Debit+™ Card: The Power of BNPL In Your Wallet

Affirm Debit+™ Card Review

The Affirm Debit+™ is a combination debit/checking account and a Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service from industry-leader Affirm. The debit card provides the flexibility of a BNPL service with the impressive lack of any fees – including interest – on big purchases.

Buy Now, Pay Later – with No Credit Impact

Because the Affirm Debit Card is a full-fledged debit card, there is no credit check to apply for or receive the account. The Debit+ card works with your existing, linked bank account. This process ensures that purchases can be split over time without needing credit – meaning no impact on your credit score.

No Fees of Any Kind

Even better, because the Affirm Debit+ Visa links with an existing bank account, paying overtime doesn’t involve any hidden fees. Gone are the annual fees, sign-up fees, overdraft fees, and late payment charges found with other credit cards.

Eligible purchases of $100 are even free from interest charges. Select merchants may offer 0% promotional APR on purchases, with other purchases incurring an APR of between 0% and 30% APR, subject to creditworthiness (based on a soft credit pull). Loans are simple interest loans, which means that interest, if any, accrues daily on the unpaid principal balance, up to the amount of the finance charge, until you pay the loan in full.

How to Get Affirm

Applying for Affirm+ is very simple. Applicants must be 18 or older, live in the United States (U.S. territory and New Mexico residents are not eligible at the moment, however), have a valid Social Security Number (SSN), and have an eligible bank checking or savings account.

How Does Affirm Work?

The Affirm+ Debit Visa works through the dedicated Affirm Debit+ app. The app, available in both the Google Play and Apple App Store, provides a streamlined, single destination where cardholders can view, manage, and split their purchases.

After an account holder makes an eligible purchase of $100 to $1,000 with their Affirm Visa, they’ll have 24 hours to choose to split the purchases using Affirm’s BNPL service. Before splitting the purchase, the cardholder will see the APR for that BNPL service before accepting the terms and splitting the purchase. Payments are then automatically debited from the linked bank account.

Keep in mind that Affirm sets a daily limit on the total amount a user can spend. The card has a flexible spending limit based on the available balance in the linked personal bank account – with daily limits reaching a maximum $2,500 daily limit and a maximum $15,000 monthly spending limit.

Other Debit Cards to Consider

What We Like About Affirm

There’s plenty to like about Affirm’s debit card, starting with accessing Affirm Buy Now and Pay Later services directly from the card. That streamlined access, including anywhere Visa is accepted in the U.S., is great, especially when no hidden fees or membership account costs are associated with the card. Hook up your existing checking account to your new Affirm Card, and you will enjoy the peace of mind of Affirm and a traditional debit card. After swiping, you can even use the mobile app to request plans for eligible purchases.

Things to Consider

Perhaps the biggest letdown with the Affirm Card is the inability to use the card outside of the United States. The card only works wherever Visa is accepted in the United States, meaning you might be out of luck if you plan to travel abroad or make purchases with some foreign websites.

Other Card Features

One important note with the Affirm+ Visa Debit Card is that the card will not work at ATMs. This restriction means the Affirm Card will not operate as a traditional debit card – despite being linked to an existing bank account. Additionally, the card does not currently work outside of the United States, meaning if you are looking for a global purchasing tool that offers BNPL capabilities, this isn’t your best bet.

Other notable features of the Affirm Debit+™ Visa include:

• Mobile wallet compatibility with Apple Pay or Google Pay through the Affirm+ mobile app
• EMV chip technology and contactless payment integration

Cardholders also enjoy access to the basic Visa debit card protections and benefits, including:

Affirm+ Fee Schedule

Here is the most up-to-date fee schedule for the Affirm Debit+™ account:

Affirm Ratings

Here are a selection of expert reviews for Affirm:

Should You Get the Affirm Debit+™ Visa Card?

The Affirm Debit+™ Card is an interesting BNPL debit card from industry-leader Affirm. Buy Now, Pay Later services are popular thanks to more accessible access to financing than traditional credit cards, with the Affirm card the latest example of this trend.

While Affirm Debit+ offers free access to BNPL solutions, the card won’t build credit like some other debit cards (notably the Tomo Credit Card, which essentially functions similarly). Secured credit cards, or even credit builder cards that offer basic rewards (such as the Revvi Card or Surge Platinum Secured Card) may provide a better platform for those looking to establish a positive credit history.

Ultimately, the Affirm Debit+™ Card serves the BNPL niche very well. It might not offer the chance to build credit, but it hits all the right notes for those who don’t worry about things like that.