Afterpay vs Zip for Australian ecommerce: which buy-now-pay-later option is right for your store?

Why BNPL matters for Australian online stores

Australia has one of the highest BNPL adoption rates in the world. A significant proportion of Australian online shoppers will actively choose a store that offers Afterpay or Zip over one that doesn't — particularly for purchases in the $50–$500 range. Offering BNPL is no longer a differentiator. It is increasingly a baseline expectation.

The question is not whether to offer it, but which provider (or providers) to integrate.

Afterpay: the dominant option for fashion, beauty and lifestyle

Afterpay is the most widely recognised BNPL brand in Australia. Key facts for merchants:

• Structure — four fortnightly instalments with no interest charged to the customer. Afterpay takes on the credit risk.
• Merchant fees — typically 4–6% of the transaction value plus a fixed fee per transaction. Exact rates depend on your sales volume and product category.
• Customer base — very strong penetration among 18–35 year old shoppers, particularly in fashion, beauty, homewares, and lifestyle categories.
• Platform support — native integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, and most major Australian ecommerce platforms.

Zip: the better option for higher-value purchases

Zip (formerly Zip Pay and Zip Money) operates on a slightly different model and tends to attract customers making larger purchases:

• Zip Pay — revolving credit account up to $1,000. Customers repay on a schedule of their choice with a minimum monthly payment. No interest if paid in full.
• Zip Money — for purchases over $1,000, with credit limits up to $50,000. Interest-free periods available. Better suited to furniture, electronics, appliances, and trade services.
• Merchant fees — comparable to Afterpay for Zip Pay, with different structures for Zip Money.
• Customer base — broader age range than Afterpay, with stronger penetration for purchases over $300.

Do you need both?

For most Australian online stores, offering both Afterpay and Zip is the recommended approach. The incremental integration cost is low (both plug natively into Shopify and WooCommerce), and different customers have strong preferences for one over the other.

The practical consideration is merchant fees — you are paying 4–6% on every BNPL transaction. Factor that into your pricing strategy, particularly for lower-margin products.

QRM Australia builds ecommerce stores with Afterpay, Zip, Stripe, and PayPal integrated as standard. See our ecommerce service for more detail on what we include.