Cyber Monday drew record numbers for buy-now-pay-later services, but Minneapolis-based Sezzle was already having a record year.
On Dec. 2, consumers nationwide spent about $991 million through buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services, the highest single day for the category, according to an Adobe Analytics report. Sezzle is one app in a sea of options, but it’s been growing more profitable as it chases market share in the BNPL space.
The company reported a $53.1 million profit through September, a significant departure from its $7 million profit in 2023 and losses in 2021 and 2022. At one point, its stock value — despite a rocky launch on U.S. exchanges — shot up more than 3,400% in the past year.
“We’re still growing rapidly, even with the space,” said CEO Charlie Youakim. “... Competitors are coming in, but some are exiting, as well. So, it’s been a wild ride, actually, for a few years here.”

Sezzle launched its first BNPL product in 2017. Pay-in-4 allows consumers to pay for large expenses in four equal installments: one at the time of purchase and then three biweekly payments. For consumers who pay on time and use a bank account, it’s generally free.
But in the past few years, Sezzle has transitioned to a subscription model to expand the services it can offer. Since 2022, Sezzle Premium charges consumers a recurring fee to extend its payment plans to “premium merchants” not integrated with the app. Sezzle Anywhere gives consumers a virtual card accepted anywhere Visa is.
Sezzle’s newest product, On Demand, allows consumers to use Sezzle’s BNPL products anywhere that accepts Visa — without a subscription — by distributing single-use virtual cards for different transactions.
As of September, Sezzle had about 529,000 subscribers, about 72% more than it had at the beginning of the year. Meanwhile, its nearly 2.7 million active consumers have remained about the same.