How to Develop An App Like Klarna: A Complete Guide

Buy Now Pay Later has gained immense popularity. The idea is to offer direct payment without having to pay upfront and break down a purchase into installments.

Whenever BNPL comes to mind, the first thing that a user thinks of is Klarna.

The app has certainly become an example for budding entrepreneurs planning to enter the growing BNPL market, as Klarna has successfully paved its way to the top.

If you are someone planning to enter the fintech market and want a reference point for your BNPL app, Klarna can be a great place to start.

In this post, let us understand how it works and how you can build an app like Klarna.

Without further ado, let’s get started!

What is the Klarna App? How Does it Work?

The Klarna app is one of the most popular BNPL solutions available in the market today.

For those who are unaware, Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) is a payment method that allows users to make one-tap payments on their favorite e-commerce platforms, offering flexibility in payment options.

The total active consumers on the platform is 93 million, along with the total number of merchants, which is 675k.

It is one of the leading global payments and shopping platforms, assisting users in performing more flexible shopping and purchasing experiences for the 85 million active customers.

The impact of Klarna is such that it has become synonymous with BNPL online payments.

Not only does it provide convenience, but it also gives an unbanked individual a chance to leverage the benefits of easy monthly payments.

Here’s how the Klarna app works –

• Step 1 – The first step is to integrate the app with a popular e-commerce platform from which a user can use your services.
• Step 2 – When the user selects your service as a payment method, you need to show them the plans you offer. For instance, answer the questions like what will be the payback duration, and for how long can a user pay installments, etc?
• Step 3 – The user finds the details and accordingly selects the tenure. As soon as they agree to go with your BNPL service, you can gather the required information and run a quick analysis of the profile along with a credit check.
• Step 4 – Once the credit is approved, the transaction can be made through your BNPL service. The transaction is seamless as all a user has to do is tap on the service, select the tenure, and consent to the transaction.
• Step 5 – Once the transaction is complete, the user can start repaying the amount through easy installments. This is where you get your money back.

Now, if the user pays every installment on time, it will be convenient for you and your app to continue with the business. BNPL apps direct the purchases and make it doable for the user to continue with the payments in the future.

This is how easy it is to use Klarna as a new user. While the idea of helping users find a better way to pay for shopping seems highly convenient for the customers, several of you may be wondering what’s in it for the service provider?

Check out the next section to understand the benefits of building a BNPL app like Klarna.

Why Develop an App Like Klarna?

As an application, it offers massive benefits and convenience to the users. However, the benefits are not only limited to the customers, as launching an app like Klarna can be highly beneficial for you too.

How?

Well, the market for BNPL services is on a roll. And while people are becoming more aware of how buy now, pay later works, the market is void of a user-friendly BNPL app.

There is certainly less competition than what fintech as a field has, which makes your entry into the realm easier.

Other than that, developing an app like Klarna offers significant benefits, which are –

► Flexibility and Convenience

One of the important aspects here is flexibility and convenience. BNPL apps like Klarna help users get instant credit without even bothering to take out a loan.

With the help of flexible working, companies will be able to adapt to the fluctuating demand of the market.

The app helps the users select the payment plans, and here the users don’t need to pay the whole amount upfront. This can suit the users best and may help them to pursue the payment without any stress.

► Transparent Payment Systems

Users always adore transparency in payments. Thus, by creating an app like Klarna, you can allow users to have transparent payment options.

It is a user-friendly app that assists them in making an excellent choice of payments according to their feasibility and flexibility.

A transparent system of payment keeps every transaction clear, making it an excellent choice for online shoppers.

► Makes Payment Simpler

With the help of the Klarna app, users don’t need to continue with the traditional way of payments, of taking small loans for objects.

They can enjoy the convenience of buying now and paying later with no interest on the payment.

These apps are designed to make payments simpler by breaking down the purchase cost into smaller payments over a few weeks or months.

► Seamless Customer Experience

Apps like Klarna help give a seamless customer experience, helping the users to pay for the object, without worrying about any interest on it.

Additionally, the app provides consistent positive personalized experiences throughout their entire journey.

This results in increasing the brand value of the app around the competitors.

► Minimal Customer Details

The BNPL app, like Klarna, require very minimal customer details for approval. This helps the users to continue with the direct payment option even without any mortgage.

In the current era, the app has become a focal point for the majority of shoppers. Helping them out to buy the stuff that they need without charging any interest on the payment.

► Growing Popularity of BNPL Apps

The mentioned stats represent how BNPL apps like Klarna can be effective for this market. Since 2015, the growth of BNPL apps has continuously increased.

Till 2025, PayPal was the most downloaded payment app, and if we talk about BNPL, Klarna stays at the top of the market.

This convenience is a combination of two things: BNPL feature execution and top-class application development.

If you’re wondering what features you need to integrate into an app like Klarna, think no further, as we’ve mentioned them in the next section.

Key Features of an App Like Klarna

Apps like Klarna make it to the top of the market by offering convenience and features that make the entire concept of buy now, pay later relevant and easy to use.

What puts Klarna ahead of its competition is the series of features that it offers.

If you plan to dominate the market with your Klarna-like app, then it is highly recommended that you integrate the following features into your application.

These features, along with a thorough development process, can help you develop an app like Klarna in no time.

Keep in mind that integrating these features can give your app all the necessary upgrades to beat the competition in the BNPL market. Which means that with the correct approach, you can even develop an app better than Klarna’s.

What is the correct approach, you ask? Check out the next section to learn more about the steps involved in building a BNPL app.

Steps to Create an App Like Klarna

Building an application to compete with a market leader is never an easy task. However, since you already have an example of the application that has conquered the market, you can surely follow its footsteps with a little extra effort to beat it in its own game.

The first thing you need is to find a professional BNPL app development company that not only understands the assignment but also gets the job done and goes beyond your expectations.

Secondly, you need to follow a full-fledged development plan.

Check out the steps given below to learn what goes into building an app like Klarna –

Step 1: Research & Identify Value Proposition

What’s the value of your idea in the market? Well, answering the question totally depends on market research.

Understanding the BNPL market and then identifying where your product can fit and make an impact is crucial. Research thoroughly to identify your key goal and accordingly lay down a development strategy.

The idea is to know what you want to become in the market before stepping into it, so you can be focused on your goal.

Step 2: App Design Selection

UI/UX app design is all about selecting the color and theme, and then making a blueprint after evaluating the current market trend of app design.

Here, it is important that you need to develop a wireframe and prototype for sketching out the core part of the user flow.

You need to sketch out the type of functions to develop a Klarna clone app. You should be able to finalize the BNPL app design by going through its fundamentals and principles.

Step 3: Selecting Features

Identifying the features you want to place in your app is also a crucial step. Knowing what goes where becomes easy when you know which features you are working with.

Keep in mind that both a lack of features and too many features can cause your app to fail. Hence, finding the right balance between features and functionalities becomes equally important for the feature.

Step 4: Tech Stack Development

Finding the right tech stack is another part of the puzzle that you must crack. The technology you choose is the backbone of your application, and understandably, you must ensure that it is firm and future-proof.

To understand the right tech stack, check out the following table –

Step 5: Development of Functionality

So you have a wireframe, a list of features, and the technology to power them. What do you do next? You start developing the functionalities.

Give your developers enough time to understand the work and write code accordingly. Coding is the longest part of the process, which is why you should define the timeline accordingly.

Make sure you do not hurry the process, as it can surely hurt the quality of your final app.

Step 6: Testing and Quality Assurance

Mobile app testing is all about using the right tools to check the software thoroughly before it is launched in the competitive market.

It is essential to ensure that the app doesn’t contain any kind of bugs or errors and runs as per the expectations by the target users.

This step involves rigorous evaluations as well as resolving any type of issues before launch.

The process of app building might end here, but to sustain your business in the long term, you should not ignore maintenance activities.

Analyze the importance of app maintenance and then connect to established services that can help you with the same. Most probably, the hired development experts can do it for you successfully. Monetization Strategies for an App Like Klarna

Challenges in Developing an App Like Klarna

To build an app like Klarna, it is essential to cross-check the types of challenges that your app might face.

Here’s the list to proceed with.

➤ Complying With Regulations

Does your app comply with the fintech regulations?

Unawareness of regulations can impact your development process and might hamper the brand image.

You should check out the current regulations for BNPL apps and then adapt them to address the app’s aim.

➤ Lack of Skilled Developers

Poor skills of developers might impact the procedure. If the developers are not skilled in implementing the latest technologies, your app might get outdated.

This might lead to delays in project timelines, which will affect the brand image and even the business profits.

The inability of developers can have a large impact on development procedures.

➤ Security Risk

When handling the development task to a third party, the risk of security can affect your budget.

If the development company transfers the sensitive data and information to any outsider, this can destroy the overall objective of creating an app.

Many cyber threats might impact the technicalities and even the user’s data. This will result in you losing the complete app.

➤ Poor App Design

App design results in engaging the users for long intervals. Thus, a poor design can result in losing users.

This will harm the overall brand reputation of your business and can even hamper your connection with the users.

A lack of suitable app design will result in negative reviews about the app. This event will restrict the users from fulfilling their desired tasks successfully.

➤ Selecting the Wrong Tech Stack

Is your tech set selection for the dream BNPL app suitable to address the growing number of issues?

Well, selecting the wrong tech stack will result in raising issues related to security, scalability, and usability challenges.

It will even require constant troubleshooting, workarounds, and patches to keep things running smoothly.

These are all challenges that might interrupt the creation of an app like Klarna.

Still confused about the process?

Connecting with a team of experienced developers and critically examining details will be useful here.

Why Choose Nimble AppGenie to Develop an App Like Klarna?

There are several developers in the market, and selecting the best can be a hassle.

Well, you need to examine certain important elements before finalizing the team. There are different things to be evaluated, such as the budget-friendliness of the company, the location of the experts, and their expertise.

With Nimble AppGenie, you need not bother about any of such things. We are highly effective at delivering quality and focusing on the integrity of the project.

Our team will be ready to deliver the project within your budget and help you out in preparing it. We know the market requirements well and then match them with your needs to make it excel.

If you are looking to build an app like Klarna for your business, connecting with us can be a great decision. Reach out today and take your first step towards a flourishing business!

Conclusion

With the right process to develop an app like Klarna, you can lead the industry. The procedure will begin with market analysis, identifying value propositions, selecting features, developing the technology stack, building the complete app, and then deploying the app for launch.

There are many reasons to continue with creating an app like Klarna, such as a transparent payment system, providing a seamless customer experience, minimal customer details, and more.

While developing it, you might come across different challenges such as complying with regulations, security risks, a lack of skilled developers, poor app design, and the selection of a false tech stack. Connecting with the right company can be helpful here.

FAQs

Niketan Sharma

Niketan Sharma, CTO, Nimble AppGenie, is a tech enthusiast with more than a decade of experience in delivering high-value solutions that allow a brand to penetrate the market easily. With a strong hold on mobile app development, he is actively working to help businesses identify the potential of digital transformation by sharing insightful statistics, guides & blogs.