How Card-Linked Installments Reduce Checkout Friction and Boost Conversions

The checkout is the last place you want to lose a customer. Yet for most ecommerce merchants, it is exactly where sales fall apart.

Around 70% of online shopping carts are abandoned before purchase (Baymard Institute), with payment friction among the most common causes. When shoppers hit an unexpected step, a lengthy form, or a redirect to a third-party site, many simply leave.

Splitit removes that friction. By letting shoppers pay in installments using the credit they already have, there are no applications, no new loans, and no extra steps at checkout. The sections below cover what that looks like in practice and why it matters for conversion.

A Simplified Checkout That Does Not Slow Shoppers Down

Most checkout drop-offs are not about price, they are about process. According to the Baymard Institute, the average checkout flow contains around 11 form fields, when an optimised checkout only needs 7 or 8. Every unnecessary step is a reason to leave.

Splitit is built into the checkout flow rather than sitting outside it. Shoppers choose their installment plan, enter their existing card details, and complete the transaction. A pre-authorised hold is placed on the card for the full purchase amount, which reduces with each payment made.

There is no application, no new loan, and nothing to fill out beyond standard billing and shipping information. For merchants, that means an installment option that supports conversion rather than working against it.

No New Accounts, No New Loans

Most BNPL solutions send shoppers to a separate application process. That means a new account with a third-party provider, a credit decision, and additional personal data to hand over. For shoppers who value their time and their data, it is enough reason to abandon the cart.

Splitit works within the shopper’s existing credit card relationship. There is no new account to create, no financing to apply for, and no redirect away from your site. Guest checkout is fully supported.

The result is a checkout experience that feels familiar and fast, with installments as a natural part of the flow rather than a detour from it.

Shopper trust has a direct impact on checkout conversion – 19% of people will abandon a transaction because they don’t trust a retailer with their credit card information.

Splitit is dedicated to data and security and adheres to the latest PCI DSS regulations and GDPR requirements, to ensure compliance across all regions. This means that you and your customers can trust us to protect their personal data at every stage of a transaction.

This is also a commercial differentiator for merchants. Traditional BNPL providers collect customer data to fuel their own marketplaces, which means your shoppers can be targeted by competing brands at the exact moment they are buying from you. With Splitit, that does not happen. Your customer data stays yours.

Works With the Platforms and Cards Your Customers Already Use

Splitit works with all leading ecommerce platforms and merchants, so it’s easy for customers and retailers to choose a simple and trustworthy installment payment option.

For retailers, this means integration with all major ecommerce platforms, including Shopify, SAP, BigCommerce, along with custom integration options. We offer a white-label solution, which means that you can adopt our installment payment platform within your own branding, which further simplifies the experience for you and your customers.

For customers, it’s a seamless way to shop – we partner with all major payment network providers including VISA, Mastercard, American Express, Discover Global Network, and UnionPay.

Flexible Payment Options That Work for Your Customers

Splitit gives your customers flexibility and control over their payment plan, depending on the options that retailers choose to offer them. Available formats include:

• Installment payments every two weeks
• Installment payments each month
• Partial installments that are flexible in amount and timeline
• Pay after delivery, with the option for installment payments after acceptance of the purchase

This variety allows customers to find a solution that best fits their budget and lifestyle. They also have flexibility after their purchase and can easily manage their plan through the shopper portal, where they can update their information, check their payment status, and quickly take care of other essential admin activities.

Creating a seamless checkout experience is about giving the customers the solutions they’re looking for in the most frictionless and straightforward way possible.

How Splitit Compares to Traditional BNPL at Checkout

Traditional BNPL requires shoppers to apply for a new line of credit at the point of purchase. The process involves credit checks, application forms, and an approval decision that takes an average of 55 seconds, with an industry approval rate of around 35%.

Splitit uses the credit shoppers already have. No application, no new loan, no waiting. The average checkout time is five seconds and the approval rate is over 85%, a fundamentally different model to how traditional BNPL works at checkout.

For merchants, that gap in approval rates translates directly into revenue. Splitit merchants report an average 18% increase in sales conversion and an average order value of over $1,100, more than three times the average BNPL transaction. Standard credit card terms and conditions apply.

Reducing cart abandonment starts with removing friction at checkout. Splitit’s card-linked installments give your customers a faster, simpler way to pay with no applications, no new loans, and no third-party redirects.

Get in touch to learn more about how we can help you.