M&S adds Klarna's pay-in-three option to its website and app for fashion, home and beauty

Marks & Spencer customers can now spread the cost of fashion, home and beauty purchases online over three interest-free payments. Klarna announced the launch on 15 October 2026. It covers M&S.com and the M&S app.

For retail leaders, the interesting part is less the payment option and more who is taking it up. M&S has a broad, loyal customer base and a reputation for value. Instalments are now standard at many fashion and home retailers, and this move puts M&S's non-food online checkout in line with them.

What was announced

According to Klarna, shoppers can split the cost "into three equal, interest-free payments with transparent terms and no revolving balance." The release covers fashion, home and beauty purchases online. It does not mention food or in-store payment.

Katherine Carlson, Director of Financial Services at M&S, gave the reason in customer terms: "At M&S, we are always looking for ways to make it easier for our customers to shop with us."

Raji Behal, Klarna's Head of UK, Ireland and Western and Southern Europe, said: "People deserve flexibility without paying interest for it, so our goal is simple: meet them wherever they shop."

Klarna said M&S joins more than 1.2 million merchants that partner with it globally, "including all of the UK's major department stores." In its company description, Klarna reports more than 120 million active users worldwide and 3.8 million transactions a day. These are Klarna's own figures.

The new rules

This is one of the first big UK retail launches since the rules changed. The Financial Conduct Authority says it "started regulating Deferred Payment Credit, often known as Buy Now Pay Later, on 15 July 2026." According to the FCA's consumer guidance, lenders now have to check whether a customer can afford to repay before the agreement is made, and unhappy customers can take complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

For a retailer, that changes the risk somewhat. Klarna, as the lender, carries the affordability and complaint duties. M&S's name is still on the checkout, so how customers get on with repayments still reflects on the brand.

What we do not know

The announcement leaves out the numbers that would show whether this pays off. Neither company gave expected uptake, average order values, conversion effects or the fee M&S pays Klarna. It is also unclear whether Klarna replaces or sits alongside other payment options at M&S.

The useful test will be whether M&S mentions instalment payments in its future online trading updates. That would mean better conversion or bigger baskets in fashion and home, rather than sales simply moving from cards to Klarna. Without that, this is a sensible piece of checkout housekeeping, described by the company that supplies it.