Code found on the Xbox website suggests Microsoft is preparing to add buy now, pay later payment options, allowing customers to spread the cost of purchases across weeks or months. The discovery was made by X user Redphx on June 15, 2026.
What Was Found in the Code
The Xbox website backend references both PayPal and Klarna as potential payment providers. Based on the language in the code, the feature appears to sit at the checkout level rather than as a separate financing programme. That means it could apply to everything sold through Xbox’s storefront: digital games, downloadable content, subscriptions, and hardware.
Microsoft has not confirmed the feature. No official announcement has been made.
How Each Option Would Work
The code describes two different payment structures.
With PayPal, users would have the choice between paying in four interest-free bi-weekly instalments, or spreading payments over up to 24 months.
With Klarna, purchases would be split into three payments. The first would be due at the time of purchase. The next two would follow every 30 days.
Xbox Has Been Exploring New Business Models
Microsoft has been open about looking at new ways to reduce the upfront cost of joining the Xbox ecosystem. The company has publicly stated it is considering “radically different business models” for its console business in 2026.
Buy now, pay later options would fit that direction. Xbox All Access, a programme that let customers pay for a console in monthly instalments bundled with Game Pass, quietly wound down in recent years. The appearance of Klarna and PayPal in the website code suggests Microsoft may be revisiting instalment-style purchasing.
PlayStation Already Offers Klarna in the US
Xbox would not be the first console maker to go down this route. PlayStation already offers Klarna financing through PlayStation Direct in the United States. PlayStation UK has also tested a separate Flex leasing scheme for PS5 hardware. In that context, Xbox adding buy now, pay later options would be Microsoft catching up with a trend already in motion across the industry.
Digital Games Would Be a Different Story
Where things get more complicated is if these payment options extend to digital game purchases. None of Xbox’s main rivals, including PlayStation, Nintendo, or Steam, currently offer dedicated buy now, pay later options on their digital storefronts. Hardware financing is one thing. Letting players take out short-term credit on a $70 game is another.
No timeline has been given for when or if the feature will launch. Microsoft has not commented.
