Ask someone in the UAE what they use Buy Now Pay Later for, and the answer is usually predictable: a new phone, a jacket, maybe a flight. That’s still where most of the spending happens. But when UserQ asked 250 BNPL users in the UAE where they’d like to see the service become more widely available, the top answers weren’t shopping categories at all.
Healthcare and medical costs came first, named by 51% of respondents. Education and tuition followed close behind at 48%. Utilities and bills sat at 43%, with government services at 30%, edging out luxury goods at 29.6%.
That’s a gap between what people want and what’s currently on offer. What’s less clear, and worth being honest about, is why that gap exists.
Who we surveyed
UserQ surveyed 250 BNPL users across the UAE. Just under three-quarters live in Dubai, with the rest spread across Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and the northern emirates. The sample skews slightly male (54% to 46%), and skews working-age: 40% are between 25 and 34, a further 34% between 35 and 44. Most are in private sector employment (55%), with a meaningful freelance and self-employed contingent (15%). Egyptian, Pakistani and Indian nationals make up the three largest groups, reflecting the UAE’s expatriate-majority population rather than a specifically Emirati sample. Education levels are high, with 60% holding a bachelor’s degree and a further 26% holding a master’s or doctorate.
This is a working, largely expatriate, largely Dubai-based population that already uses BNPL as a normal part of how they pay. Adoption in this group is close to universal, and Tabby leads by a wide margin, recognised by 91% and used by 89% of respondents, with Tamara a clear second. What they’re asking for next is the interesting part.
People want deferred payment for obligations, not just impulses
BNPL has largely been built around convenience for discretionary spend. The categories respondents want it extended into don’t fit that story. A hospital bill isn’t a lifestyle purchase. Neither is a semester of tuition or a utility invoice. When roughly half of users are asking for a payment tool to help them manage costs they can’t really choose to skip, that’s worth providers’ attention regardless of what’s driving it.
Only 12% of respondents said current availability was already sufficient, meaning the appetite for expansion is broad, not a niche preference held by a small slice of the panel. It’s also worth being precise about what this data does and doesn’t tell us. Respondents were asked where they’d like BNPL to be more widely available, not why it isn’t already there. The most straightforward explanation is that these are categories where BNPL simply isn’t integrated into the payment flow yet, hospitals, universities and government portals don’t typically offer it at checkout the way retailers do. This research shows demand exists. It doesn’t tell us that demand is being actively blocked by distrust or hesitation.
A separate finding worth flagging: real enthusiasm, real concerns
Trust in BNPL overall is high. 91% rate their trust a 4 or 5 out of 5, and 83% say they’d recommend it to friends or family. On its own, that looks like an open door for providers expanding anywhere.
But sitting alongside that enthusiasm is a set of specific concerns. Around 60% are concerned or very concerned about their personal or financial data being misused, a near-identical share worry about hidden fees, and just over half are uneasy about accumulating debt they can’t repay. Transparency ratings tell a related story: 60% feel providers are somewhat or very transparent about fees and terms, but 10% still find things somewhat or very unclear, and a further 29% sit at neutral, which in a transparency question usually means unconvinced rather than satisfied.
It’s important not to overstate the connection between these two findings. This isn’t evidence that concern about fees or data is why BNPL hasn’t reached healthcare or education yet. It’s a separate, standalone pattern: broad satisfaction with the current product, alongside specific, real reservations about aspects of it. Both things are true about the same population at the same time.
What this means for providers building toward these categories
The demand data says there’s a real audience asking for BNPL in higher-stakes categories. The concern data says that audience isn’t naive about risk, they can articulate exactly what worries them about the product they already use. Put together, that’s a useful brief rather than a green light or a red flag: if a provider does move into healthcare or education, the concerns already on record, data handling, fee clarity, manageable repayment, are the specific things worth designing around from day one, rather than assuming that goodwill built in retail will automatically carry over.
What this means going forward
BNPL in the UAE isn’t just a checkout feature anymore, at least in terms of what users are asking for. Whether it becomes one in healthcare, education or government services depends on decisions providers haven’t been tested on yet: how they’d handle more sensitive data, more serious consequences, and higher-stakes repayment. The demand is documented. What happens next is a product and policy question, not something this research can answer on its own.
This survey was run on UserQ, reaching 250 respondents across the UAE.
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