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What is Zilch?

Your get started guide for Zilch.

Updated over a week ago

Zilch has been around since 2018 with one goal in mind – to get people the credit they deserve. Here's a quick overview of all our best bits, just tap on any of the 'Read more' links in each section for more information.


How Zilch works

Learn about how to use your card.

Is Zilch a debit or credit card?

Zilch lets you pay for your purchases in three different ways, so you can use it like a debit card and earn a part of your purchase back in Rewards, or you can use it like a credit card and pay for things over 6 weeks or 3 months.

How does my Zilch card work?

Your Zilch card is linked to your debit card, so you can use it in the same way you’d use your normal card, typing in your Zilch card details at checkout or adding it to a digital wallet to use Tap and Pay. We'll collect the purchase amount from your linked debit card.

How to pay with Zilch

You can use Zilch to pay in three different ways:

  • Pay now

    With Pay now, you pay everything at checkout like you would with a regular debit card, but you’ll get up to 5% of your purchase value back in Rewards.

  • Pay over 6 weeks

    Pay over 6 weeks splits your purchase over four instalments. You’ll pay your first instalment at checkout, then another every two weeks until you've completely paid it off after six weeks.

    Pay over 6 weeks purchases must be at least £10 (including when you discount your total using Rewards) – we’ll convert your purchase to Pay now if your total is less than this.

  • Pay over 3 months

    The ultimate in payment flexibility. You pay your first instalment at checkout and then pay another every month for a total of three months.


    Pay over 3 months purchases must be at least £75 (including when you discount your total using Rewards) – your purchase will be declined.

How to use Zilch

To pay in-store with Zilch, you need to add your Zilch card to a digital wallet first so you can use Tap and Pay. You can use Zilch with Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay. Once your card is in your digital wallet, just:

  • Open the Zilch app

  • Make sure you select In-store and search for your store

  • Select how you want to pay

  • Enable your card and tap to open your digital wallet

  • Hold your device to the card reader

To pay online with Zilch:

  • Open the Zilch app

  • Search for your store

  • Select how you want to pay

  • Enable your card

  • We’ll load your store’s website so you can go shopping

  • When you’re ready to check out, come back to the Zilch app to copy your card details

  • Check out as usual

Store not on the app?

Don't worry, you can still use Zilch Anywhere – just see below.

What's Zilch Anywhere?

Zilch Anywhere lets you pay with Zilch even at stores that aren't in our app, just open the Zilch app and then:

  • Tap View next to Zilch card

  • Select In-store or Online

  • Select how you want to pay

Zilch anywhere has a fee of £3 for Pay over 6 weeks and £7.50 for Pay over 3 months, Pay now purchases will get 0.5% back in Rewards.

Is Zilch free?

It’s completely free to have a Zilch card. You can use Pay now (and earn Rewards when you do!) without any fee. Using Pay over 6 weeks and Pay over 3 months does have fees:

  • Pay over 6 weeks has a fee of £0–2.50 when you shop through the app, or £3 when you use Zilch Anywhere

  • Pay over 3 months has a fee of £0–£6.50 when you shop through the app, or £7.50 when you use Zilch Anywhere

Plus, you can get lower (or zero!) fees when you search your store in the app. We list thousands of stores, and we’re always updating our deals so be sure to check if your store is offering lower or no fees when you Pay over 6 weeks or Pay over 3 months.

How much can I spend with Zilch?

This is decided by your credit limit, which we calculate when you sign up to Zilch.

The Zilch app

Our app is your one-stop-shop for everything Zilch. You can manage your card, search for stores, connect to Open Banking and more. And, if you need extra help, you can start a Live Chat with our Customer Support team. The app is available for iOS and Android.

Where is my Zilch card?

Your Zilch card and details are securely stored in our Zilch app, ready to go whenever you need it.

You can also add it to Apple Wallet, Google Wallet or Samsung Wallet to Tap and Pay on the go.


Signing up to Zilch

Getting started.

How to sign up to Zilch

It’s easy to sign up for a Zilch account, it only takes a few minutes and checking if you're eligible for Zilch won’t affect your credit score.

All you need is:

  • A UK debit card

  • A UK address

  • A valid form of ID (so Zilch can confirm your identity)

  • A mobile number

  • An email address

Your Zilch card can be ready as soon as the same day, though sometimes we might need longer to check your ID.

Why can't I sign up?

To be eligible for Zilch, you must:

  • Be a UK resident

  • Be over 18 years old

  • Meet the requirements of our soft credit check

Don't worry, if you're not eligible for Zilch now, you can always apply again in a year's time.

Why does Zilch need my ID?

We need to verify your identity to make sure it's really you opening an account, so we can keep you safe from fraud. We also need to prove that you're over 18 years old and a UK resident as all Zilch customers must meet this criteria.

What ID can I use?

We accept the following as proof of ID:

  • A valid passport

  • A driving licence or provisional licence

  • CitizenCard with holographic PASS logo

We accept the following as proof of address:

  • A utility bill issued within the last three months

  • A bank statement issued within the last three months

  • A council tax bill for the current tax year

  • A UK driving licence (if not used to verify your age)

  • An original mortgage statement from a recognised lender issued for the last year

  • A solicitor’s letter confirming a recent house purchase or land registry, dated within the last three months

  • A council or housing association rent card or tenancy agreement for the current year

  • An NHS medical card or letter confirming registration to your GP’s practice

Linking a debit card

You need to link a debit card to Zilch so you can pay for your purchases. You'll use this card to pay for purchases, instalments and any other Zilch fees.


Your Zilch limit and payments

About spending with Zilch.

What's my credit limit?

We calculate your credit limit when you sign up to Zilch. This limit is how much you can spend with Zilch when you Pay over 6 weeks or, if you're eligible, Pay over 3 months. Your available credit can increase if you always pay on time or early, it can also decrease if you miss payments.

What's my 'Available to Pay over 6 weeks' amount?

This is the portion of your credit that you still have available to spend. Every time you make a Zilch payment, your available credit goes down. Once you've successfully made all four payments, your available credit will go back up.

So, if you make a Pay over 6 weeks purchase of £100, your available credit will go down to £100. Six weeks later, once you've successfully paid all four of your £25 instalments, your available amount will get this £100 added back.

Once your available credit hits zero, you won't be able to make any new purchases with Zilch until you successfully pay off one or more open purchases.

If you have the option to Pay over 3 months, then any Pay over 6 weeks purchase will still affect your Pay over 3 months available credit as both amounts are linked.

Will Zilch affect my credit score?

We report to credit agencies, so missing payments may negatively impact your credit score and make it harder for you to acquire credit in the future.

How to pay Zilch instalments

We'll collect your instalments automatically – you can check their due dates in the app. You can also pay early which can help increase your available credit. Make sure you have enough money in your bank account or you may miss a payment.

Missing a payment

Missing a payment can cause your available credit to go down and may also negatively impact your credit score. Please get in touch as soon as possible if you think you're going to miss a payment, we may be able to help.

Getting a refund

You can return purchases you make with Zilch, but it might take a little longer for refunds to appear in your account as we'll need to communicate with the store to confirm your refund. If you're refunding a Pay over 6 weeks or Pay over 3 months purchase, we'll also need to calculate which instalments we need to refund you, and we'll cancel any future instalments on the purchase.


Zilch features

Handy extras to make your Zilch experience even better.

Zilch Rewards

Zilch Rewards give you up to 5% of your purchase value back when you shop through the app (or 0.5% every time you use Zilch Anywhere) for all Pay now purchases. So, even if you don’t need to split your purchases over time, you still get extra benefits for paying with Zilch. Watch your Rewards grow and apply them to a future purchase for money off.

Want more Rewards? Try referring a friend to Zilch.

Zilch Snooze

Snooze lets you delay a payment by 4 days or, if you're eligible, 8 days. So you'll get more time to pay and can make payments later, all without impacting your credit limit. You can Snooze all or just one of your instalments, and we even have options to Snooze some instalments for free.

Zilch Boost

Want to buy something but don't have enough available credit? You still can with Zilch Boost. Boost lets you pay the difference between your available credit and your purchase amount as part of your first instalment, so you still get the flexibility to pay over time.

Vouchers

Zilch finds the latest voucher codes from around the web and lists them in the app. We'll show you if there are any vouchers available when you search for your store in the app. Just enable your card and when you come back to the app for your card details, we'll show you the voucher code, too.


Still need help?

Our Help Centre has loads of handy articles covering everything from Rewards to refunds.

You can also get in touch with Customer Support or start a Live Chat in the app.

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