Apr 25, 2025
Coachella came and went in a blur of sequins, desert dust and $17 iced lattes. The music was unforgettable — Lady Gaga, Post Malone, Green Day — but once the lights faded and the desert chic outfits were packed away, many fans were left with something a little less glamorous: payment plans.
This year, more than 60% of attendees financed their Coachella experience using payment plans, according to USA Today. Through the festival’s own payment option, fans could lock in their general admission ticket for just $49.99 down — the rest of the $599 ticket charge would then be paid off in monthly installments through March 2025.
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Olivia Lima, a 29-year-old from New Jersey, has made peace with the price of live music and the payment plan that often comes with it.
“Festivals and concerts are places where all these people from all these walks of life who might not normally interact, meet up," she told USA Today. “There’s a touch of that magic.”
With the spring season heating up and festivals like Stagecoach right around the corner, Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) plans are quickly becoming the new norm for live-music fans. But when even your wristband comes with fine print, it might be worth asking: are we responsibly budgeting for joy — or just paying for spontaneity in slow motion?
Buy now, cry later
It’s not just the three-day desert dance-a-thons that break the bank — these days, concerts in general are giving wallets stage fright. Lima had her eye on a My Chemical Romance concert in Philadelphia this summer, but even logging onto Ticketmaster the moment tickets could be purchased didn’t save her from inflated prices.
"The cheapest ticket wound up being $273, including the payment plan fee, but I went for it," she says. "It was around the holidays, and it just made it easier on my pocketbook."
In 2024, roughly 86.5 million Americans used BNPL services — a 6.92% jump from the previous year, according to Capital One. As ticket prices keep climbing, more fans are leaning on payment plans just to make it through the gates.
For context, a Bruce Springsteen ticket that was $8 back in 1976 would cost about $45 today — adjusted for inflation. Fast forward nearly 50 years to 2024 and the average ticket price has skyrocketed to $150.69, according to Pollstar.
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BNPL isn’t just a payment method — for many, it’s become a lifeline to live music.
There are perks — 37.2% of BNPL users say they choose it for the convenience, according to Capital One. Compared to the average $800 traditional installment loan, which is repaid over eight to nine months, BNPL loans average around $135 over six weeks.
Still, just because BNPL makes it easier to attend a concert, that doesn’t mean it makes sense for everyone’s financial situation.
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Financing fun
BNPL services can make experiences feel more accessible, but they’re not without their downsides. While many of these plans have zero interest, a missed payment can trigger late fees and additional charges. What starts as a concert ticket purchase can quickly snowball into a much bigger expense if you lose track of payment schedules.
“While buy now, pay later can be a useful way to spread out the financial impact of a big purchase, it also represents a slippery slope that can lead to overspending,” says Ted Rossman, Senior Industry Analyst of Bankrates.
Rather than financing fun on borrowed money, try building a budget that lets you say yes to life without the financial hangover. Set aside a small portion of your income each month just for concerts, nights out or other experiences that spark joy.
You can even give it a name, like your "fun fund," and treat it with the same respect you would your rent or savings. That way, when the next big event pops up, you’re already covered — no payment plan required.
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Victoria Vesovski is a Toronto-based Staff Reporter at Moneywise, where she covers the intersection of personal finance, lifestyle and trending news. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto, a postgraduate certificate in Publishing from Toronto Metropolitan University and a Master’s degree in American Journalism from New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. Her work has been featured in publications including Apple News, Yahoo Finance, MSN Money, Her Campus Media and The Click.
