Understanding
Acima Leasing

At Acima, we believe that an informed customer is our best customer. That is why we are providing the following information to help you understand how Acima Leasing works so you can decide if it’s right for you. We hope you find this overview helpful. Of course, if you enter a lease with Acima, please refer to your lease agreement for the complete terms and conditions of your transaction.

Get Started

What is Acima?

Acima is a leading lease-to-own provider. Our flexible lease-purchase transactions are not credit, loans, or financing transactions. With all of those other alternatives, you buy the product with borrowed funds and you’re obligated to pay that borrowed money back, typically with interest. With Acima Leasing, you can get the eligible things you want without using credit you may have or increasing your debt. You are leasing the items from Acima – meaning you simply pay Acima for the use of the product – until you are ready to own.

We work in conjunction with existing retailers allowing you to shop for the eligible items you want at the stores you want. Acima helps people from all backgrounds live a better quality of life with easier access to the things they need and want—all without using credit.

How Does It Work?

The Acima process can be summed up like this: You find an eligible item. We buy it and lease it to you under a flexible short-term lease with renewal options. You can own it when you’re ready or return it to Acima. The choice is yours.

Our proprietary technology enables customers to shop through our mobile app, online, or in stores at thousands of retailers across the nation. And applying for a lease agreement is quick and simple—with flexible purchase options that enable customers to attain ownership whenever they’re ready. Our lease-to-own solutions allow you to lease durable items like furniture, mattresses, appliances, tires, electronics, jewelry, and more without using credit or a loan. Once you find an eligible item you like, if you cannot qualify for – or don’t want to use – credit cards or in-store financing, Acima will purchase the item you selected from the retailer and lease it to you under the terms of a “lease-to-own”, “lease-purchase” or “rental-purchase” agreement (the name varies by state but we’ll call it “LTO”). These flexible LTO agreements allow you to make lease payments while you enjoy the property and provide you with the option – but not the obligation – to own it. If it isn’t right for you, you can end the lease by returning the item(s) to us in good condition. That’s it. You’re done.

Your Path to Ownership?

Unlike a credit transaction, you are not committing to owning a product at the start. With credit cards or store financing, you are committed and immediately obligated to pay the full purchase price and typically interest that increases your total obligation the longer you take to pay it off. With Acima, you have the flexibility to make lease payments that fit your budget and you always have the option – but not the obligation – to purchase the product at any time. Acima owns the leased items until you’re ready. You simply pay for the use of the merchandise as you go. If small renewal payments are the right fit for your budget, once you make the maximum number of payments stated in your lease, it’s yours. You’ll have no further obligation and you own it. If you decide you love it and you’re ready to own it sooner, you can buy it at any time with the early purchase option and save significantly over the total lease cost. The sooner you do, the more you’ll save.

What Does It Cost to Lease-to-Own With Acima?

How much it ultimately costs to own a particular leased product depends on you and when you decide to buy, if at all. If you do not use an early purchase option, and choose to make all of the possible renewal payments, you may pay more than double the retail price. If you exercise your early purchase option, however, you will likely pay approximately 60% of the total remaining rental payments depending on your State (select states have a formula required by law that will result in different early-purchase option prices). We also typically offer our best early purchase option within the first 90 days of the lease-agreement. With every Acima lease-purchase agreement, you will receive a schedule with the amount required to exercise your early purchase option after each scheduled payment (assuming payments are made on time). In addition, with every payment we will send you a receipt that tells you the amount of your early purchase option at that point, and when that option price expires. If you ever have questions, you can contact our customer care line at (833) 487-1894

Where and How Can I Use Acima?

Without cash or credit, a lot of consumers are stuck on the sidelines. With Acima, consumers have the ability to shop where they want, for what they want, while still having the flexibility they need. At Acima, we are constantly working to build new and better ways to help the customers that are left behind by consumer credit. We are proud to offer a network of thousands of Acima partner retailers as well as the Acima Ecosystem that includes the Acima Mobile App, Acima Marketplace, Browser Extension, and the Acima LeasePay Card™, all of which give you the tools to lease eligible products you find in retail stores familiar to you.

Click to expand each topic and learn more:

In Store Network of Acima Retailers

Acima has established relationships with a network of thousands of retailers located throughout the country that utilize Acima’s LTO program to help consumers like you access the items they want. While we offer a variety of ways to apply that varies from retailer to retailer, the application process is easy and intuitive. If you know you want the flexibility of leasing with optional renewals, you can apply directly with Acima for a lease approval. Pick the eligible product you like and tell your salesperson that you’d like to apply with Acima. Most commonly, the retailer will send you an SMS link that takes you straight to our application on. In some retailers, you will find a QR code that will take you directly to our application. In both cases, you control the process on your mobile device. We also participate in what we call a “waterfall” process at select retailers. With that, you can apply for the various credit options made available by the retailer. In the event you are unable to buy the merchandise using one of those credit options, the system will ask for your permission to share your information with Acima. When you say “yes”, we’ll process your application for a lease. If your application is approved, you will review the lease terms, sign your lease agreement, and make your initial lease payment, and we’ll buy the product from the retailer right then and lease it to you.

Acima Browser extension

If you’re an online shopper, use our browser extension to lease eligible products on an unaffiliated retailer’s website. If you have the extension downloaded, once you add a product to your cart, you will see the “Acima Checkout” button. Clicking that button takes you into our Acima lease process. If you’ve been approved by Acima, we’ll show you all of the terms of your lease, including the rental rate, renewal frequency, maximum lease term, and total cost to own if you make all lease renewals instead of using an early purchase option. Of course, we’ll also show you the actual lease. You’ll review those terms, sign the lease electronically, and make your initial lease payment. We then give you a one-time payment card number to complete the checkout process on the retailer’s website. The product ships directly to you from the retailer and you can manage your lease through the Acima customer portal.

Acima Mobile Application

The Acima Mobile Application puts the power of the Acima ecosystem at your fingertips and provides greater mobility and choice in your shopping. With the Acima mobile app, customers will be able to apply for a new lease with Acima, find retail locations to shop, directly access the Acima Marketplace, manage their lease accounts, and stay up-to-date with retailer promotions and offers.

Acima Marketplace

The Marketplace is a gateway that gives consumers an entry point to the Acima ecosystem, providing choices beyond the brick and mortar retail network to include a growing network of ecommerce retailers. It gives cash and credit constrained consumers the ability to shop the retail stores and brands that were previously inaccessible to them. The Marketplace is accessible on both the Acima Mobile App and website to help consumers access the eligible retail products they need through an LTO transaction with Acima.

In-Store Shopping with the Acima LeasePay Card™

In 2022, Acima will be rolling out the Acima LeasePay Card™ to approved customers who want the ability to select eligible LTO products from local or nationally known brick and mortar stores that accept Mastercard. With the LeasePay Card, customers will have a physical card to use at check out. The Acima LeasePay Card™ is a payment card operating on the Mastercard processing network, but it is not a credit card and no credit is being extended to you. The LeasePay card is a way for Acima to purchase the goods you selected and pay the retailer for those goods. As an authorized user of the card, you select an eligible product and, if you’re approved for the lease, we’ll activate the card for that product. It’s that simple. You swipe the card, Acima buys the product, and you lease it from Acima! Just like any other Acima lease, your obligation to Acima is set out in the lease you will review and sign on your device.

In order to use the card, you will be required to complete the Acima lease application process which can be done on your mobile device. If you meet the requirements for approval, Acima will send a confirming message indicating that you have been approved and providing an amount that Acima is willing to spend to purchase items you select for leasing. This amount will be referred to as your “lease line” (which is different from the total lease-to-own cost of any specific lease) and can be used in a single lease transaction or in a series of separate leases up to the total lease line amount indicated. To lease a specific item, go to the retailer of your choice and select an eligible item. Once you have selected an eligible item, provide the required information including a description of the product and the retailer’s selling price. Once that information is provided, Acima will display an estimate of the lease renewal payment, the number of renewals to obtain ownership, Acima’s cash price (which may be higher than the retailer’s cash price), and the total cost of ownership if you choose to make all lease renewal payments to Acima to acquire ownership. You then choose to proceed with the lease-purchase transaction and Acima will present the entire lease-purchase document for your review and execution. You will execute the agreement through your mobile device or online and make the initial rental payment. Once this process is complete, the Acima LeasePay Card™ is temporarily authorized for the purchase by Acima of the specific items you have identified. Acima purchases the items and you have the use of those items until you elect not to renew your lease agreement and return the product or you satisfy the terms of ownership.

Final Thoughts

We know that purchasing an item from Acima through the lease-to-own option (if you choose to do so) costs more than paying cash to purchase an item upfront from the retailer. It may ultimately cost more than credit offers available to you, particularly if you choose to make every lease renewal payment to obtain ownership. But our affordable renewal payments, payment options to match when you receive your regular income payments, and no long-term obligation may be exactly what you need to fit your life and your budget. At any time during your lease, your early purchase option is there to provide you the opportunity to save significantly if you choose to buy the merchandise earlier from Acima rather than make all lease renewals to acquire ownership. The sooner you do, the more you save.

While our lease-to-own transaction provides flexibility that simply is not available with traditional consumer credit, we also know there are other options out there and we may not be the best fit for every customer. When you have the chance to consider all of your options, Acima’s lease-to-own solution may be the best way for you to get what you want, when you want it!