If you are new here: I am not an affiliate of this post; it is part of our Improve Your Relationship with Money series. Each post in this series is related to a course, book, education or tool geared toward just that, Improving Your Relationship with Money.
We’ve all know we can GET an app for free. Some free apps are better then others. The point is, your credit score is no different. What is important when you set out on this endeavor is to be ready to tackle whatever you find. If the score is low, do not freak out. Do not be discouraged. You don’t get into the 500s overnight. Maybe two months, but not overnight. You won’t get into the 700 overnight either. That being said, Rome was not built in a day. You can GET Your Credit Score Free and fast.
My two favorite reasons to Get Your Credit Score (Free):
1) Your score is a direct reflection of how lenders view you as a risk.
2) Credit Scores can be a tremendous benchmark.
Quickly note before we dive in, be intentional with this score.
It is more then just your financial representation, it is a potential marker. Put it in your wheel house and track changes in your behavior. See who is interested in you and not just your money. Understand how the financial world sees you as a risk. How you see you as a risk. What is obvious for some is not so obvious to us. Financial education matters.
GET Your Credit Score Free: Sites
Now, I’m sure you’ve seen the commercials for Credit Karma. Well, Credit Sesame and Quizzle are the same type of deal. All three require a credit card and a few personal questions to be answered to confirm your identity. Although these options do not offer your FICO® score you will get: age of accounts, detailed reports of how they come up with your number, open and closed accounts, etc.
It is important to note that Credit Karma and Quizzle offer your VantageScore 3.0 score based on data from Equifax and TransUnion. Credit Seasame uses the Experian National Risk Model score and won the Editors Pick at Forbes.com.
GET Your Credit Score Free: Credit Cards
You may have won the credit score lottery if you have a credit card with the following company: Capital One Venture Rewards®, Discover it®, Barclaycard® Rewards MasterCard to name a few. Check your monthly statement.
If you do not have one of these and you decide to sign up you will get reports on your FICO® score delivered to you monthly via your statement. If you sign up for Capital One Venture card you gain access to the Capital One® Credit Tracker, which delivers data via email on what activity has affected your score.
GET Your Credit Score Free: Car Loan
This is worth including because of the company’s mindset and the fact you may be in the market to purchase a vehicle. They have a great approach and see themselves as an advocate to consumers financial know how. Admittedly, being a blogger, you are always trying to find ways to nurture your tribe. Ally Bank is no different and has started offering customers access to their FICO® Score. Since 2011 they have worked to advance consumer financial education. President and CEO of Ally’s Dealer Financial Services, Jeffry Brown, is an advocate of finical education as the best defense. Who wouldn’t feel better with this company in their lending corner?
Those are the freebies available to you at truly no cost. There are others that will charge a minimal fee or free 7-day trial for pennies on the dollar, but not 100% free. If you are interested in those FICO® scores you can find them at the three top reporting agencies: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax .
Finally, if you want to see what is being “said” or written, visit AnnualCreditReport.com for a free annual credit report (not score). Believe it or not, you can find potential issues this way and help identify identify theft early.
If you do try any of the above methods or would like to lend a method, please, don’t be shy… comment below.
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