Knowing your credit score is imperative if you are looking to open a credit card or even apply for a mortgage. Luckily, there are websites you can look at and monitor your score very easily, and without paying a dime. In this article, you will see a list of the best websites to stay up-to-date with your credit score.
Best Websites To Look At Your Credit Score:
1. Credit Karma
This is one of the most widely used websites that you can use to look at your credit score. Credit Karma stands out because it has a very polished website and mobile app for both Android and iOS. Credit Karma is a good option to consider if you not only want to check your credit scores with both Experian and TransUnion, but you will be able to monitor your reports directly from the application or website. Also, you get all of this for free. You can even sign up for 24/7 monitoring alerts that will let you know when your credit report is pulled with either agency.
2. Credit Sesame
Credit Sesame is another great option that you should be considering using. Credit Sesame is actually partnered with TransUnion and you will be able to access your free credit score and report with TransUnion very easily without impacting your credit. This service is 100% free and it doesn’t require a credit card to get started. A good thing about Credit Sesame is the ability to get alerts to TransUnion credit pulls and the ability to get identity-theft insurance that covers up to $50,000 for free.
3. Nerd Wallet
Nerd Wallet is a good option that will allow you to easily view your VantageScore which is updated every seven days. They offer a very easy to use the mobile application and a website. Your VantageScore is a good thing to have because it factors in all three of your scores into a single score. Therefore, it will tell you a lot about your individual credit scores with each bureau because you will be able to see the accumulated average of all of them rather than only two.
4. Wallet Hub
This is another good website and application that you can use to keep track of your score. Like every other app and website listed above, this one is completely free. You don’t need to pay for anything to get your score. With this, you are able to monitor your TransUnion credit score along with the report. You will be able to sign up for text message alerts if you so wish. This can help you keep up-to-date on all of the changes that occur to your credit history.
5. Lending Tree
This is another good option that works much like NerdWallet.com. Lending Tree gives you the ability to get your VantageScore 3.0 which is essentially a combination of all of the three major credit bureaus. As mentioned, having a VantageScore can give you a lot of information on the score you have with all of the major bureaus. It’s good to know your cumulative score because some of the other options will only tell you either one or two bureaus scores which don’t give you the entire view of your credit history because some lenders will use a specific bureau to pull your credit from.
Extra: Annual Credit Report.com
This is a good option that you have available if you are looking to obtain free copies of your reports and not only your score. Because you won’t get your FICO score along with your reports, it is best paired with another option that does give you the score you are looking for. The good thing about this option is that you will be able to obtain a credit report from all three major bureaus. It is actually the only website that is authorized to do this. Therefore, it should be one of the options that you consider using. You will be able to acquire all three major credit bureaus reports once every 12 months. A good way to utilize this service is by splitting each one into quarters which ensures that you are always up to date on your credit report pulls. This can help ensure you aren’t an unsuspecting victim of identity fraud.
As you can see, there are plenty of different free options that you can choose from. All of the options mentioned above are completely free. That being said, some do have options for premium features and services that you could choose to get and take advantage of. Investing in credit monitoring services isn’t a bad idea considering how much information is readily available to use. By consistently checking your credit reports and your score for any changes, you should be able to stay on top of any potential identity fraud and you will be able to know your stance with the various credit bureaus to understand your lending options.