What does a soft credit check show?

Asked by: Alessandra Gusikowski  |  Last update: October 6, 2025
Score: 4.8/5 (33 votes)

A soft inquiry—also called a soft pull—allows a creditor to review your credit report and credit score to get a sense of how well you are managing your credit. It can provide them with an indication of how risky of a borrower you are. A potential employer checks your credit.

What shows up on a soft credit check?

A soft pull on your credit shows basic personal information, a summary of your credit history, recent inquiries, any public records related to your credit, and sometimes a summary of your credit scores. It does not reveal detailed account-specific information and doesn't affect your credit score.

Can you fail a soft credit check?

Can I 'fail' a soft credit check? Don't worry, you can't 'fail' a soft credit check. With a soft search, you're not actually applying for anything – so it won't result in a lender's decision.

How accurate is a soft credit check?

Soft pulls can be as accurate as a hard credit pull and provide much of the same information. However, they won't affect your credit score like a hard pull would. Can lenders see soft pulls? Lenders cannot see a soft pull on your credit report -- only you can.

How many points does a soft credit check drop your score?

Soft inquiries do not affect credit scores and are not visible to potential lenders that may review your credit reports. They are visible to you and will stay on your credit reports for 12 to 24 months, depending on the type. The other type of inquiry is a “hard” inquiry.

What is a Hard or Soft Credit Check? | Soft Credit Check Mortgages

31 related questions found

Does a soft credit check show defaults?

However, it's crucial to note that soft credit checks do not show defaults, missed payments, or County Court Judgments (CCJs). This makes them a useful tool for individuals and lenders to gauge creditworthiness without affecting the credit score.

Is 700 a good credit score?

A 700 credit score is considered a good score on the most common credit score range, which runs from 300 to 850. How does your score compare with others? You're within the good credit score range, which runs from 690 to 719.

Does a soft credit check show your income?

Income is not part of your credit report. And while lenders often factor your income into their lending decisions, they'll typically get that information directly from you during the credit application process.

Can a soft pull be done if your credit is frozen?

Does a credit freeze prevent soft inquiries? Because a soft inquiry is not necessarily to open a new credit account, a credit freeze usually doesn't prevent soft inquiries. Certain companies (insurance providers, for example) can still look at your credit report, as can your existing creditors.

What habit lowers your credit score?

Late or missed payments can cause your credit score to decline. The impact can vary depending on your credit score — the higher your score, the more likely you are to see a steep drop.

How long does a soft credit check stay on your record?

How long do soft inquiries stay on your credit report? Promotional inquiries can stay on your credit report for one year, while other soft inquiries may stay on your credit report for two years. Only you can see all the soft inquiries on your credit report.

What affects your credit score the most?

Your payment history is one of the most important credit scoring factors and can have the biggest impact on your scores. Having a long history of on-time payments is best for your credit scores, while missing a payment could hurt them. The effects of missing payments can also increase the longer a bill goes unpaid.

What does AF mean on a credit report?

When you look at your credit report in the UK, you might see some abbreviations that can be confusing. One of these is "AF." AF usually stands for "Affordability Check." This means that a lender has checked to see if you can afford to repay a loan or credit.

Can lenders see soft credit checks?

A soft credit check doesn't leave a visible footprint on your credit file, but it is recorded. This means no other lenders can see it.

Is credit karma accurate?

Overall, Credit Karma may produce a different result than one or more of the three major credit bureaus directly. The slight differences in calculations between FICO and VantageScore can lead to significant variances in credit scores, making Credit Karma less accurate than most may appreciate.

What is a soft background check?

While a hard or comprehensive background check examines everything in depth, a soft check is more surface-level. It can still uncover important information that can either make or break job prospects, but it will only examine things like financials if explicitly requested.

Is freezing your credit a good idea?

A credit freeze restricts access to your credit report. If you suspect your personal information or identity was stolen, placing a credit freeze can help protect you from fraud.

How do lenders do a soft pull?

A soft pull personal loan means that the lender only requires a soft credit check for preapprove or approval, which won't impact your credit score. With a soft pull, a lender is able to look at information in your credit report without leaving a negative mark.

How do I get rid of soft credit inquiries?

What do I do if I see an inquiry I don't recognize on my credit report?
  1. Contact the lender directly to ask them about the inquiry. If they find it was made in error, ask them to inform the credit reporting agencies.
  2. If the lender finds the inquiry was made fraudulently, report it to the FTC.

What do soft credit checks look for?

How a Soft Credit Check Works. Financial institutions and creditors may want to know whether you are managing your debt and credit history effectively. Creditors might also want to know information such as the number of late payments or your credit usage, such as how much you have borrowed on each loan or credit card.

Can I be denied a job because of my credit?

Smith explained that even if a potential employer isn't looking at your credit history specifically, they may still pull your credit report: “A credit score can affect your job chances by getting you denied employment. There are limited reasons why someone can obtain a credit report or consumer report about a person.

What's the difference between a freeze and an alert?

A fraud alert requires lenders to contact you before moving forward with a credit application, while a credit freeze locks down your credit reports with the major credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — so new credit accounts cannot be opened in your name.

Is a 900 credit score possible?

What is the highest credit score possible? To start off: No, it's not possible to have a 900 credit score in the United States. In some countries that use other models, like Canada, people could have a score of 900. The current scoring models in the U.S. have a maximum of 850.

Can I buy a house with a 704 credit score?

The minimum credit score needed to buy a house can range from 500 to 700, but will ultimately depend on the type of mortgage loan you're applying for and your lender. While it's possible to get a mortgage with bad credit, you typically need good or exceptional credit to qualify for the best terms.

Can I get 50000 with 700 credit score?

A 700 credit score can help you in securing a Rs 50,000 Personal Loan with many benefits, such as: Lower interest rates. Higher loan amounts. Faster approval process.