To get the free credit report authorized by law, go to
You can start by going to the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion first by logging on to AnnualCreditReport.com to check your report for free. Each agency gives you access to your report once every 12 months.
Equifax, one of the three credit bureaus, is one of the strongest sites overall, despite the monthly fee. It offers credit scores and reports from all three bureaus, educational resources, and identity protection. Overall, it provides a significant amount of information and does so in a way that is easy to understand.
AnnualCreditReport.com is the official site to get your free annual credit reports. This right is guaranteed by Federal law.
AnnualCreditReport.com is authorized by federal law and safe to use — as long as you ensure you're on the correct site. Double-check the URL when you type it, to be sure you have not made a typo. Some other sites have similar-sounding names, so check that the URL matches and the site looks as expected.
Is Experian legitimate? Yes. Along with TransUnion and Equifax, Experian is recognized by financial institutions around the world as a safe, authoritative and trustworthy credit reporting agency.
To request all three credit bureau reports for free, visit annualcreditreport.com.
The credit scores and credit reports you see on Credit Karma come directly from TransUnion and Equifax, two of the three major consumer credit bureaus. They should accurately reflect your credit information as reported by those bureaus — but they may not match other reports and scores out there.
The three nationwide credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — have a centralized website, toll-free telephone number, and mailing address so you can order your free annual reports in one place.
Don't be fooled by look-alikes. Lots of sites promise credit reports for free. AnnualCreditReport.com is the only official site explicitly directed by Federal law to provide them.
Credit Karma uses two of the three major credit bureaus and scores your creditworthiness according to the widely used (but not quite as widely used as FICO) VantageScore system. Your score should be within the same range as it is everywhere else, including with the major credit bureaus and its many competitors.
In September 2022, the FTC announced an enforcement action against Credit Karma, alleging that the company used claims that consumers were “pre-approved” for a credit card or had “90% odds” of approval to entice them to apply for offers that, in many instances, they did not qualify for.
That way, if the company should suffer a breach, that breach won't put your identity at risk. Credit Karma asks only for your name, address, birthdate, and the last four digits of your Social Security number. It doesn't store Social Security numbers, so there's virtually no risk that anyone can steal this information.
Experian, Equifax and TransUnion are all respected, credible bureaus that are used widely.
Although Experian is the largest credit bureau in the U.S., TransUnion and Equifax are widely considered to be just as accurate and important. When it comes to credit scores, however, there is a clear winner: FICO® Score is used in 90% of lending decisions.
The answer depends on you. If you are thinking about buying something big soon a new car or even a home you may want to get all of your credit reports now. That way you can correct any mistakes on all of them right away. If you are not planning a big purchase, requesting them over time might be a better choice.
A Social Security number (SSN) is helpful when compiling your credit history because it is the only identifier uniquely assigned to each U.S. consumer. Experian will ask for it when you order your own credit report to help ensure that we provide you a complete and accurate report.
The main disadvantage of Experian is that, unlike FICO, it is rarely used as a stand-alone tool to make credit decisions. Even lenders that review credit reports in detail rather than go off a borrower's numerical score often look at results from all three bureaus, not just Experian.
Although there isn't a bank that exclusively uses Experian, some banks that typically use Experian data more commonly include American Express, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo.
Can AnnualCreditReport.com Be Hacked? While AnnualCreditReport.com takes steps to keep its site secure, hypothetically, your credit report could be accessed if an impersonator had enough of your personal information. That's what happened in an incident in 2013.
Many people are afraid to request a copy of their credit reports – or check their credit scores – out of concern it may negatively impact their credit scores. Good news: Credit scores aren't impacted by checking your own credit reports or credit scores.
Checking your own credit report is not an inquiry about new credit, so it has no effect on your score. In fact, reviewing your credit report regularly can help you to ensure that the information the credit reporting companies share with lenders is accurate and up-to-date.
Why is my FICO® score different from my credit score? Your FICO Score is a credit score. But if your FICO score is different from another of your credit scores, it may be that the score you're viewing was calculated using one of the other scoring models that exist.