ACTION PLAN: Check Your Credit Score & Report (0:50 mins)

Here’s a step-by-step guide to checking your credit report.

1. Visit the annualcreditreport.com website

Visit AnnualCreditReport.com to access your credit report if you’d like. Federal law has granted this website permission to offer free copies of each of your credit reports from the three major credit reporting companies.

2. Fill out the form

You need to fill out some basic information – your name, address, social security number etc.

2. Pick the reports you want

The FTC allows for you to get a copy of your credit report from each of the 3 bureaus once a year. You can choose to pull all 3 reports at the same time – this is usually a good idea if it’s the first time you’re pulling your credit report, so there are no surprises.

Pro Tip: If you don’t want all your reports, you can stagger them, do one report now, or you can pull a report once every 4 months so you can keep track of what’s on your credit report all year round.

3. Request and Review your reports online

Before you get your reports, you’ll have to answer a few questions to confirm your identity and provide you with access to your credit reports. They will be questions that pertain directly to you so no one can steal your identity.

Need help on what to look for on your credit report? Get insights here on what to look for on your credit here.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to checking your credit score.

The easiest way to check your credit score for free is using a free credit score checking website like Credit Karma.

However, there are several other ways you can check your credit score for free.