In case you missed the quiet rollout, Credit Karma has doubled their free credit score and credit report offerings by adding free Equifax credit scores and reports. Had it not been for the Anthem hack and me logging in to my account to look for suspicious activity on my credit report, I wouldn’t have known the free Equifax additions had even happened!
The free Equifax reports and scores are in addition to the free TransUnion credit reports that Credit Karma already offered, free TransUnion credit and home/auto insurance scores, and free credit monitoring, which alerts you in the event of any hard or soft credit inquiry, a new credit account being started, late payment updates, or any updates to your personal information.
This is timely news for those looking to monitor their credit score and history, as well as protect their identity. TransUnion and Equifax are two of the three major credit bureaus (Experian being the other) in the United States and all credit accounts are reported to them. Previously, the only legit way to get credit reports, for free, was through annualcreditreport.com. That site (set up by the three bureaus) is fine, but it has one big downfall – you can only access one credit report from each bureau per year, for free.
If you want more frequent access or have a concern that comes up, you have to pay for the additional updated report. You also have to pay for credit scores. And credit monitoring. The price of these all adds up.
With Equifax now coming to Credit Karma, you have continuous free access to both updated Equifax and TransUnion reports, which allows you to check in as frequently as you’d like to check for new activity, including new credit inquiries (a big red flag for suspicious activity). No need to tip-toe around when you pull a report and then anxiously wait another 12 months before you can pull another. I believe the TransUnion credit report updates weekly and Equifax monthly, but don’t quote me on that.
With the added free credit score from Equifax, you now have two credit scores to compare with each other. This should give you a strong general sense of where you stand in the eyes of creditors.
You’ll see both Equifax and TransUnion credit scores when you log in to your account.
Not bad, eh? ;-)
If you want to view your credit reports from TransUnion and Equifax:
- Click on “Credit”
- Click on “Score Details”
- Scroll down and click “View Full Credit Report”
After choosing one of the reports, you’ll have access to a huge amount of data.
If you’re looking for areas of concern for possible identity theft, definitely check out the credit inquiries tab, as well as collections tab. Under “Accounts”, look to see what your balances are and if any are outsized.
Additionally, you’ll find plenty of data on account activity that you can take action on, including any open accounts that you thought were closed.
For more on Credit Karma – check out my Credit Karma review which goes into a lot more detail.
Or, you can start your free Credit Karma account here.
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I use Mint, which offers an Equifax credit report, and I love the fact that I can see the breakdowns of where my score is coming from. It’s pretty cool that Credit Karma has integrated it too!
Thanks for the heads up GE, I will be checking this out and impressive credit scores!
Thanks for sharing GE. I’ve been thinking about checking my credit history but have always been afraid of having a low score and burying my head in the sand. This post has spurred me on to get a copy. Thanks
Equifax also updates weekly (or at least it has for me over the last couple of weeks that I’ve had Credit Karma with both TU and EQ reports).
Cool. Good to know.
G.E. thanks for making this awesome recommendation a few years ago. I’ve been one of the credit karma faithful since that post, and man I am loving all of the new additions. The credit monitoring really works nicely, and it’s crazy to see how my score has improved with good habits (and a couple more years under my belt.) :) Keep on keeping on!
It would be nice but if you can’t get into your account you are SOL until they get around to replying by email. No real way to contact someone if there is problems with your account. lousy customer service.
What is up with the Experian Boost that I keep seeing commercials for? Legit?