How Can I Get My Free Scores?

You are legally entitled to your free credit reports under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), but NOT your free credit scores. This law may change in the future, but until it does, credit scores from each bureau are available for purchase through annualcreditreport.com (the government-sponsored website where you can also get your annual free credit reports).

The credit bureaus - Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion - will also sell you your credit scores. Note that only TransUnion offers credit scores from all three bureaus (Experian only offers an Experian score, and Equifax only offers an Equifax score).

There are third-party vendors that do offer credit scores for free, usually for a trial period. FreeCreditReport.com, myFICO.com, and SpendOnLife.com fall into this category. After the trial has ended, you'll be charged a monthly or yearly fee for membership, which often includes credit monitoring. Typically, if you cancel before your trial membership has ended, you will not be charged any fees.

In short, completely free and continuous access to your latest credit scores doesn't exist. You can use one of the above providers to get your free score, but remember that your score is likely to change each month. The credit score you receive at any given time is just a snapshot of your credit at that moment. If you really care about regularly tracking your credit rating, it might be worth the membership fee associated with an online credit services provider.

Related Links:

What Is a Good Credit Score?

Why Do I Have Three Credit Scores?