Free Credit Report Online

On our website you will find information about free credit reports and a list of the best sites for credit reporting and credit scores.

Thanks to the federal FACT Act, you can obtain a free copy of your credit report at no cost every year. That is, once a year you are entitled to a free report; any subsequent requests during the year you will have to pay. This pertains to the three major Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs): Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

You can order your free reports by phone (877 322 8228), or you can go online to: www.annualcreditreport.com where you place your order directly. A third approach is to fill out a request form and mail it in. You can get the request form from: www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/requestformfinal.pdf

A study was released by the World Privacy Forum which indicates that ordering reports may best be accomplished by phone or mail, and not online. See the study at: www.worldprivacyforum.org/calldontclick.html.

For additional information on accessing free credit reports, see the Federal Trade Commission’s Facts for Consumers at: www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre34.shtm

By the way, you are not required to order your credit reports from all three CRAs at the same time; you can order at anytime throughout the year from each agency separately. It is suggested that you spread the requests over four months for greater coverage and credit checking.

Under certain circumstances, you can get a free credit report without the annual restriction:

• If you are denied credit, you can request a copy within 60 days 
• If you are unemployed and will be applying for employment within 60 days 
• If you are receiving public assistance (welfare, unemployment, etc.) 
• If you believe your file contains inaccurate information due to fraud or identity theft 
• If denial for employment occurs based on your credit report 
• If your credit report has been modified due to a request you made 

In addition, the following states allow receiving credit reports free of charge regardless of the annual restriction. These states are: Colorado, Georgia (2 per year), Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont.

Can I Purchase the Report from Other Companies?
There are many companies online that offer a credit report. Some companies will merge data from all three CRAs.

In addition, there are monitoring services available from online sources to alert you if there is any activity on your report, such as new credit accounts, the placement of negative data, and inquiries from creditors.

It is best to shop around to compare what online companies have to offer before signing any contracts. Be sure to understand what the service will provide, and how effective the service (this is especially true with credit repair services).

NOTE: if you are a victim of identity theft, or suspect that you are, or that your SSN has be compromised, you can get a free copy of your credit report from the three major CRAs (as noted above). Just call each of the credit bureaus to request your copy because you suspect fraud.

Once a fraud alert is issued, the CRAs are supposed to contact you every time a transaction occurs to ensure that the transaction is good.