How, Where, and Why to Check Your Credit Score

Enroll in American Express^® MyCredit Guide to access your Experian^® credit report and explore credit building tools any time.

At-A-Glance

Checking your own credit score will not negatively impact your score.

Free credit score services allow you to view your score, and some provide notifications when your score changes.

Knowing your credit score can help you improve credit behavior to better qualify for loan and credit offers.

From completing a credit application to locking in the most competitive mortgage rates, your credit score is an important number that tells lenders your level of creditworthiness.¹ That’s why it’s helpful to regularly keep tabs of your score, especially since your score is calculated as new information is sent to the credit bureaus each month and may be affected by opening a new credit line or paying down debt.²

Checking your own credit score is known as a “soft check,” which won’t affect your score or appear on your credit report.³

Regularly checking your score—for example, at least once every month—can help you assess financial progress, fix any errors that may be hurting your score, and set financial goals for your future.

Where to Get a Free Credit Score

There are many online credit score tools that offer free credit score checks, including your bank or credit card company.⁴ Some companies may charge a fee for credit score access, which can include additional services—such as customized financial advice for your credit goals.⁴ But there are also robust credit knowledge services offered for free.

With American Express^® MyCredit Guide, it’s easy to check your FICO^® Score, explore your monthly Experian^® credit report, and use tools like the FICO^® Score Simulator – all for free. (FICO is a registered trademark of Fair Isaac Corporation in the U.S. and other countries.) Use the FICO^® Score Simulator to help you assess the possible impact of financial choices, such as applying for a new credit card, before you make them. Enrollment required.

Why Should You Check Your Credit Score?

Your credit score affects loan eligibility, lease requirements, and can help you access the most competitive interest rates and card offers.¹ Here are 5 reasons why it’s important to check your credit score and make it a habit to regularly monitor your score over time.

1. Understand your financial status

Credit scores range from poor to excellent.⁵ People with “very good” or “excellent” scores generally have access to the lowest interest rates on loans and lines of credit while earning premium rewards.^1,6 Knowing where you stand can help you build and sustain healthy credit habits.

2. Make a financial plan to improve your score

If your credit score falls in the “fair” or “good” category, you can take actions that will help raise your score.

Your credit score is affected by factors that include length of credit history, timeliness of payments, the types of loans you have, and your credit utilization ratio (the amount of debt you carry compared to the amount of credit offered to you).¹ While some factors (such as payment history) may be beyond your ability to repair, increasing your credit limits or paying off your debt can help you reduce your credit utilization ratio, which can help to increase your score.⁷

You can enroll in MyCredit Guide to access your credit report and explore credit building tools any time.

3. Keep your financial health in good shape

Minor ebbs and flows to your credit score aren’t uncommon—for example, it’s not unusual to see a brief dip in your credit score after you’ve applied for a credit card or loan offer⁸—but a continued dip may signal the need to take action. Checking your credit score regularly can alert you to any credit concerns you need to pay attention to before they become full-blown credit problems.

4. Prepare for credit or loan applications

Your credit score is used by credit card issuers and lenders to get a quick understanding of your likelihood of repaying debt.¹ When you know your own credit score, you can have the same insight as credit card companies, letting you understand which loans and credit cards match your credit profile. Many loans and credit cards will also tell applicants what the minimum credit score is to apply, so knowing your credit score will prevent you from applying for cards you won’t be approved for.⁵

5. Access Your Credit Report

In addition to regularly checking your credit score, it can be a good idea to use tools to monitor your credit, including your credit report.

MyCredit Guide lets you check your FICO^® Score based on Experian data for free. You can check your report to make sure all information is accurate and see if certain credit actions, such as late payments or debt settlement, may have affected your current credit score. Reporting any errors on your credit report to the credit bureaus can update your score.⁹

Did you know? As an added security measure to help protect against fraud, American Express reports a reference number to credit bureaus—instead of your actual account number.

Which Type of Credit Score Should You Check?

There are two major credit score scales: VantageScore^® and FICO^® Score.¹⁰ Both have slightly different scoring ranges and may calculate scores slightly differently, where one may put more emphasis on certain factors—such as credit history or credit utilization ratio—than the other.¹¹ That said, while the number may not be the same across providers, your credit score will likely be classified in a similar range for both VantageScore^® and FICO^® Score.

It’s important to understand scoring ranges for each credit score, and understand which credit score you are receiving when you sign up for a free credit score online. For example, American Express^® MyCredit Guide lets you check your FICO^® Score based on Experian data for free. If you’re applying for a specific type of loan, it’s helpful to know which scoring model the lender uses prior to application to see if your score falls into an appropriate range.

While your credit score may differ between models, positive credit behavior—such as paying bills on time and keeping your credit utilization ratio to a minimum—will help keep both scores in good shape.¹¹

¹ “What is a credit score?,” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

² “How Often Is My Credit Score Updated?,” Experian

³ “What Is a Soft Inquiry?,” Experian

⁴ “Where can I get my credit scores?,” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

⁵ “Credit scores,” Washington Department of Financial Institutions

⁶ “What Credit Score Do You Need to Get a Rewards Card?,” Experian

⁷ “Understand, get, and improve your credit score,” USA.gov

⁸ “What happens when a mortgage lender checks my credit?,” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

⁹ “How do I dispute an error on my credit report?,” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

¹⁰ “Your Credit Score,” MyCreditUnion.gov

¹¹ “The Difference Between VantageScore^® Scores and FICO^® Scores,” Experian

Anna Davies is a writer and content marketing strategist who specializes in the personal finance space. Bylines have appeared in New York, Refinery29, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, and others.

All Credit Intel content is written by freelance authors and commissioned and paid for by American Express.