5 Min Read | Updated February 16, 2024
Originally Published: November 06, 2019
How to Freeze Your Credit at All 3 Bureaus—For Free
If you choose to freeze your credit, you have three options. Learn how to freeze your credit online for free.
At-A-Glance
Freezing your credit at all three credit bureaus may be tedious, but it isn’t necessarily as hard as you may think.
It can be worth the effort to protect you against identity thieves opening accounts in your name—for which you may be held liable.
You can freeze your credit online, by phone, or through the U.S. mail.
Many people who might otherwise choose a credit freeze may hesitate because they don’t know how to freeze their credit at all three credit bureaus. Or, they might think the process will be a time-sucking morass of bureaucratic red tape—these organizations are called “bureaus,” after all—with a fee to pay at the end of it all.
But if that’s your thinking, the reality of freezing credit reports might surprise you, based on my experience and an informal survey of my professional associates.
How to Freeze Your Credit at All 3 Bureaus
A credit freeze—called a security freeze by credit bureaus—protects you from the cost and disruption that can happen when identity thieves attempt to open new accounts in your name.1 If you choose to freeze your credit, you have three options. In order of ease and speed, they are: online, on the phone, or in the mail (U.S. Postal, not “e”).2
How to Freeze Your Credit Online
I froze my credit online in October 2017, shortly after the Equifax data breach,3 when the necessary web pages were hard to locate. Now they’re easier to find—and you can get to the credit freeze pages for all three credit bureaus by clicking these links: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. These pages provide further links to:
- Start a freeze process
- Unfreeze credit
- Freeze the credit of a child, spouse, or other relative.
You’ll start by filling a form that may ask for:4,5,6
- Your name
- Address
- Social Security number (or last four digits)
- Email address
- Equifax also asks for your mobile number, and will take an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) as an alternative to the Social Security number.
How to Freeze Your Credit on the Phone
On the phone, automated systems at all three credit bureaus ask for the same detailed personal information described above.
- Once they’re satisfied that you’re you, they will establish your credit freeze.
- It may takes more time on the phone to get through the questions and answers for the automated voice response system. It may also be difficult to reach a live customer service rep.
- Unfortunately, whether online or by phone, if there are any discrepancies between your personal information and the information in the credit bureau’s database, the system won’t sign you up. Instead, it may tell you to send a written request in the mail or through an online system.7,8,9
The numbers to call are:
- Equifax: 1-888-298-0045
- Experian: 1-888-397-3742
- TransUnion: 1-800-916-8800
How to Freeze Your Credit by Mail
You’ll need to prepare a fairly thick packet of information, including everything mentioned above under How to freeze your credit online. But that’s not all. They may also want to see:
- Copies of two forms of identification, one showing your address (such as a driver’s license, state identification card, rental lease, pay stub, or utility bill) and one showing your Social Security number (your Social Security card itself, or a tax return, W2, or pay stub that includes the number).
- Equifax has a send-by-mail form that lists all the requirements, with instructions.5 The others have online instructions, but they all say approximately the same thing.4,6
The addresses for written requests are:
- Equifax: P.O. Box 105788, Atlanta, GA 30348-5788
- Experian: P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013
- TransUnion: P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn, PA 19094
Credit Freezes May Not Be as Hard as You Think
I conducted an informal survey on credit freezes for an article titled “Should I Freeze my Credit?" One of the things that became clear was that many respondents decided not to do it because of the red tape concern. If I summarize all their reasons, it comes down to the wasted time and aggravation they anticipated.
But most of the 18 respondents who actually did a credit freeze said it was relatively fast and easy, mirroring my experience. Only a handful reported bureaucratic delays, usually if the credit bureau’s database contained errors or when attempting to unfreeze their credit (either temporarily or permanently).
And there is no fee at the end. A federal law that went into effect in September 2018 mandates that credit freezes are free.10 If that fact conflicts with something you read elsewhere, consider that many online sources may not have been updated since the law passed.
The Takeaway
Once you know how to freeze your credit at all three credit bureaus, the process isn’t necessarily hard. But it does require a lot of personal information and meticulous record keeping. And if any of your data in a credit bureau’s database is erroneous, it may require extra work to resolve.
1 “What To Know About Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts,” Federal Trade Commission
2 “How to place or lift a security freeze on your credit report,” USA.gov
3 “Equifax Data Breach Settlement,” Federal Trade Commission
4 “What Is a Credit Freeze?,” Experian
5 “Security Freeze Request Form,” Equifax
6 “Freeze Support Center,” TransUnion
7 “Disputes and Personal Information,” TransUnion
8 “How to Remove an Incorrect Address From Your Credit Report,” Experian
9 “Dispute information on your Equifax credit report,” Equifax
10 “What does it mean to put a security freeze on my credit report?,” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Mike Azzara has covered technology and financial services issues for more than 30 years as a writer, editor, publisher, consultant, and analyst for media brands, startups, and established corporations.
All Credit Intel content is written by freelance authors and commissioned and paid for by American Express.
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