Credit Karma
Back in January, when I wrote about paying six bucks to get my credit score, I got a comment from Kacie about how I could try Credit Karma next time if I wanted to get a credit score for free. Checking this out was on my to-do list ever since, but I never quite seem to get to the end of that list. I finally sat down to check out Credit Karma a few days ago, and I’m so glad I did.
I read everything I could find on the site, and I am truly convinced that there are no strings attached. I didn’t have to enroll in an sort of credit protection service, and I didn’t have to pay for my score. It took about three minutes to create an account and get my credit score. Instead of the weird VantageScore 501 – 990 system that Experian used when I paid for my score from them, the Credit Karma score used the traditional 300 – 850 scoring system.
My husband and I both created accounts. My credit score was a 768, and his was a 780. Anything over a 750 is considered excellent, so I’m quite happy with my 768. Last month I had wondered if we should someday finance a car in order to raise my credit score, and now I’m no longer concerned about it. Purchasing another house once we sell our current one should be a relatively smooth process if we have at least a 20% down payment and those credit scores. So all is good.
I wish that I had known about Credit Karma a few months ago, before I paid for our credit scores. But I’m glad that Kacie mentioned it in her comment, and glad that I finally got around to checking out the site. Better late than never!
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Glad it worked for you!
We signed up a few months ago but were always wondering how accurate it really was. About a week ago we went to get a pre-qualification for a mortgage and they ran our official credit scores. Ry’s was really close, it was about 6 points higher (the Karma score) than his actual number. Mine was a little farther off but also pretty good: the Karma score was about 10 points lower.
So it isn’t 100% accurate, but “pretty darn close”
Thanks for posting this. I went to the site to find out my credit score — pretty pleased with 760! Not sure how to increase, I have no-balance credit cards, no debt, and probably won’t have any debt until we buy a house. Is there any way to continually build credit without acquiring debt?
I’ve used it to keep tabs on my score. I don’t see any strings or added spam from signing up. I am glad wisebread.com posted about it.
Thanks for the tip. I was looking for a way to find my score without paying, spam or applying for more credit. It is a boost for the ego even if it might not be 100% accurate.
I can vouch for the service…sounded too good to be true, but CreditKarma is for real. I kept looking for the catch but there doesn’t appear to be one.