How to Understand Your FICO Credit Score
Ask FICO for your scores., Get your scores from the individual credit bureaus., Ask your credit card issuer for your FICO score.
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: Ask FICO for your scores.
You can get all of your FICO scores from the Fair Isaac Corporation’s consumer website, myfico.com.FICO does not provide these scores for free, but they will allow you to order your scores from all three credit bureaus
-- Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax
-- in one report.
A one-time report costs $59.85. -
Step 2: Get your scores from the individual credit bureaus.
You can order your FICO scores from each of the three major credit bureaus separately.
Note that credit bureaus may use different versions of the FICO score.
For this reason, it’s important to get your FICO scores from all three major credit bureaus.
Visit their websites for details on how to purchase your credit reports.Be aware that the credit bureaus often will not allow one-time report purchases.
They prefer you to purchase a renewing membership for a monthly fee.
You must cancel these memberships in order to avoid being charged the monthly fee. , Several credit card companies will now provide you with a free copy of your FICO score.
The terms and availability varies between companies (and sometimes even between credit card products), so contact your issuer to find out if this is an option.In the United States, these companies include Bank of America, Barclaycard US,Chase, Citibank,Discover,and USAA.
Other credit card issuers may provide other types of access to some or all of your credit scores and reports.
Contact them for details. -
Step 3: Ask your credit card issuer for your FICO score.
Detailed Guide
You can get all of your FICO scores from the Fair Isaac Corporation’s consumer website, myfico.com.FICO does not provide these scores for free, but they will allow you to order your scores from all three credit bureaus
-- Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax
-- in one report.
A one-time report costs $59.85.
You can order your FICO scores from each of the three major credit bureaus separately.
Note that credit bureaus may use different versions of the FICO score.
For this reason, it’s important to get your FICO scores from all three major credit bureaus.
Visit their websites for details on how to purchase your credit reports.Be aware that the credit bureaus often will not allow one-time report purchases.
They prefer you to purchase a renewing membership for a monthly fee.
You must cancel these memberships in order to avoid being charged the monthly fee. , Several credit card companies will now provide you with a free copy of your FICO score.
The terms and availability varies between companies (and sometimes even between credit card products), so contact your issuer to find out if this is an option.In the United States, these companies include Bank of America, Barclaycard US,Chase, Citibank,Discover,and USAA.
Other credit card issuers may provide other types of access to some or all of your credit scores and reports.
Contact them for details.
About the Author
Carol Wells
Experienced content creator specializing in hobbies guides and tutorials.
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