How to read your credit report, line by line

Your credit report is the record of how you have handled debt, and lenders, landlords and insurers read it before they decide. This guide is for anyone requesting a report for the first time or puzzling over the one they have: where to get it for free, what each part says, how to check it step by step, how long negative items stay and how to spot an error or identity theft.

You can see your reports from the three nationwide bureaus for free

Every week⁶

For the bureau to send the free annual report you request

15 days⁵

How long most negative information can be reported

7 years¹⁰

The maximum for a bankruptcy

10 years¹¹

Report and score: two different things

Your credit reportcredit reportA credit report is a statement that has information about your credit activity and current credit situation: your loans and cards, the balances, whether you have paid on time, accounts in collection and who has checked your credit. Credit reporting companies, also called credit bureaus, compile it from what banks and creditors report; your credit score is computed from it. When you apply for a mortgage, the lender pulls your report from the three bureaus. You have the right to see it for free and to dispute anything that is wrong.See the full definitionClose shows your credit activity and current situation: how you have paid your loans and the status of your accounts. Lenders use it to decide whether to lend to you and at what interest rateinterest rateThe interest rate on a mortgage is what you pay each year to borrow the money, expressed as a percentage of the loan balance. It does not include fees or other charges; that is what the annual percentage rate (APR) is for. On a fixed-rate loan the rate never changes over the life of the loan; on an adjustable-rate loan it can go up or down after an initial period. The rate you are offered depends on your credit score, your down payment, the loan type and the market, and you see it on the first page of the Loan Estimate.See the full definitionClose; other businesses use it to decide whether to insure you, rent you a home or give you services such as internet, utilities or a cell phone. Most people have more than one report, because creditors are not required to report to every credit bureaucredit reporting agencyA credit reporting agency, also called a credit bureau or credit reporting company, is a company that gathers information about people and sells credit reports to other businesses. The three nationwide ones are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The businesses that buy those reports use them to decide whether to give you credit, a job, a rental home or insurance. There are also specialty agencies, for example for rental history or check writing. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) gives you the right to request a copy of your report and to dispute information that is wrong.See the full definitionClose.¹

Your credit scorecredit scoreA credit score is a number that predicts how likely you are to pay back a loan on time. It is computed from the information in your credit report: whether you pay on time, how much you owe relative to your limits, how long you have used credit and how many new accounts you opened. FICO is one brand of score; VantageScore is another, and each lender decides which one it uses. A higher score usually brings a lower interest rate and more loan options; each program publishes the minimum it accepts. You can check your report for free and dispute errors.See the full definitionClose is something else: a prediction of how you will repay, calculated by a scoring model from the data in your reports. You do not have just one score: it varies with the model, the source of the data and even the day it is calculated. Most scores range from 300 to 850.² In most cases, your report does not include your score.³

How to get your reports for free

The only site the federal government authorizes for the free annual reports from the three nationwide bureaus is AnnualCreditReport.com. You can also request them at 1-877-322-8228 (TTY: 1-800-821-7232) or by mail, with the site’s request form.³

The law gives you the right to one free report from each bureau once during any 12-month period, and the bureau has up to 15 days from receiving your request to provide it.⁵ On top of that, according to the CFPB, the site lets you view your Equifax, Experian and TransUnion reports for free once a week; you can choose one, two or all three bureaus, and ask whether your report is available in your preferred language.⁶ Requesting your own report is a soft inquirysoft inquiryA soft inquiry is a review of your credit file that does not affect your score. It includes reviews of your existing accounts by your lenders or insurers, prescreened offers from prospective lenders, employment screening and your own requests for your credit report. Only you see it when you review your report; businesses that buy your report do not. That is why checking your own credit report, even often, does not lower your score.See the full definitionClose: it does not affect your scores.⁸

There are extra free reports, too. If you were denied credit, insurance or a job because of a report, you have the right to another free one from the bureau named in the notice, if you ask within 60 days. The same goes if you believe your file is inaccurate because of fraud, if you place an initial fraud alert, if you are unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days, if you receive public assistance or if your state’s law provides one.⁶

The parts of the report

According to the CFPB, a report usually has five parts:¹

Part	What it shows
Personal information	Your name and other names you have used on credit accounts (nicknames included), current and former addresses, birth date, Social Security number and phone numbers
Credit accounts (tradelines)	Current and past accounts: type (mortgage, installment, revolving), credit limit or amount, balance, payment history, dates opened and closed, creditor name
Collections	Missed payments, loans sent to collections and overdue child support provided or verified by a government agency
Public records	Liens, foreclosures, bankruptcies, civil suits and judgments
Inquiries	The companies that have accessed your report

Inquiries come in two kinds.⁸ Hard inquirieshard inquiryA hard inquiry happens when a lender checks your credit report because you applied for a loan or a card, to decide whether to approve you. It can affect your score, because most scoring models look at how often and how recently you apply for credit, and other businesses that buy your report can see it. A single inquiry has little impact. Scoring models also allow for comparison shopping: several inquiries for the same type of loan, such as a mortgage, within a short period usually count as one.See the full definitionClose are usually made by lenders when you apply for credit: they affect your score, because most scoring models look at how recently and how often you apply, and companies that buy your report can see them. Soft inquiries (reviews of accounts you already have, prescreened offers, employment screening and your own requests) do not affect your scores and only you see them.

Check your report, step by step

The CFPB says to confirm that the report contains only items about you and to look for anything inaccurate or incomplete.⁹ Bureaus are required to follow reasonable procedures to make the information as accurate as possible,¹⁰ but errors happen. Keep your statements and a list of your previous addresses and names at hand, and go through the report in this order:

Go through your report in this order

1. 1. Your personal information

   Are your name, addresses and phone number right, and are they all yours? A name or address you do not recognize can be a sign of a mixed file.⁹

2. 2. Your accounts

   Did you open each one? Are you the owner or only an authorized user? Is a closed account showing as open?⁹

3. 3. Payments and dates

   Are there late payments you never made late? Check the dates of last payment, opening and first delinquency: that last date decides how long a collection can be reported.¹¹⁹

4. 4. Balances and limits

   Do they match your statements? Does the same debt show up twice, maybe under another name?⁹

5. 5. Collections

   Missed payments, loans sent to collections and overdue child support. A debt you do not recognize can be a sign of identity theft.¹²¹

6. 6. Public records

   Liens, foreclosures, bankruptcies, lawsuits and judgments. Compare their dates with the legal time limits in the next section.¹¹

7. 7. Inquiries

   Are there inquiries from companies you never contacted? Hard inquiries affect your score; soft ones only you see.⁸¹²

8. 8. Mark what is wrong and keep a copy

   The CFPB suggests sending, with your dispute, the part of the report with the errors circled or highlighted.¹⁴

   Try it with your numbersCredit plan

If something does not add up, contact the bureau and the company that provided the information; the report includes directions on how to dispute.⁹

How long negative items stay

Positive information can stay longer, even after you pay off or close the account; negative information has time limits.¹⁰ The Fair Credit Reporting Act sets these maximums:¹¹

Negative item	Counted from	Maximum time
Bankruptcy	The order for relief or adjudication	10 years
Civil suits, civil judgments and arrest records	The date of entry	7 years, or until the statute of limitations expires if that is longer
Paid tax lien	The date of payment	7 years
Account in collections or charged off	See below	7 years
Any other negative item (except criminal convictions)	—	7 years

For an account in collectionscollection accountA collection account is a past-due debt that the original creditor (the company that gave you the loan or credit) handed to a debt collector or sold to another company. A debt collector is a person or company that regularly collects debts owed to others, such as a collection agency, a lawyer or a debt buyer. The account can show up on your credit report; once you pay it, it should generally show a zero balance as a paid collection. Most negative information can be reported for up to seven years. If you think you do not owe the debt or the amount is wrong, you can dispute it with the collector and with the credit reporting company.See the full definitionClose or charged off, the seven years start once 180 days have passed from the start of the delinquency that led to it.¹¹

These limits do not apply to reports used for credit or life insurance of $150,000 or more, or for a job paying $75,000 or more a year.¹¹ A mortgage can be above that amount; in those cases, according to the CFPB, bureaus may report negative information outside the time limits.¹⁰

Signs of identity theft or a mixed file

A mixed file combines two people’s information, such as accounts belonging to someone with the same or a similar name.⁹ In identity theftidentity theftIdentity theft happens when someone uses your personal information without your permission to commit fraud: for example, your name, your Social Security or Medicare number, or your credit card or bank account number. With that information, a thief can rent a home, get credit cards, receive government benefits or tax refunds, or open other accounts in your name. You often find out when your credit report or a statement shows accounts or charges you do not recognize, or when a debt collector calls. The federal site IdentityTheft.gov takes reports and gives you a recovery plan.See the full definitionClose, someone opens accounts in your name. The CFPB lists these warning signs: inquiries from companies you never contacted, accounts you did not open, wrong amounts, personal details that are not yours and debt collectors calling about debts that are not yours.¹²

If you think your identity was stolen, the CFPB lays out these steps:¹³

1. Close the affected accounts and contact your bank’s fraud department.
2. Report it to the FTC at IdentityTheft.gov: you get an Identity Theft Report and a recovery plan.
3. Place a fraud alertfraud alertA fraud alert is a note in your credit file that requires creditors who check your report to verify your identity before opening a new account, issuing an additional card or raising your credit limit. You only need to ask one of the nationwide credit reporting companies, which must notify the others. An initial alert is for anyone who suspects they are, or are about to become, a victim of fraud or identity theft, and it lasts one year unless you ask to remove it sooner. An extended alert requires an identity theft report and lasts seven years. When you place one, you are entitled to free copies of your report.See the full definitionClose with one bureau, which must notify the others: creditors will have to make sure it is you before opening a new account. An initial alert lasts one year; an extended alert, seven.
4. Consider a security freezesecurity freezeA security freeze, also called a credit freeze, keeps new creditors from seeing your credit file, which helps stop an identity thief from opening new accounts in your name. By law it is free to place and to lift, and you must ask each of the three nationwide credit reporting companies separately. While it is on, only a few can see your file, such as creditors on accounts you already have, and you can still review your reports. It does not affect your score. Because creditors rarely lend without checking your file, it stops you too; you can lift it for free for a period of time when you need to.See the full definitionClose: it is free under federal law, but you request it from each bureau separately.
5. Ask the bureaus to block the fraudulent information, with your identity theft report, proof of identity and a letter. They must do it within four business days after receiving your request.

Tenant screening reports and other specialty bureaus

Not everything is in your Equifax, Experian and TransUnion reports. Specialty agencies collect information just for landlords, to help them decide whether to rent to you: your name, previous addresses, how long you lived at each one and your payment history with past landlords. Many give you a free copy of your report every 12 months; others charge.¹⁵ The CFPB publishes a list of specialty reporting companies, and you have to request each report separately.⁶

If a landlord turns down your rental application, fully or partly, because of what one of those reports says, that is an “adverse action”: the landlord must give you a notice with the agency’s name and contact information, and if you ask, the agency must give you a free copy of the report that was used.¹⁵ How tenant screeningtenant screening reportA tenant screening report is a report many landlords use to decide whether to rent to you and how much to charge for the security deposit. Specialty companies prepare it, and it can include your credit report, your rental history including eviction cases and lawsuits, employment verification, criminal history and a score or recommendation. It is not the same as a credit report. If a landlord denies you, or asks for a larger deposit or higher rent, because of the report, federal law requires the landlord to tell you, name the company and explain your right to a free copy and to dispute errors.See the full definitionClose works when you have no history is covered in How to rent without a Social Security number or credit.

If you find an error

Disputing is your right, and you can do it yourself at no cost.¹⁰ According to the CFPB, write to the credit bureau saying what is wrong and why, with copies (not originals) of your proof; the bureau must investigate, forward your dispute to the company that provided the information and report the results to you. Also write, by certified mail, to the company that provided the information (your bank, your landlord, your card company); it generally must investigate and respond within 30 days of receiving your dispute.¹⁴

The full disputecredit report disputeA credit report dispute is the complaint you make when your credit report has wrong or incomplete information. You have the right to dispute it, and the investigation is free. It is usually done in two places: with the credit reporting company and with the company that supplied the information, called a furnisher, such as your bank, your landlord or your credit card company. You explain in writing what is wrong and why, with copies of your documents. The credit reporting company must investigate, generally within thirty days, and delete or correct anything found to be inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable.See the full definitionClose steps, with what each letter should include, where to send it and the legal timelines, are in our guide How to dispute credit report errors. If your report comes back nearly empty, Credit from zero explains how to start a history.

Free help near you

A HUD-approved housing counselor gives independent advice on credit issues, often at little or no cost, and you search for one by ZIP code; not every counselor offers every service, so check each agency’s list.¹⁶ Our credit plan helps you put the steps in order.

HUD-approved housing counselors by state

State	HUD-approved counselors
Alabama	25
Alaska	1
Arizona	21
Arkansas	14
California	81
Colorado	26
Connecticut	13
Delaware	12
District of Columbia	17
Florida	98
Georgia	42
Hawaii	17
Idaho	10
Illinois	81
Indiana	21
Iowa	11
Kansas	3
Kentucky	19
Louisiana	26
Maine	7
Maryland	41
Massachusetts	37
Michigan	59
Minnesota	33
Mississippi	16
Missouri	18
Montana	11
Nebraska	8
Nevada	8
New Hampshire	5
New Jersey	34
New Mexico	7
New York	93
North Carolina	52
North Dakota	3
Ohio	54
Oklahoma	6
Oregon	25
Pennsylvania	75
Puerto Rico	9
Rhode Island	5
South Carolina	13
South Dakota	13
Tennessee	32
Texas	51
Utah	7
Vermont	7
Virginia	49
Washington	15
West Virginia	8
Wisconsin	26
Wyoming	1

They advise on credit, among other topics, often at little or no cost.¹⁶ Source: HUD

If this is you

Your report comes back nearly empty

A report is built from what creditors report; if you have no accounts, there is little to read.¹ Credit from zero explains how to start.

Someone in your family has your same name

If you see accounts belonging to someone with the same or a similar name, it may be a mixed file: it is a common error, and you can dispute it.⁹

You are about to rent

The landlord may use a tenant screening report. If you are turned down because of it, you must be told which agency made it, and you can ask for a free copy.¹⁵

You are applying for a mortgage

If the lender uses your score, the law requires it to give you the score, its range and the factors that pulled it down.⁴ Check your reports before you apply.

Costly mistakes

• Mistake: Getting your report from a «free» site you saw in an ad.

  Instead: Type AnnualCreditReport.com yourself: it is the only site the federal government authorizes.³

• Mistake: Checking only one of your three reports.

  Instead: Check all three: creditors are not required to report to every bureau.¹

• Mistake: Ignoring a collector's call about a debt that is not yours.

  Instead: Do not ignore it: it may be a sign that someone opened an account in your name.¹²

• Mistake: Paying someone to erase a late payment you really made.

  Instead: No one has the right to remove accurate information; only errors get fixed, and that is free.¹⁰

• Mistake: Sending your original documents with a dispute.

  Instead: Send copies, plus the part of the report with the errors marked.¹⁴

• Mistake: Giving your information to someone who calls «from the FTC».

  Instead: The FTC never threatens you or asks you to move your money; contact the agency yourself at its official numbers.¹³

What to do this week

1. Type AnnualCreditReport.com into your browser yourself and request your three reports.³
2. Go through them with the steps above and your statements next to you.⁹
3. Mark anything you do not recognize and keep a copy.¹⁴
4. If you see signs of identity theft, go to IdentityTheft.gov and place a fraud alert.¹³
5. If there is an error, follow How to dispute credit report errors and write to the bureau and to the company that provided the information.¹⁴
6. Put your next check on your calendar: you can view your reports for free every week.⁶