How to Get My FICO Score for Free & Without a Credit Card

Using credit is the only way most Americans achieve their financial goals and dreams, so it's important to know what your score is and to constantly work on improving it. The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows consumers to get a free copy of their credit report from each of the three nationwide reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, but it doesn't say anything about getting a free FICO score. For that, you'll at least need a debit card if you don't have a credit card handy.

Instructions

1

Visit a legitimate website that offers a free FICO score, like myfico.com, and sign up for its free trial offer. It will ask you for either a debit or credit card. Before the trial period is over, call to cancel the service, or cancel online. This is the only way to get a FICO score for free.

2

Obtain a free TransUnion credit score through Creditkarma.com. Its service is totally free, supported by advertising, so it doesn't require a credit card of any kind. It also will monitor the score for you for free.

3

Utilize a free 30-day trial offer from Equifax to get your credit score. In addition Equifax will give you tips for improving or maintaining your score as well as alerts and identity theft protection.

4

Go to annualcreditreport.com, the only website that offers a free credit report authorized by the federal government. Once a year you can order a free credit report from each of the three major bureaus. A credit report will include the names of all your creditors, account numbers, amounts in collections, number of credit inquiries, any delinquencies, and any amounts past due.