Monitoring your credit can help you spot mistakes or potential fraud. While the most extensive credit monitoring services charge a monthly fee, some institutions provide free alerts regardless of whether you have an account with them.
Some scan the dark web for your personal information, offer identity theft insurance or let you simulate how certain actions, such as paying off debt or opening a new account, would impact your credit score.
Below, CNBC Select names the top free credit monitoring services in a variety of categories. (See our methodology for more on how we made our choices.)
Best for in-depth tools: CreditWise from Capital One
CreditWise® from Capital One
Cost
Free
Credit bureaus monitored
TransUnion® and Experian®
Credit scoring model used
FICO® Score 8
Dark web scan
Yes
Identity insurance
No
Terms apply.
Pros
- Free to use with no impact on your credit score
- Includes Social Security number alerts
- Uses FICO® credit score, the industry standard
- Credit score simulator estimates how various actions will impact your credit
Cons
- Doesn't monitor credit reports from Equifax
- only updates once a week
Who's this for: For a free service, CreditWise from Capital One has a robust suite of options. The Credit Score Simulator gives you a preview of how your score may change based on actions like taking out a mortgage or paying off a credit card bill
Standout features: CreditWise is free for anyone to use, whether you have a Capital One account or not.
Best for boosting credit scores: American Express MyCredit
American Express® MyCredit Guide
Cost
Free
Credit bureaus monitored
TransUnion
Credit scoring model used
VantageScore
Dark web scan
No
Identity theft insurance
No
Terms apply.
Pros
- Score Goals lets you set a desired credit score and get personalized recommendations on the best ways to improve it
- Has a credit score simulator
Cons
- Only monitors one credit bureau report
- No dark web scans
- Doesn't offer identity theft insurance
Who's this for: American Express MyCredit Guide has a variety of tools to help improve your credit score, including a credit score simulator and detailed credit reports from Experian®. You can use the Score Goals feature to set a target credit score and get personalized recommendations to help you reach it.
Standout features: While many free services rely on VantageScore®, MyCredit Guide calculates your credit score based on FICO® Score 8, the industry standard.
Best for identity theft insurance: Chase Credit Journey
Chase Credit Journey
Cost
Free
Credit bureaus monitored
TransUnion
Credit scoring model used
VantageScore
Dark web scan
No
Identity theft insurance
Yes, up to $1 million
Terms apply.
Pros
- Offers up to $1 million of identity theft insurance
- Has a credit score simulator
Cons
- Only monitors one credit bureau report
- No dark web scans
Who's this for: Free for cardholders and nonmembers alike, Chase Credit Journey comes with up to $1 million in coverage for expenses relating to recovering your identity after a fraud incident.
Standout features: In addition to credit monitoring, Credit Journey provides free identity monitoring, including dark web surveillance, Social Security number tracking and data breach monitoring.
Best for dark web monitoring: Experian IdentityWorks Basic
Experian Dark Web Scan + Credit Monitoring
Cost
Free
Credit bureaus monitored
Experian
Credit scoring model used
FICO®
Dark web scan
Yes, one-time only
Identity insurance
No
Terms apply.
Who's this for: Experian IdentityWorks Basic comes with a free one-time scan for your Social Security number, email and phone number on the dark web. While other services offer regular dark web monitoring, they're typically paid plans.
Standout features: In addition to regular copies of your Experian credit report, Experian is one of the only companies to provide your FICO Score for free every day.
What do credit monitoring services do?
Credit monitoring services scan your credit reports from one or more of the three main credit bureaus and let you know of any changes or potential fraud.
While credit monitoring services routinely check for signs of fraud, they only provide alerts. They can't stop fraud from occurring or help you repair your credit if you are the victim of identity theft
Credit monitoring services generally alert you to:
- Hard inquiries on your credit report(s)
- New accounts opened in your name
- Balances and payments on your credit accounts
- New address or name changes to your credit file
- Public records, such as bankruptcies
Several of the services we chose also alert users if their personal information appears on the dark web, though the offerings are more limited than with paid iterations.
How to prevent fraud
There's no way to make yourself invulnerable to credit fraud or identity theft, but there are actions you can take to mitigate the risk.
- Review credit card transactions
- Sign up for transaction alerts
- Freeze your credit
- Sign up for identity theft protection
- Use websites that start with “https” (not just http, which is less secure)
- Don’t answer spam calls or texts
- Verify deals from social media ads
- Don’t click on links or open attachments from unknown senders
- Opt out of storing your credit card information on websites
- Use virtual card numbers
- Set strong passwords
- Turn on two-factor authentication
Why trust CNBC Select?
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every credit monitoring article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit monitoring products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.
Our methodology
CNBC Select analyzed more than a dozen free credit monitoring services, focusing on:
Availability: Services had to be available to anyone, regardless if they were an account holder with the institution or not.
Number of credit bureaus monitored: Services that monitor reports from more than one credit bureau were ranked higher.
Credit scoring model: Since the majority of free services use VantageScorere, we ranked products higher if users receive updates to their FICO Score, which is used in 90% of lending decisions.
Dark web scanning: We weighed companies more if their service checked the dark web for users' names, Social Security numbers, addresses and other personal information
Identity theft insurance: We considered whether a service offered identity theft insurance and how much coverage was available.
We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.
Based on that criteria, our picks for the best free credit monitoring services are:
- Best for in-depth tools: CreditWise® from Capital One
- Best for boosting credit scores: American Express® MyCredit Guide
- Best for identity theft insurance: Chase Credit Journey
- Best dark web monitoring: Experian IdentityWorks Basic
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Credit monitoring FAQs
What is credit monitoring?
Credit monitoring is a form of identity theft protection that focuses on your credit score and credit history. Credit monitoring services review credit reports from one or more of the three major credit bureaus and alert you to changes or suspicious activity.coverage for expenses relating to recovering your identity after a fraud incident.
They won't, however, shield you from a data breach, correct errors on your credit report or stop phishing attempts.
Does using a credit monitoring service hurt your credit?
No, credit monitoring services may trigger soft inquiries on your credit reports, they're only for informational purposes and don't impact your credit score. A hard inquiry, such as one triggered by a loan application, can have a negative affect on your score, but it is usually small and only temporary.
Can credit monitoring services prevent fraud?
No, credit monitoring services only alert you to potential fraud, not prevent it from happening. There’s no real way to completely stop fraud, although you can limit your exposure by freezing your credit, keeping your Social Security number private and only using your credit cards with reputable businesses.
