There are a number of way to get free credit reports online, but not so many ways to get free credit scores.  Of the two, it is credit scores that determine credit card, mortgage, loan and other interest rates.  Thus, we recommend Privacy Matters as the top source to get a free credit report, as their seven day free trial provides access to all three of your credit reports and scores.  You can get your Transunion, Equifax, and Experian reports and scores instantly online from Privacy Matters.

Experian, through freecreditreport.com, offers consumers access to their Experian credit report and score for free.  However, they do charge additional fees to view the rest of your credit scores.

Equifax also offers a free credit report via its Equifax Credit Watch™ Gold with 3-in-1 Monitoring program.  You can access all three of your credit reports instantly online at their website.

As with all “free” offers, there is always a small catch.  With free credit report offers, the catch is that you must cancel your membership before the trial expires.  We advise those who do not wish their trials to automatically renew to contact the company within 24 to 48 hours to prevent auto-renewal of their membership.