Founded in March 2007 Credit Karma, Inc is a company based in San Francisco, CA that provides consumers a truly free credit score and tools to understand and improve that score. In an industry where very few things are “free” Credit Karma actually stands apart from the crowd and offers 100% free credit scores with no hidden payments, subscriptions to cancel or other strings attached. An accredited business with the Better Business Bureau since May 2008, Credit Karma has an A- rating with the BBB having only one complaint reported which has been resolved.

Credit Karma believes that everyone should have access and the ability to track your credit score free of charge. They are able to provide this service by partnering up with advertising sponsors and the three major credit bureaus to cover the cost that you are normally charged by other companies.

How Does It Work?

As a skeptic I decided to sign up to see how this process works. You will be required to enter personal information such as your Social Security Number, Date of Birth, name and address to pull your credit score. I was pleasantly surprised to see there was no section to enter your credit card information or subscription you have to remember to cancel in 15-30 days to avoid a monthly charge. After entering your information you are then asked to select a screen name and password to access your account after activating your account via a confirmation email.

It really is that simple, once activated you can log into your account and view your credit score. The information doesn’t end once you have that magical three digit number, you will also be able to see how your score stacks up to others in the Credit Karma community as a whole, in your state, in your age bracket, and users with the same email domain (not sure how that helps but it is interesting nonetheless).

Website Experience.

Credit Karma has an easy to navigate professional looking website. You will not find yourself searching endlessly for information as the site is set up with many useful sections including but not limited to:

• Karma offers

• Tools & Calculators

• Credit Karma Blog

• News and Advice

Things To Consider.

• The credit score is not your FICO score- If you were to pull your credit score from a hundred different sources you would likely see that the number is not the same each time. The number that you see when you open a Credit Karma account is not your FICO score, but chances are it will be close enough to your FICO score to give you an idea where you stand regarding credit worthiness.

• Credit reports- You will have access to your credit score only. Credit Karma does not provide your credit report.

• Security and Privacy- You should always be concerned about security and privacy when using a company or website that asks for your personal information. You should always read the privacy policy before entering personal information. Credit Karma appears to be on the up and up and you can find detailed answers to FAQ on their website for more information.