What is a credit report?
A credit report is a statement that has information about your credit activity and current credit situation, such as your loan paying history and the status of your credit accounts. It lists your accounts and activity; it is not the same thing as a credit score.
Action level Worth checking
- Why you are seeing it
- It comes up when you apply for a loan, a credit card or a rental, and in letters from lenders about what they found.
- Why it matters
- Lenders and others look at the information on it, so what it says about your accounts and payment history can matter when you apply for credit.
- What should I do?
- Look at which of the five kinds of information are on your report.
- Check that the accounts and personal details listed are yours.
- If something looks wrong, contact the company that reported it or the credit reporting company.
- A common misunderstanding
- A credit report is not a credit score. The report lists information about your accounts and activity.
What it is
A credit report is a statement about your credit activity and your current credit situation, such as your loan paying history and the status of your credit accounts.
What it contains
| Kind of information | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Personal information | Your name, addresses, birth date, Social Security number and phone numbers |
| Credit accounts | Current and historical accounts, including the type of account, limits, balances, payment history and creditor names |
| Collection items | Missed payments, accounts sent to collections and overdue child support information |
| Public records | Liens, foreclosures, bankruptcies, civil suits and judgments |
| Inquiries | Companies that have accessed your credit report |
A simple example
One line from a report
A report might list a credit card account with its type, its limit, its balance and its payment history.
That entry is one of the "credit accounts" the report contains.
The example is made up to show the idea; a real report lists your own accounts.
Why it is worth knowing
- It is a record of what has been reported about your accounts, so it can contain a mistake.
- A credit score is a different thing: this page is about the report that lists the information.