Solo Biz Soft Editorial Team Checking your own credit score doesn’t hurt it — that’s what’s called a soft check, and it’s free in every major market. The tricky part is knowing which site is actually the official one, since plenty of lookalikes exist mainly to sell you something else. Here’s where to go in the US, UK and EU.
United States: use AnnualCreditReport.com
AnnualCreditReport.com is the only website authorized under US federal law (the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the FACT Act) to give you free credit reports from all three nationwide bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Through the end of 2026 you can pull a free report from each bureau as often as once a week. Sites that advertise a “free credit score” and ask for a card number up front are usually trying to sell you a subscription; they aren’t the legally mandated source.
A report (the full history) isn’t quite the same as a score (the three-digit number). Several US card issuers and apps now show you a free FICO or VantageScore as a side benefit of having an account, which is a reasonable way to keep an eye on the number itself between report checks.
UK: three bureaus, three different scales
Under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 and UK GDPR, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion must each give you a free statutory copy of the data they hold on you. In practice, most people check this through each bureau’s own free consumer service rather than requesting a paper statutory report, since the free online version is usually quicker.
The confusing part is that the three UK bureaus don’t share one scale: Experian scores out of 1,250, Equifax out of 1,000, and TransUnion out of 999. A score of 700 means something completely different depending which bureau it came from, so when you read “good credit score” guidance, check which scale it’s talking about. It’s also worth knowing that lenders don’t actually see a single score — they look at the underlying report data, and different lenders report to different bureaus, so your file isn’t identical across all three anyway.
- Experian (0–1,250): roughly 861+ is usually described as “good”
- Equifax (0–1,000): roughly 531+ is usually described as “good”
- TransUnion (0–999): roughly 653+ is usually described as “good”
EU: country by country, no single site
There’s no single EU-wide credit bureau or website. Credit reporting is organized nationally, so you’ll need your own country’s credit reference agency — for example SCHUFA in Germany, or the relevant national central bank credit register used in several other EU countries. What is EU-wide is your underlying right: GDPR gives you the right to request a free copy of the personal data any organization, including a credit bureau, holds on you. If you’re not sure which agency covers you, your national data protection authority’s website is usually the most reliable place to start looking.
What to do once you have your report
Checking is only useful if you act on what you find. Two numbers are worth working out for yourself: how much of your available credit you’re using, and how much of your income is already committed to debt. Our credit utilization calculator and debt-to-income ratio calculator both work from numbers you already have in front of you on the report. Once you have the number itself, the credit score range checker instantly tells you which band it falls into on whichever scale it came from.
Frequently asked questions
Does checking my own credit score lower it?
No. Checking your own report or score is a soft check, which never affects your credit score, no matter how often you do it.
Is there one official EU-wide credit score?
No. Credit reporting is organized by country in the EU; there’s no single EU-wide bureau or score.
Why do my UK credit scores look so different across bureaus?
Each UK bureau uses its own scale and may hold slightly different information, since not every lender reports to all three.
More free tools: Credit utilization calculator · Credit card eligibility estimator · All free tools
This article is general information, not financial advice. Credit rules and free-report access can vary by country and change over time, so check your local credit bureau or consumer protection authority for current details.
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