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Credit Q&A

Question

Will checking my credit score via credit karma show up in my credit report and will this negatively affect my score?

Answer

Using Credit Karma will NOT lower your credit score. This is a common misconception.

This misnomer is perpetuated by the fact that applying for credit lowers your credit score. When you apply for credit, the lender will do a hard credit inquiry. This type of inquiry does lower your credit score. When you use Credit Karma, we use a soft credit inquiry which does not lower your credit score. Some consumers don't know the difference and assume any credit inquiry will lower your score.

Filed under: Credit

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USER COMMENTS(7)

mwill666
Aug 23
8:07 pm

how many points does your credit score goes up if u make a payment on a credit card on time

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CK Moderator

Because the difference are based on your credit history, it can vary drastically from person to person. To get an strong estimate, you can use our credit score simulator. It will give you simulations based on your specific credit report.

angdollarhid
Aug 21
6:58 am

My score went down! I paid off all collections, late pays, & made several corrections. I check my score today via CK, and guess what.......score went down!!!!!

I know there are many factors that go into the scores, but please, give me a break!

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Couple of things to note. First, it usually take about 30 days for payments to appear on your credit score. Secondly, sometimes paying off collections can hurt your score short term. The reason is that the update on your collections accounts can make it appear as recent. Keep in mind that is only a short term decline and your score should improve long term.

nabaraj
Aug 11
12:05 am

I update my score in CK every few days.. will it hurt something...

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CK Moderator

No it won't hurt anything. But every few days is not necessary since most lenders only report once every 30 days. Two or three times per month is plenty.

riosc212
Aug 6
6:23 am

I have paid off most of the negative items on my credit report but my score is still very low. How long before i see any type of change in my score? Do i have to pay EVERYTHING on my credit to make it go up? Times are hard but i'm trying. what can i do?

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savyalsmom
Jul 31
10:08 am

with people who have a credit score of 559 or lower is there a way to get a personal loan(not a payday advance) to consolidate all my payments without doing debt consolidation?

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MyGodis1
Jul 10
7:03 pm

how do i get my credit from all theree bureaus so i can see with my own eyes whats going on and be able to dispute if i have to.

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AnnualCreditReport.com

rhopesheriff
Jul 10
2:45 pm

i have been paying my bills on time. i have updated my credit score on credit karma and my score went from 568 to 543 in 6 days. i thought checking on credit karma would not affect my score.

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CK Moderator

Using Credit Karma does not lower your credit score. There are dozens of factors why your credit score could be lower. Try our credit report card to track more specifics on your credit report.


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