Credit Karma: The Good, The Bad, and the Neutral

[SecretAzure]

---

@lg8302ch wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

I get access to the information in two of my credit files. Updated weekly. For free. What's not to like?

---

+1  

I also like to use CK for the free access to the info on the report. I like using all the free little tools and if you compare them a bit you will soon find out the scores needs to be ignored or not taken seriously.  For a long time CK gave me scores that were soooo much lower than my Ficos that each time SW came around with an update it was a pleasure and made me feel good after looking at the CK score  .. and on the side note my AAoA does get calculated properly as I do not have closed accounts on TU ..lol...

What I strongly dislike is that CK thinks you do not deserve a C unless you open a ton of accounts..imagine you try to strive for an A in this category ??  uhhhh

---

I like it for these reasons too. Also, my AAOA is the same, I don't want to close accounts. Yeah, 15 accounts to be just good, not even very good. That's crazy.

[takeshi74]

---

@SecretAzure wrote:

-Knowing your Average Age of Accounts (for open accounts only, closed accounts make a difference for 10 years after closing and CK does not acknowledge this)

---

CK acutally provides AAoOA, not AAoA.  FICO uses the latter.

---

@SecretAzure wrote:

Also, it often guides you into believing that a "good" amount of credit cards to have is above 14. 15 CARDS! You do not need 15 cards to have a good amount of cards (20 for very good).

---

It's important to note that CK says that there is correlation between those with a larger number of cards and better credit scores.  However, as always, correlation and causation are two entirely different things.  One cerainly does not need such a number of cards.  General recommendation is at least 2-3 for scoring purposes.  Beyond that it's the needs/wants of the individual that will determine number of cards.

As with anything on the internet, always consider the source, validate, corroborate, etc.

---

@Tonya-E wrote:

They are not real fico scores as used by lenders.  Stick with FICO for the scoring part.

---

Even FICO has a number of different scoring models used by creditors.  See also the Understanding FICO Scoring subforum and its stickies.  Regardless of whether FAKO or FICO one cannot rely on a score generated by one model to determine a score generated by another model.  I always recommend focusing on the data in one's reports.

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

I get access to the information in two of my credit files. Updated weekly. For free. What's not to like?

---

This!  In contrast, MyFICO $24.95 service, from my understanding, only pulls up one report for each bureau per year. And CK updates more frequently when changes are detected. Combine CK with Experian credit report monitoring and one has all three covered plus access to updated daily EX reports and EX FICO score for less money.

If MyFICO included daily credit report pulls with their 3 bureau product, that would be super and pretty much eliminate the need to subscribe to other services, let alone visit CK and other similar free sites.

[jamie123]

I'm so glad to hear that I'm not alone in disliking the "Number of Accounts" scoring feature on CK!

I have 9 open and 1 closed account and that is more than enough for me to keep track of. I couldn't even begin to think about 20 accounts.

I love the access to the 2 reports once a week! I check them out every Sunday morning with my coffee.

[SecretAzure]

---

@jamie123 wrote:

I'm so glad to hear that I'm not alone in disliking the "Number of Accounts" scoring feature on CK!

I have 9 open and 1 closed account and that is more than enough for me to keep track of. I couldn't even begin to think about 20 accounts.

I love the access to the 2 reports once a week! I check them out every Sunday morning with my coffee.

---

We're not the only ones, it's completely ridiculous to say that the average person should have tons of accounts. More makes it more confusing to manage and creates higher personal risk. Why get 20 cards ever? Unless you're Nixon...but that's a different story.

[Ups77]

Trans Union not accurate at all but eq is really close -1. I use there credit reports . Also I like that it updates weakly, but to use it for my credit score I would never trust it.

[pipeguy]

I use CK as one of my "tools" myFICO as another and Equifax unlimited reports as another (got it free for 2 years) - the only one I pay for is myFICO.  All of these sources, plus free Fico scores I get from various credit cards (Walmart, Barclays, Discover, PenFed, DCU and a few others) I use to stay on top of my scoring "models" - I know what I spend and I know what I pay and I know I have no lates, etc.  All of these tools are useful IMO although somewhat duplicative.

I actually use a spreadsheet to track my accounts including balances, date paid, amount paid, etc etc  - scores are just a way to judge the journey.

What I find annoying with CK is that my "scores" are almost exactly 100 point LESS than my actual Fico scores, and Cap-1 follows the same data to show lower scoring - funny thing is, Cap-1 does NOT use that scoring when they actually score a credit application, yet they use it to "priovide you a free service".

If I could only have one it would be myFICO because of the constant updates and credit factors, but free tools are good too.

[Anonymous]

My current CK TU Score is 690 and CK EQ Score is 680 but accoring to DCU FICO Score is 645.

DCU FICO has went down 29 points from 674 last month. I don't know what suddenly happen since nothing much changed on this month.

My CapitalOne TU Score is 640.