So lets put a end to the "When we should check our Fico Scores" Debate

[Anonymous]

It seems everyone is confused and a lot are like me constantly checking my fico scores and getting new reports and seeing the scores shoot up and down. When should we really pay attention to it and take that as a number? End of the Month? First of the Month? Middle? 

[stellar]

I think it depends on the person.  If you're someone who freaks out when you see a 1-3 point swing (on FAKO's at that)...then you can't handle looking at your scores everyday.  But if you are more calm and understand things may change 10-30 points and sometimes for no obvious reason then go ahead and check daily (if you enjoy micromanaging).  hth

[bdhu2001]

Regardless of when you check it, it's usually better to check at the same time-frame.  For instance if you check once a month on the 15th, then continue to check on the 15th. Checking more often than monthly would add fluctuations.  Checking daily would add fluctuations, but may also allow you to see the immediate impact of charges and payments.

[NRB525]

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@Anonymous wrote:

It seems everyone is confused and a lot are like me constantly checking my fico scores and getting new reports and seeing the scores shoot up and down. When should we really pay attention to it and take that as a number? End of the Month? First of the Month? Middle? 

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How much of a score change do you consider "shooting up" or "shooting down"?

I track mine all the time, because I'm getting nearly daily updates from 20+ open cards reporting. I don't use it as a specific number, but rather use each points change as another data point to help me understand what is affecting my scores. The scores do not change with every alert, sometimes 10 alerts go by with no change on a particular bureau. My scores are pretty stable on each bureau, because of so many aged accounts. The utilization is the one area I can improve now, and that takes time.

For a newer file, the score changes could be more dramatic. If someone is not applying for anything, checking once a month is adequate, and just continue to pay on time and the scores will begin to stabilize over time. A long time.

Your title should be remade as: "When should I check my FICO scores" because as with most things credit related, YMMV. So you won't be able to get a Final Answer

The only constant is, you should pay all debt payments on time.

[thom02099]

The reality is, the only times scores really matter is if you're applying for new credit.

When to check FICO scores is a personal decision, but given the number of credit cards that give one a FICO score monthly, using that could be beneficial.  If one needs to see scores/TRENDS, there's the various FAKO scores such as CreditKarma et al.  These will give you TRENDS in your credit report and one can get CK weekly.  They have actually gotten better over the years to show the TRENDS in one's history, and reflect fairly accurately when there are balance changes on accounts. 

This (and other) answers won't end the "debate".  It's a matter of personal preference and one really can't "debate" with another person what their personal preference is.  There's no hard and fast rule that applies to everyone.

[Thomas_Thumb]

I primarily look at free Fico scores as reported monthly by AMEX, Citi and Discover. Additionally look at free VS3 scores monthly as reported on Credit.com and Credit Karma. Not a fan of credit monitoring with auto triggered scoring - too much noise. Random fluctuations of 10 points or less are best to ignore.

If you are building credit, best to look at trends over time to confirm your approach is working as intended. I recommend getting scores manually same day each month (if you have a lot going on) to eliminate reporting as a variable. If you have less going on, then get scores during the same time window each month when no card monthly statements are reporting.

For example I have 6 cards that all report in a 7 day window between the 16th and 23th. I add a 5 day buffer on either side - so I will only pull reports/scores manually between the 28th and 11th [usually pull on the 28th).