Is Credit Monitoring Worth It?
Credit monitoring services alert you when something changes on your credit report, a new account, an inquiry, or a change in your score. Whether it's worth paying for depends largely on what's already available to you for free.
What Credit Monitoring Services Do
Monitoring services track your credit file for changes and send alerts when something new appears, a new account opened in your name, a hard inquiry, or a significant score change. Many also include periodic score tracking as part of the service.
Free vs. Paid Options
Start with AnnualCreditReport.com if you only need to review your three reports. It is the federally authorized free source. Many banks and card issuers also include free score tracking or alerts. A paid service may make sense if you want ongoing report updates and score tracking in one place.
If you want ongoing updates instead of a one-time report, SmartCredit is a paid option. It includes tools that can help you follow changes and understand what may affect your scores.
SmartCredit Build plan includes:
- Three-bureau report and scores once a month
- Credit monitoring and action alerts
- Score tracking and future-score tools
- Best pay-down date and score-building tools
- Dark web and data breach monitoring
- $1 million fraud insurance with activation
7-day trial for $1
Then $29.99/month
After the trial, the paid monthly plan continues unless you cancel. Check the current price and terms before signing up. Advertiser disclosure: We may receive compensation if you sign up through this link. This does not change our guidance or what you pay.
What Monitoring Does and Doesn't Protect Against
Monitoring alerts you after a change has already occurred, it doesn't prevent identity theft or fraud from happening in the first place. For broader identity protection, consider a credit freeze with each bureau, which restricts new accounts from being opened in your name at all.