What Does Your Credit Score Really Mean?

Your score helps lenders assess the likelihood you’ll repay a loan. It can also help you assess your credit health.

- By Emma Patch, Photography by istockphoto.com

IT’S EASY TO GET YOUR credit score for free these days. Your bank or credit card issuer may offer it, and there are other options as well. Experian, one of the three major credit bureaus, supplies a free score and credit report at www.free creditscore.com. Credit Karma (www. credit karma .com) also offers a free score, as well as credit reports from the other two major credit bureaus, Equifax and TransUnion (you must create an account to get your score).

FICO, which invented the credit score, and the three credit bureaus offer monthly plans that provide your credit score and other features, such as credit monitoring, for prices ranging from $10 to $40 a month, depending on the level of service. But you probably don’t need to sign up for a subscription service or pay for a credit score.