How to read a credit report, section by section

Every credit report has the same building blocks, even though each bureau lays them out differently: personal information, accounts, collections, public records, and inquiries. Read them in that order, and read all three reports. Most errors are small, and you only see them when you check line by line.

This guide explains what each section shows. It does not tell you which items to dispute. That comes in the most common credit report errors.

Personal information

This section lists your name and any name variations, current and past addresses, Social Security number (usually partly hidden), date of birth, and sometimes employers. You did not put every entry there. Lenders and furnishers add them over time.

Check for names you do not use and addresses you never lived at. Those can mean a mixed file or identity theft.

Accounts (tradelines)

Each account you have or had appears as a tradeline. A tradeline typically shows:

• the creditor’s name and the account number, partly hidden
• the account type, such as credit card, auto loan, or mortgage
• who is responsible: individual, joint, or authorized user
• the date opened and, if closed, the date closed
• the credit limit or original loan amount
• the current balance and the amount past due
• the status, such as open, closed, paid, or charged off
• a payment history grid showing each month as on time or late

Read the status and payment history together. A late mark in the grid should match a month you were actually late.

Collections and charge-offs

When a creditor gives up collecting an account itself, it may charge it off, and it may sell the debt or hand it to a collector. Those accounts show up as collections. A collection tradeline shows the collector, the original creditor, the balance, and dates.

Public records

Bankruptcies are the main public record that still appears on credit reports. The report shows the chapter, the filing date, and the status.

Inquiries

An inquiry records that someone looked at your report. A hard inquiry happens when you apply for credit and the lender checks your report to decide. A soft inquiry happens for things like checking your own report, or a company sending you a pre-approved offer. Soft inquiries are not seen by lenders.

The dates that matter

• Date opened. When the account started.
• Date of first delinquency. When the account first went past due and stayed that way. The law sets this date as the one that starts the clock for how long most negative items can be reported. Furnishers are required to report it to the bureaus.
• Date reported. When the furnisher last sent an update.

If the date of first delinquency is wrong, the item may be reported longer than the law allows. See how long negative items stay.

Sources

• CFPB: credit reports and scores
• FTC: disputing errors on your credit reports
• Cornell LII: 15 U.S.C. 1681s-2 (responsibilities of furnishers)
• Cornell LII: 15 U.S.C. 1681c (reporting periods)

Next steps

• Why your Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion reports don't match

  Your three credit reports differ because each bureau builds its own file. Which differences are normal, which point to an error, and why scores differ too.

• The most common credit report errors, and how to spot them

  Seven places credit report errors hide: personal information, account ownership, duplicates, payment history, balances, collections, and inquiries.

• Find the errors on your credit report in 30 minutes

  A free PDF to find credit report errors in 30 minutes: error checklist, starter dispute letter, bureau reference card, and dispute timeline. No card numbers.