What is a Credit Report?

Your credit score gets a lot of attention, but it’s your credit report that matters most. While your score is summary, your report shows the full story. If something’s wrong in your report, it will show up in your score whether you’re aware of it or not. Here’s what you need to know about your credit report: what it contains, how to get yours and what to do if you find something that doesn’t look right.

What does your credit report show?

A credit report is a detailed record of your credit history, maintained by one of the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian or TransUnion. Lenders, such as credit card companies, banks or credit unions, report your account activity to these bureaus on a regular basis. The bureaus then compile that information into your report.

Every consumer has three credit reports—one from each bureau—and they don’t always match. The differences are because lenders aren’t required to report to each bureaus, so a single report might not show every account in your name.

How to get your credit report for free

In the past, federal law entitled you to one free credit report from each bureau every year (three in total). Now, you can actually get free reports every week! The official, government-authorized source is annualcreditreport.com.

Watch out for look-alike sites that promise a free report and then sign you up for a paid subscription. That’s not the same thing.

What’s in a credit report?

A credit report contains four main categories of information:

Personal information

Your name, current and previous addresses, Social Security number and employer information as reported by lenders. This section doesn’t affect your score, but errors here—like a misspelled name or an address you’ve never lived at—can sometimes indicate mixed files or fraud.

Account history

This is the heart of your credit report. It lists every credit account you’ve opened, along with:

• The lender’s name and account type
• When the account was opened
• Your current balance and credit limit
• Your payment history, including any late payments
• The account status (open, closed, in collections, etc.)

Closed accounts remain on your report for up to 10 years if they were in good standing, and for seven years if they had negative history.

Public records

If you’ve experienced bankruptcy, a record will appear in this section. Chapter 7 bankruptcies stay on your report for 10 years; Chapter 13 bankruptcies stay for seven. Civil judgments were removed from credit reports in 2017 and no longer appear.

Inquiries

Here you’ll find a log of every entity that has requested your credit report. There are two types:

• Hard inquiries: Triggered when you apply for credit (a loan, credit card, mortgage). These can temporarily affect your score and stay on your report for two years.
• Soft inquiries: Background checks, pre-approval screenings, or when you check your own credit. These don’t affect your score.

What errors should you look for?

Errors are more common on credit reports than most people expect. A 2024 Consumer Reports study found that out of 3000 people who checked, 44% found an error on their credit report. Common problems include:

• Payments marked late that were actually on time
• Wrong account balances or credit limits
• Accounts you don’t recognize (which may indicate identity theft or your report mixed up with someone else’s)
• Closed accounts showing as open
• Duplicate accounts listed twice
• Outdated negative information that should have aged off the report

How to dispute an error

If you find something that looks wrong, you can dispute it directly with the bureau that’s showing the error. Each bureau has an online dispute process:

• Equifax: equifax.com/personal/disputes
• Experian: experian.com/disputes
• TransUnion: transunion.com/credit-disputes

When you file a dispute, include as much documentation as you can, including account statements, payment confirmations or anything else that supports your case. Under federal law (FCRA), the bureau must investigate disputes—typically within 30 days—and provide you with the results.

If you need help navigating the dispute process, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) offers thorough guidance at consumerfinance.gov.

One corrected error can improve your score more than months of other effort. It’s worth taking the time.

How often should you check?

At a minimum, pull your credit reports once a year. If you’re planning a major purchase, check your reports three to six months ahead of time so you have time to address any issues before a lender sees them.

If your financial institution offers free credit monitoring, use it. It won’t prevent errors or fraud, but it’ll alert you when something changes on your report so you can respond quickly.

Questions? Horizon can help

Understanding your credit report is one of the most useful things you can do for your financial health. If you have questions or want to talk through what you’re seeing, visit a branch or give us a call and we’ll connect you someone who can help!