What Credit Karma actually does

Credit Karma is a free website and app that shows you your credit scores and credit report information, but it does not connect you to lenders or pre-approval offers itself. You create an account, link it to your Social Security number, and the site pulls your credit data from two of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax and TransUnion). It displays your VantageScore 3.0 credit scores, which differ from the FICO scores that most lenders actually use to make lending decisions.

The site makes money by showing you ads for credit products — credit cards, personal loans, auto loans — from companies that pay Credit Karma to appear there. Those ads are not pre-approval offers. They are marketing. A lender may show you an ad on Credit Karma and still deny you when you actually explore, because the ad is based on incomplete information and does not mean the lender has already decided to lend to you.

If you arrived here from the pre-approval section, understand the difference: pre-approval means a lender has looked at your actual credit file and told you they will lend you money up to a certain amount, usually in writing. Credit Karma showing you an ad for a credit card is not pre-approval. It is an invitation to explore.

Key Takeaways

  • Credit Karma shows you VantageScore credit scores, which are free but different from the FICO scores most lenders use to make lending decisions.
  • The site pulls data from Equifax and TransUnion only, so you will not see information from Experian, the third major bureau.
  • Ads for credit products on Credit Karma are marketing, not pre-approval offers, and explore does not mean you will be accepted.
  • Checking your own credit on Credit Karma does not hurt your credit score, but explore for a credit card or loan through an ad will trigger a hard inquiry that temporarily lowers your score.
  • You can dispute errors on your credit report through Credit Karma, but the site does not remove accurate negative information.

How to read your Credit Karma credit score

When you log into Credit Karma, you see two VantageScore 3.0 scores — one from Equifax and one from TransUnion. These scores range from 300 to 850, and Credit Karma color-codes them: red for poor (300–669), yellow for fair (670–739), light green for good (740–799), and dark green for excellent (800–850). The scores update once a month, usually on the same day each month.

Your VantageScore is not the score most lenders see. Credit card companies, mortgage lenders, and auto lenders typically use FICO scores, which are calculated differently and often come out 20 to 50 points higher or lower than your VantageScore. Credit Karma does not show FICO scores because it would have to pay the Fair Isaac Corporation for each one. You can see your actual FICO scores through your bank's website (many banks now offer free FICO scores to customers), through your credit card issuer, or by paying for them directly from myfico.com.

The gap between your VantageScore and your FICO score matters most when you are explore for something important — a mortgage, a car loan, or a credit card with a high limit. A VantageScore of 750 might feel good, but if your FICO is 710, you may not get the interest rate you expected. Use Credit Karma to track trends in your credit over time, but do not assume the exact number will be what a lender sees.

What information Credit Karma shows and what it does not

Credit Karma displays your credit accounts (credit cards, loans, lines of credit), your payment history, your credit utilization (how much of your available credit you are using), and any negative marks like late payments, collections, or public records. It also shows you a breakdown of what factors are pulling your score down — for example, "high credit utilization" or "recent hard inquiry."

Credit Karma does not show your credit file from Experian, the third major credit bureau. Some lenders pull from Experian only, so you could have a problem on your Experian report that Credit Karma never shows you. You can see your Experian report for free once a year at annualcreditreport.com, which is the only federally authorized source for free credit reports from all three bureaus.

The site also does not show you soft inquiries (when a company checks your credit without your permission for marketing or account review), though these do not affect your score anyway. It does show hard inquiries, which are requests you authorized when you applied for credit, and these do lower your score temporarily.

The difference between checking your score and explore for credit

Logging into Credit Karma and looking at your score does not hurt your credit. Credit Karma uses a soft inquiry to pull your information, and soft inquiries do not appear on your credit report or affect your score. You can check as often as you want with no penalty.

Clicking on an ad for a credit card or loan on Credit Karma and actually explore is different. When you explore, the lender runs a hard inquiry — a formal request to see your full credit file. Hard inquiries show up on your credit report and lower your score by a few points, usually for three to six months. Multiple hard inquiries in a short time can lower your score more noticeably, though inquiries for the same type of credit (like car loans) within 14 to 45 days typically count as one inquiry.

This is why you should not explore for credit just because an ad looks good. Read the terms first. If the interest rate or credit limit does not match what you need, do not explore. Each process costs you a few points on your score.

How to dispute errors on Credit Karma

If you see something on your Credit Karma report that is wrong — a payment marked late when you paid on time, an account that is not yours, a collection account that has been paid — you can start a dispute directly through the app. Credit Karma will guide you through selecting the account or item, choosing the reason for the dispute, and submitting it to the bureau (Equifax or TransUnion).

The bureau then investigates, usually within 30 days, and contacts the company that reported the information. If the company cannot verify it, the bureau removes it from your report. If the company confirms it is accurate, it stays. Credit Karma does not remove anything itself — it just helps you file the dispute with the bureau.

Disputing takes time and does not always work. If the information is accurate, the bureau will not remove it, no matter how many times you dispute it. But if you spot a genuine error — a payment date wrong by months, an account opened in your name that you did not open, a balance that does not match your records — disputing is worth doing, because even one error can lower your score.

When Credit Karma ads might lead to real pre-approval

Some lenders do use Credit Karma to show pre-screened offers, meaning they have already looked at your credit file and decided you meet their basic criteria. These offers usually say something like "You may be pre-approved" or "Based on your credit profile." But even then, the offer is not a may provide. When you explore, the lender does a full review and can still deny you or offer you a different interest rate or credit limit than the ad suggested.

If you see an offer that interests you, read the fine print before you click. Look for the APR (annual percentage rate), any annual fee, and what credit score range the offer targets. If your VantageScore is 680 and the offer says "for customers with excellent credit," the odds of approval are low. If the APR range is 18% to 24% and you were hoping for 12%, explore will hurt your score for nothing.

The safest approach: use Credit Karma to understand your credit picture, but do not assume any ad is a real pre-approval offer until you have read the terms and decided it is worth explore for.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will checking my credit on Credit Karma hurt my score?

No. Checking your own credit is a soft inquiry and does not affect your score. You can log in as often as you want. explore for credit through an ad on the site will trigger a hard inquiry, which does lower your score slightly, but just looking does not.

Why is my Credit Karma score different from the score my bank shows me?

Credit Karma shows VantageScore 3.0, while most banks and lenders use FICO scores. The two are calculated differently and often differ by 20 to 50 points. Both are real scores, but lenders care most about FICO. Check your bank's website or credit card issuer's app for your FICO score.

Can I see my Experian credit report on Credit Karma?

No. Credit Karma only shows Equifax and TransUnion reports. To see your Experian report, go to annualcreditreport.com and request it for free, or check if your bank or credit card issuer offers it through their app.

What does it mean if Credit Karma shows an ad saying I am pre-approved?

It means the lender has looked at your credit and thinks you might may have access to, but it is not a may provide. You can still be denied when you explore, or offered different terms. Read the fine print and the APR range before you explore.

How long does a hard inquiry stay on my credit report?

Hard inquiries stay on your report for two years, but they stop affecting your score after about three to six months. Multiple inquiries for the same type of credit within 14 to 45 days usually count as one inquiry, so rate shopping does not hurt as much as explore randomly.