Credit Cards that Provide Access to Credit Scores

Credit card users are no doubt familiar with the fact that credit scores provide the basis for credit card issuers' decisions regarding approvals and sizes of credit lines. It is also common knowledge that credit scores touch other parts of your life, including employee hiring and insurance rates. But, despite the well-known impact of credit profiles, individuals are often hesitant to pay for credit information.

Fortunately, several credit cards offer access to credit scores as a standard part of card membership.

Clear from American Express
This credit card offers a free copy of your credit score and credit report once every twelve months. The card has no annual fee, so the credit score and credit report are truly free (in fact, it has no fees at all -- no annual fee, no late fees, no over limit fees, no balance transfer fees, and no cash advance fees). More...

Various Cards from Washington Mutual
Washington Mutual (WaMu) credit cards typically offer card members access to their credit score, updated monthly. The provided score is a credit card-enhanced FICO score, which is particularly useful when you are applying for other credit cards. More...

Platinum Card from Juniper
Some direct mail offers for the Platinum Card from Juniper advertise a free credit score. As far as I know, this offer is not available online. More...

American Express Platinum Card from Citi
This credit card includes membership in Citi's IdentityMonitor service, which provides one 3-in-1 credit report per month, credit monitoring, and identity theft insurance. The card carries a $99 annual fee, but includes a variety of high-end features including Citi ThankYou Points, airport VIP lounge access, airline companion tickets, price protection, and more. More...

Other Options
If you aren't interested in obtaining a credit card for the purpose of monitoring your credit score, there are several ways to purchase your credit report and credit score. If you are interested in learning your credit score, myFICO is the only place to get a genuine FICO score. FICO scores are the standard credit scores, used by the vast majority of lenders. If you are interested in purchasing a copy of your credit report, take a look at the three credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.