MyMoneyBlog.com feedFree Credit Monitoring Alerts From All 3 Major Credit Bureaus
Updated. Happy New Year! 🎉 🥳 In terms of keeping my finances in order, what I’ve been finding most useful recently are credit monitoring alerts. The last time I applied for a credit card, I received multiple e-mails within minutes alerting me that someone had checked my credit report. I’m also told if a new account is added. This makes me feel more comfortable knowing that I’ll be alerted quickly if someone does try to steal my identity. The following third-party services listed below provide you a free credit score (of various algorithms) and/or free continuous credit monitoring from select credit bureaus.
- Free credit score (VantageScore 3.0) from both Transunion and Equifax.
- Free credit monitoring from both Transunion and Equifax. Via e-mail alerts or app notification. Will let you know about things like a new credit check or a new account added.
- Limited identity theft monitoring. Credit Karma uses your email address to search and notify you if they are listed in public data breaches.
- Free credit score (VantageScore 3.0) from Transunion. Daily credit score updates and weekly credit report profile updates.
- Free credit monitoring from Transunion. Via e-mail alert. Will let you know about things like a new credit check or a new account added.
- Free credit score (FICO 8) from Experian. Daily credit score updates and daily credit report profile, refreshed upon login.
- Free credit monitoring from Experian. Free e-mail alerts.
- Warning that Experian will regularly try to upsell you to a paid membership tier. Simply click “No, keep my membership” to stay on the free tier. I’ve been on it for years.
- Improve your credit score by adding utility payments. Experian Boost is a free option that can potentially improve your Experian-based credit score by adding on-time utility and phone bill payments.
- Free credit score (VantageScore 3.0) from Transunion. Daily credit score updates and free daily full credit reports.
- Free credit monitoring from Transunion. Via e-mail alert. Will let you know about things like a new credit check or a new account added.
- Free credit score (FICO 8) from Transunion. You do not need to be a Capital One customer to sign up.
- Free credit monitoring from both Transunion and Experian.
None of the services above require a trial or credit card number to sign up for their free tiers. They may ask for the last 4 digits of your SSN for verification. These are all ad-supported (they will pitch you stuff) and usually have a paid upgrade option (but you can stay on the free tier forever).
The government requires the credit bureaus to provide you a free credit report at least once every 12 months (now actually weekly since the pandemic). However, the site will not provide you credit scores or pro-active alerts if anything changes on those reports.
Note that some of the scores above are not FICO scores because Fair Isaac might charge more money in licensing fees. If you really want a FICO number, nearly every major credit card issuer now includes a monthly FICO score with their cards: Chase, Citi, Bank of America, Discover, Barclaycard, and American Express.
Bottom line. Used in combination, I use the services above to keep track of changes to my credit reports across all three credit bureaus for free. None of them require my credit card number, and they quickly alert me to things like new accounts, new credit check inquiries, and high credit line usage. I just ignore the generic ads and upsells.
Lyft: $15 Ride Credit by Linking Atmos (Alaska Airlines) Account
Get a $15 Lyft ride credit if you link your Atmos Rewards (Alaska/Hawaiian Airlines) and Lyft accounts for the first time before 1/14/26. Lyft ride credits will be awarded within 5 days of the end of the Promotional Period and expire on January 31, 2026 at 11:59PM PT. Just did it, was easy enough.
If you pick Atmos as your rewards earning partner on Lyft, you get:
- 2 Atmos points per $1 spent on everyday Lyft rides including Standard, Priority Pickup, and XL rides.
- 3 Atmos points per $1 spent on airport rides and elevated Lyft rides including Extra Comfort, Black, and Black SUV rides.
- Work rides earn double points – With Lyft Business Rewards, eligible riders can earn 4-6 points per $1 spent on business profile rides vs. 2-3 points on personal rides.
Fine print:
Eligible Members who link their Atmos Rewards and Lyft accounts for the first time during the Promotional Period will receive a $15 Lyft ride credit. “Eligible Members” means Atmos Rewards Members who have linked their Atmos Rewards and Lyft accounts on alaskalyft.com during the Promotional Period and have selected “Atmos Rewards by Alaska and Hawaiian” as their active partner in the ‘Rewards’ section of the Lyft App at the time the Lyft ride credit is deposited. “Promotional Period” means December 17, 2025, at 12:01am PT to January 14, 2026, at 11:59pm PT. The Lyft ride credit is eligible to be used on any Lyft ride type, excluding bicycle and scooter rides. Valid only in the United States (including Puerto Rico). Members who linked their Atmos Rewards and Lyft accounts prior to the Promotional Period are not eligible for a $15 retroactive ride credit. Lyft ride credits will be awarded within 5 days of the end of the Promotional Period and expire on January 31, 2026 at 11:59PM PT. This offer may be modified, suspended, or terminated at any time without notice.
The Triple Benefits of Travel
As we leave one year and get ready to enter the next, here’s a good quote from Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad (recommended; a very moving memoir).
He has a theory: When we travel, we actually take three trips. There’s the first trip of preparation and anticipation, packing and daydreaming. There’s the trip you’re actually on. And then, there’s the trip you remember. “The key is to try to keep all three as separate as possible,” he says. “The key is to be present wherever you are right now.” This advice, more than any, stays with me.
Just having a trip booked is enough to make you happier, according to the Institute for Applied Positive Research:
– 97% of survey respondents report that having a trip planned makes them happier.
– 82% say a booked trip makes them “moderately” or “significantly” happier.
– 71% reported feeling greater levels of energy knowing they had a trip planned in the
next six months.
This time of year seems to be a mix of when we are most likely experiencing all three of these effects – remembering past trips with kids no longer young and folks no longer with us, spending time with close ones this very moment, and starting to plan that next trip in 2026. A good reminder to savor it all.