Experian CreditWorks Personal Review 2024

review-rating
If you want access to your Experian credit scores, the free Experian CreditWorks account is a great way to obtain this information.
8.5/10
Cost
9/10
Features
9/10
Ease of use
8.5/10
Services
8/10
When getting a mortgage, credit card, or auto loan, lenders and creditors review credit scores provided by the Big Three credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.
But more than reporting your credit, one of the three powerhouses has returned its services to the consumer: You. Not only can you access your credit report and credit scores to watch for errors and know what potential lenders know, but you can also monitor your credit daily with Experian CreditWorks.
In this review, I’ll run you through how the platform works, its key features, pros, and cons, and explain how Experian stacks up against competitors.

What is Experian CreditWorks™?

Experian is one of the three major crediting bureaus in the United States. It maintains comprehensive credit reports with credit scoring companies like FICO Score and VantageScore. It analyzes your debt and credit accounts, on-time payments, and credit history to calculate a three-digit credit score. A basic Experian account is free and provides an online platform to access your FICO score and Experian credit report.
In addition to credit scores, Experian offers personal finance tools and calculators, fraud resolution and identity protection services, credit card and loan recommendations, and auto insurance quotes.
Experian will show your FICO score — one of the two main credit reporting models — but does not offer your VantageScore.

Experian CreditWorks features

FICO Credit Score

The main appeal of using the Experian online platform or app is the ability to view your FICO score. Experian shows your credit score and ranks your credit scores (Poor, Fair, Good, Very Good, Excellent). Your credit scores can be viewed anytime with the free Experian account.

Experian Credit Report

Experian CreditWorks also provides access to your credit file, which by law you can obtain for free from each crediting bureau – Equifax and TransUnion are the others – once a year. This report will provide an in-depth history of your credit accounts and allow you to review all information associated with your credit history to verify it's correct.

Account balances

Experian also shows you a rundown of your open credit accounts, which offers you a glance at your current debt. It provides a breakdown of open, self-reported, late, closed, and collections accounts. It also shows your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio and debt summaries by credit type.

Personal finance products

Experian is just starting to build out a variety of personal finance products. Experian recently rolled out a bill negotiation service that offers bill negotiation to help lower the costs of utilities like cell phones, internet, and cable services.

Dark web surveillance, identity monitoring, and fraud protection

Experian CreditWorks also alerts you if your information is found on the dark web. It will also offer details on any suspicious activity on your accounts. Upgrading to the paid Experian CreditWorks Premium membership will give you even more in-depth data regarding your personal information.

Credit card and loan recommendations

You’ll also receive personalized credit card and loan recommendations based on your credit profile. Experian makes it easy to search for cards that best suit your needs by sorting them into categories such as no annual fee, rewards, cashback, balance transfer, and no interest rates.

Auto insurance quotes

CreditWorks can also help you determine if you can save money by switching to a new auto insurance provider. As your credit scores improve, your chances of securing less expensive auto insurance can also increase. You can gain access to quotes right through the Experian platform.

Experian Boost

This free feature boosts your FICO score by adding payments to utilities, cell phones, streaming services, and others to your credit history. This includes water, electricity, phone, and internet bills. If you have great on-time payments for utilities, it’s an easy way to boost your credit scores.

Experian CreditWorks costs

Experian has two tiers of CreditWorks accounts — a free service and a paid membership. Here’s what you get with both.
Feature
CreditWorks Basic
CreditWorks Premium
Price
Free
$24.99 per month (7-day free trial)
Credit monitoring and credit score services (updated monthly)
Experian data
Experian, Transunion, and Equifax data
Daily credit scores
No
Experian
Credit inquiry monitoring
Yes
Yes
Account balance change monitoring
Yes
Yes
FICO Score Simulator
No
Yes
If you don’t need access to all three credit bureaus’ data, then the free version offers everything you should need to monitor your credit scores. However, if you’re looking for all three reporting agencies’ FICO scores, I recommend searching for more affordable options since $24.99 monthly is pretty steep.
Experian also offers two tiers of paid services for identity protection. Here’s the difference between the two:
Feature
Premium
Family
Price
$24.99/month
$34.99/month
Identity Theft Insurance
Up to $1 million
Up to $1 million
Social Security Monitoring
Yes
Yes
Social Network Monitoring
Yes
Yes
Quarterly Credit Report
No
Yes
Daily Credit Score
Yes
Yes
Identity monitoring for up to 10 children
No
Yes

Signing up for Experian

The signup process is fast; you’ll need to provide some personal details to start. This information allows Experian to pull your credit data and verify your identity.
Experian will ask for your:
  • Full name
  • Current address
  • Date of birth
  • Social security number (last four digits)
From there, you’ll create a username for your account and get set up right away. When you log in, Experian will bring you to its main credit monitoring screen with access to the most commonly used products.
Experian CreditWorks Personal Review 2024
See How Much Experian Boost™ Can Raise Your Credit Scores Instantly
  • Experian® is one of the three credit bureaus providing your credit scores
  • Experian Boost is a free feature that can help you increase your credit scores for making on-time payments for your phone, utility, or streaming service bills for 100% free and in minutes
  • Average users who received a boost improved their FICO® Score 8 based on Experian Data by 13 points. Some may not see improved scores or approval odds. Not all lenders use credit information impacted by Experian Boost™.
  • Credit score calculated based on FICO® Score 8 model. Your lender or insurer may use a different FICO® Score than FICO® Score 8, or another type of credit score altogether.

How I’ve used Experian CreditWorks to improve my credit

I have been using Credit Karma for years to monitor my credit, but I signed up for Experian to confirm that my FICO data matched my VantageScore information. I enrolled in Experian's program six months ago, when I began to pay down my debt aggressively.
Here’s how I’ve used Experian’s software to boost my credit score.

Reviewing my Experian credit report

I had recently decided to refinance a private student loan to take advantage of the current low rates and was surprised when the creditor I chose didn’t instantly approve me. Credit Karma said my credit was near excellent, and my debt utilization ratio was very low. I needed to review my FICO® credit data to better understand this creditor’s decision.
I initially chose to look at my Experian credit file for the year and only signed up for CreditWorks to do this. When I viewed my Experian credit report, I found the two red flags that likely stuck out to the lender — and they were both reporting incorrect information. I decided to use the Experian CreditWorks product and file a dispute.

Flagging incorrect information

I’ve filed disputes with Credit Karma before but found two interesting reports on my Experian account.
I noticed an error for a credit account that had fully been paid off and closed as “open” and “late” for the past 10 months. I verified my payment and account status with the creditor first, then filed a dispute with Experian, noting the discrepancies. The process was simple — a few clicks here, screenshots of my account documentation, and a brief explanation — and the dispute was resolved in about a week. My account status was updated, and the change boosted my credit scores.
Additionally, I noticed another account I had paid a few times in December 2020 reflected “no payment” for this month and “late.” I again filed a dispute, which was resolved, correcting my late status and boosting my credit scores.

Pros and cons

Pros
  • Free FICO scores and credit reports. If you’re looking to view your FICO score, and gain access to your free Experian credit account, this service is of great value. It’s free and comes with various personal finance tools to help you make smarter money decisions.
  • Targeted promotions. Experian CreditWorks offers you credit card and loan deals that you’re a good fit for based on your credit profile. While this service can be helpful for anyone looking for new cards or a personal or auto loan, it’s important to know that Experian makes money off these offerings, so be sure to research before applying.
  • Identity protection add-ons. If you’re worried about identity protection, Experian has products catering directly to your needs, ranging from $24.99 per month to $34.99 per month. You will receive basic monitoring with a free CreditWorks account but can upgrade to more advanced identity protection services.
Cons
  • Steep pricing plans. While I think the free Experian account is worthwhile, the upgraded credit monitoring account that offers you access to Equifax and Transunion data costs $24.99 per month. This seems like a steep monthly price since anyone can request a free credit report once a year by directly reaching out to the credit reporting bureaus.
  • Enhanced personal finance tools. Experian’s new and beta-versions of personal finance tools are available for free and can really help you transform your finances. Its Bill Negotiator service can help you lower utility bills quickly, while its budgeting service allows you to better track money going in and out of your bank account. The savings center and credit card perks monitoring options can also help you get the most out of your money.
  • No VantageScore access. Two main credit models are used to calculate your credit score — FICO and VantageScore. While both models review your credit use and history, your scores can vary between both methods.

Experian CreditWorks vs. competition

MyFico

MyFico provides a basic plan offering FICO scores for Experian data, credit reports, and monitoring services. This paid service costs $19.95 monthly but offers many of the same features as the free Experian account. FICO is considered the most trustworthy source for credit reporting (for FICO scores), but the data is available on both platforms.
My FICO also offers a $29.95 Advanced plan with access to three credit bureaus’ information. The Advanced plan updates every three months, while the Premier plan updates monthly.

Credit Karma

Credit Karma also provides a free credit monitoring service, but as I've discovered, it does not give you access to Experian's credit report, which is why I use both.
Credit Karma gives you access to TransUnion and Equifax reports and VantageScore. Additional features of Credit Karma include a high-yield savings account, free tax return filing, and financial resources and services. And it is truly 100% free!

Credit Sesame

With Credit Sesame's free credit score monitoring platform, you can receive access to your VantageScore, but it only provides credit information connected to TransUnion in its free service.

The bottom line

If you want access to your Experian credit scores, the free Experian CreditWorks account is a great way to obtain this information. I recommend partnering with a platform that also reports your VantageScore data.
I’d also recommend the IdentityWorks Premium plan for robust fraud insurance and identity theft protection, with additional credit monitoring services. The paid Experian CreditWorks account, however, is a bit too steep for my monthly budget, and I wouldn’t recommend this to users looking to trim expenses and get their credit on track. There are free tools you can utilize instead.
See How Much Experian Boost™ Can Raise Your Credit Scores Instantly
  • Experian® is one of the three credit bureaus providing your credit scores
  • Experian Boost is a free feature that can help you increase your credit scores for making on-time payments for your phone, utility, or streaming service bills for 100% free and in minutes
  • Average users who received a boost improved their FICO® Score 8 based on Experian Data by 13 points. Some may not see improved scores or approval odds. Not all lenders use credit information impacted by Experian Boost™.
  • Credit score calculated based on FICO® Score 8 model. Your lender or insurer may use a different FICO® Score than FICO® Score 8, or another type of credit score altogether.

Joy Wallet is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor, financial advisor, loan broker, insurance producer, or insurance broker. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. Joy Wallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Featured estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.

Our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market. We are compensated by our partners, which may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on our site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice. Our editorials are grounded on independent research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.

We value your privacy. We work with trusted partners to provide relevant advertising based on information about your use of Joy Wallet’s and third-party websites and applications. This includes, but is not limited to, sharing information about your web browsing activities with Meta (Facebook) and Google. All of the web browsing information that is shared is anonymized. To learn more, click on our Privacy Policy link.

Share this article

Find Joy In Your Wallet