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What is a Hard Inquiry vs a Soft Inquiry

A hard inquiry is when you apply for a loan and the Bank, Credit Union, or lender checks your credit. A Hard Inquiry only happens when you apply for credit and sign an authorization for a credit check. 

A Soft Inquiry is when You check your credit score.  This can be done through a company like Credit Karma or some of the credit card companies that are offering a free credit check. Discover and Chase both offer free credit checks.  

How Often Can I do a Soft Inquiry?

You can do a Soft Inquiry every day or as often as you want with Credit Karma or many of the Online Free Credit Check websites.

You can also do a free Soft Inquiry once a year through each of the three credit bureaus.

With Discover you don't need to have a Discover card to do a Soft Inquiry.  To get a free credit check. You will have to give your social security number and register with Discover. 

A Hard Inquiry Credit Check

When you make a hard inquiry for credit, meaning apply for credit, it will have a slight impact on your credit score. 
In my experience it knocked about 10 points off my credit score. However I have a long credit history so it will have a smaller impact on my score.  A Hard Inquiry might have a larger impact if your credit history is not very long or has very little information.

All Three Credit Bureaus 

Consumers can also request their free credit report from all three bureaus at once by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com. This is the only website authorized by federal law to provide free annual credit reports, and it ensures that consumers receive a report from each of the three major credit bureaus. It's important to be cautious of other websites that may charge for credit reports or try to sell additional services.

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