11 Best Credit Monitoring Services in 2024 (Free & Paid)

What’s The Best Way To Monitor Your Credit?

Credit monitoring services play a critical role in your financial health by alerting you to changes in your credit score, providing calculators and simulators that show the impact of applying for a new loan, and giving you access to your credit history.

But even more importantly, credit monitoring is one of the only ways to catch the early signs of financial fraud and identity theft.

If your identity is stolen or your personal data is leaked in a data breach, scammers can take out loans and open new accounts in your name. Credit monitoring can warn you in time to protect your finances — and good credit.

Unfortunately, not all credit monitoring services are equal — and the differences matter.

In this guide, we review the top paid and free credit monitoring services along with what features you should be looking for and whether it’s worth it to pay for credit monitoring in 2024.

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How To Choose a Credit Monitoring Service: The Most Important Features

At a high level, credit monitoring sounds like a simple service: regularly check your credit reports and score and alert you to changes or signs of fraud. In reality, there are differences and nuances between each credit monitoring service that impacts its ability to keep you — and your finances — safe.

Here are the four categories we looked at when reviewing the best credit monitoring services of 2024:

1. Three-bureau credit monitoring. Each of the three major credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion — collect different information. That’s why it’s imperative that you find a service that provides three-bureau credit monitoring.
2. Speed and reliability of fraud alerts. Most credit monitoring services wait for the credit bureaus to publish or inform them of changes before alerting you — sometimes weeks or even months after fraud has occurred. We looked for services that publish their fraud alert speed statistics and were able to back them up with third-party tests.
3. Proactive protection against fraud or identity theft. Modern credit monitoring is usually bundled with identity theft protection services. We looked for tools that protected more than just your credit and helped prevent identity theft and fraud from happening in the first place.
4. Insurance, support, and recovery options. If fraudsters gain access to your financial information, they can do serious damage. We looked for services that offered 24/7 support, high levels of identity theft insurance, and a proven track record of helping customers resolve issues of fraud.

The 11 Best Paid and Free Credit Monitoring Services (2024)

1. Aura
2. Identity Guard
3. IdentityForce
4. ID Watchdog from Equifax
5. PrivacyGuard
6. Experian IdentityWorks
7. LifeLock
8. myFICO
9. Credit Karma
10. Credit Sesame
11. CreditWise by Capital One

The best credit monitoring services combine three-bureau credit monitoring, fast and reliable fraud alerts, and financial account monitoring with proactive protection against identity theft and reliable recovery services if you become a victim.

Unfortunately, most credit monitoring companies hit the mark on some — but not all — of these features. To help you choose the service that’s best suited to your needs, we’ve reviewed and compared 11 paid and free credit monitoring services and credit score apps.

1. Aura: Award-winning protection with the fastest fraud alerts

Aura is an award-winning intelligent safety solution that combines identity theft protection, three-bureau credit monitoring, powerful digital security tools, 24/7 U.S.-based support, and up to $5 million in identity theft insurance (on family plans). Every Aura plan comes with a free 14-day trial to see if it’s right for you (as well as a 60-day money back guarantee on annual plans).

While Aura is a relatively new service, it’s already won awards and been rated #1 by Money.com, Security.org, Forbes, and more.

Aura stands out from other services by offering the fastest and most reliable fraud alerts — up to 250x faster than other credit monitoring services³ — as well as one-click Experian credit lock (to prevent scammers from opening new accounts or taking out loans and lines of credit in your name).

Here’s how Aura stacks up on the most important credit monitoring features:

But credit monitoring and fraud alerts are only a small part of protecting your credit, identity, and finances.

Unlike credit-only monitoring services, Aura is one of the best identity theft protection services of 2024, and monitors your Social Security number (SSN), passport, driver’s license, name, address, account logins and passwords, home title, and more on the internet, Dark Web, and public records.

If it finds anything, you'll get an alert in near real-time with guidance on what to do and peace of mind knowing you’ve got 24/7 support from Fraud Resolution Specialists and up to $1 million in ID theft insurance that covers eligible losses, including lost wages, stolen funds, lawyer fees, childcare, and more.

Aura pros and cons

Aura plans and pricing

Aura offers simple and transparent pricing. All plans include three-bureau credit monitoring, one-click credit lock, financial account monitoring, and more.

Here are Aura’s plans and pricing as of December 2023:

• Individual Plan: $12/month (or $6/month using the link below)
• Couple Plan (two members): $22/month (or $11.49/month using the link below)‍
• Family Plan (five adults and unlimited children): $37/month (or $20/month using the link below)

Aura’s Family Plan includes additional features such as parental controls, Safe Gaming tools to protect against predators and cyberbullies, and child identity monitoring.

2. Identity Guard: Industry veteran for credit monitoring

Identity Guard has helped protect over 38 million people against identity theft and fraud. Identity Guard and Aura recently joined forces to provide identity theft protection to more Americans.

Identity Guard provides three-bureau credit monitoring and monthly credit scores using VantageScore 3.0.

Here’s how Identity Guard compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

Identity Guard pros and cons

Identity Guard plans and pricing

Here are Identity Guard’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• Value Plan (no credit monitoring): $6.67/month (individual) and $10 (family)
• Total Plan: $11.99/month (individual) and $17.99 (family)
• Ultra Plan: $14.99 per month (individual) and $19.99 (family)

Identity Guard doesn’t offer a free trial but includes a 60-day money-back guarantee on all annual plans.

3. IdentityForce: Credit monitoring from TransUnion

IdentityForce is an identity theft protection and credit monitoring service offered by TransUnion — one of the three major credit bureaus. IdentityForce uses the VantageScore model for credit scores and also provides three-bureau credit monitoring (but only on its most expensive UltraSecure+Credit plan).

Here’s how IdentityForce compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

IdentityForce pros and cons

IdentityForce plans and pricing

Here are IdentityForce’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• UltraSecure (individual): $17.95/month or $179.50 billed annually
• UltraSecure+Credit (individual): $23.95/month or $239.50 billed annually

You’ll need to opt for IdentityForce’s most expensive plan option to get credit monitoring, making it one of the pricier options.

⛳️ Related: Aura vs. IdentityForce: 2024 Comparison →

4. ID Watchdog from Equifax: Credit monitoring from Equifax

ID Watchdog is another service run by one of the major credit bureaus — Equifax. ID Watchdog uses the VantageScore model for credit scores, however, your score is only based off of your Equifax credit file (meaning it might not be the same score other lenders use when deciding to give you new credit accounts).

Here’s how ID WatchDog compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

ID Watchdog pros and cons

ID Watchdog plans and pricing

ID Watchdog offers a Select plan and Premium plan for both individuals and families. The family plan lets you add one additional adult and up to four minors.

Here are ID Watchdog’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• ID Watchdog Select: $14.95/month (individual) or $23.95/month (family)
• ID Watchdog Premium: $21.95/month (individual) or $34.95/month (family)

5. PrivacyGuard: Flexible plans for identity and credit monitoring

PrivacyGuard allows customers to choose between identity monitoring, credit monitoring, or both — giving you more options if you only want one or the other. Unfortunately, while its credit monitoring features are competitive to other services, it lacks some critical features for identity theft protection, such as 24/7 customer support and a password manager.  

Here’s how PrivacyGuard compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

PrivacyGuard pros and cons

PrivacyGuard plans and pricing

Here are PrivacyGuard’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• Identity Protection: Starts from $9.99/month — only offers basic identity protection.
• Credit Protection: Starts from $19.99/month — includes monthly three-bureau credit scores.
• Total Protection: Starts from $24.99/month — offers everything in both plans.

⛳️ Related: Is Credit Monitoring Worth It? How To Decide →

6. IdentityWorks: Credit monitoring from Experian

IdentityWorks is another credit monitoring service run by one of the three major credit bureaus — Experian. It’s also one of the few options in this list that provides you with your FICO credit score (instead of using the VantageScore model).

Here’s how Experian IdentityWorks compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

Experian IdentityWorks pros and cons

Experian IdentityWorks plans and pricing

Experian IdentityWorks is often included on lists of free credit monitoring services because they offer a free plan. However, their free plan offers very little. You’ll only be able to monitor your Experian credit report and FICO® credit score.

If you want three-bureau credit monitoring or access to credit locks, you’ll have to pay.

Here are IdentityWorks’ pricing plans as of December 2023:

• Basic: Free plan for Experian credit report and FICO score.
• Premium: Starts at $24.99/month.
• Family: Starts at $34.99/month (Premium plan for 2 adults).

⛳️ Related: LifeLock vs. Experian IdentityWorks: 2024 Showdown →

7. LifeLock: All-in-one solution (with a few flaws)

LifeLock is one of the most well-known names in identity theft protection thanks to its long history and connection with Norton 360. For credit monitoring and credit score tracking, LifeLock uses the VantageScore model.

Here’s how LifeLock compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

LifeLock pros and cons

LifeLock plans and pricing

The main thing to know about LifeLock’s pricing plans is that they can increase significantly after your first year of service. For example, the Ultimate Plus plan starts at $19.99/month but increases to ~$28/month after the first year — a nearly 30% cost increase in its monthly fee.

Here are LifeLock with Norton 360’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• Standard: Starts at $7.50/month but renews at ~$10.50/month – only includes one-bureau credit monitoring
• Advantage: Starts at $14.99/month but renews at $19.99/month – only includes one-bureau credit monitoring
• Ultimate Plus: Starts at $19.99/month but renews at ~$28/month

LifeLock data breach in the news: The company recently disclosed that sensitive information from thousands of LifeLock customers — including passwords — was compromised in a December, 2022 data breach [*]. If you're looking for a secure LifeLock alternative, consider trying Aura free for 14 days.

8. myFICO: The official FICO credit score app

As the name suggests, myFICO provides your FICO® credit score (rather than the more common VantageScore model).

Here’s how myFICO compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

myFICO pros and cons

myFICO plans and pricing

Here are myFICO’s pricing plans as of December 2023:

• Free: No identity monitoring and only one bureau coverage (Experian)
• Advanced: Starts at $29.95 for three-bureau coverage with credit reports every three months
• Premier: Starts at $39.95/month for three-bureau coverage with monthly credit reports

⛳️ Related: Credit Monitoring vs. Identity Theft Protection — Which Do You Need? →

9. Credit Karma: Free credit score app and offers

Credit Karma uses the VantageScore model based on your TransUnion and Equifax credit reports. They also offer a credit score simulator which lets you see how specific financial decisions may impact your credit score.

Credit Karma recently agreed to a $3 million settlement with the FTC over misleading users by saying they were “pre-approved” for loans that they couldn’t actually secure [*].

Here’s how Credit Karma compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

Credit Karma pros and cons

Credit Karma plans and pricing

Credit Karma is free for users. However, users should be aware that Credit Karma keeps its services free by serving ads to users.

When you sign up for a credit card, loan, or other credit service that Credit Karma “suggested,” the company receives a commission. Unfortunately, these suggestions don’t always have users’ best interests at heart (which is why the FTC fined the company over deceptive offers).  

⛳️ Related: The 7 Best Credit Karma Alternatives in 2024 →

10. Credit Sesame: Free one-bureau credit monitoring

Credit Sesame’s basic plan provides credit score tracking with estimates of your credit score using the information in your TransUnion credit report. They also help you with personal finance decisions including student loans, car loans, suggested credit cards, etc.

Here’s how Credit Sesame compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

Credit Sesame pros and cons

Credit Sesame plans and pricing

Credit Sesame offers a free plan with basic credit monitoring and other credit tools. A premium version is also available for $15.99/month that includes three-bureau credit monitoring, identity theft insurance, and other credit tools.

⛳️ Related: What Can Scammers Do With Your Social Security Number? →

11. CreditWise by Capital One: Simple credit monitoring for anyone

CreditWise is a service offered by Capital One that uses VantageScore to track changes to your credit report.

Here’s how CreditWise compares on the key credit monitoring and protection features:

CreditWise pros and cons

CreditWise plans and pricing

CreditWise is a free service — even if you’re not a Capital One customer. All you need is to be a U.S. citizen with a Social Security number and a credit profile with TransUnion in order to qualify.

How Does Credit Monitoring Work? 7 Essential Features

Ultimately, monitoring your credit reports is just one small piece of the puzzle when it comes to protecting your finances and identity.

Here are seven essential features that you should look for when deciding to pay for or sign up for a credit monitoring service:

1. Credit score tracking and monthly and annual reports

Every credit monitoring service provides you with some version of your credit score.

Although financial institutions use many official credit score models, the most common ones used to create your credit profile are VantageScore® and FICO®. Both will give you a good indication of your credit health, but here’s the difference:

The VantageScore® model was developed by the three major credit bureaus — Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. While FICO® scores were developed by private citizens (Bill Fair and Earl Isaac).

2. Three-bureau credit monitoring

Your credit reports at Experian, TransUnion and Equifax aren’t always identical. This is because not all lenders report to all three credit bureaus.

If an identity thief takes out a loan that is only reported to one of the credit bureaus, you’ll only be able to catch the fraudulent activity if you’re monitoring that credit report.

Unfortunately, many credit monitoring services only offer three-bureau credit monitoring in their highest priced plan. Additionally, many free credit monitoring services only alert you to major changes to your credit report instead of all changes. This means you may miss signs of identity fraud leading to financial losses.

The bottom line: Look for affordable, three-bureau credit monitoring that alerts you to all changes in your credit score.

⛳️ Related: 5 Payday Loan Scams You Didn't Know About (Until Now) →

3. Instant credit lock to protect your credit report

A credit lock prevents creditors from accessing your credit file. Creditors will typically run an inquiry into your credit file to determine whether or not to grant a loan. If your credit is locked and a criminal tries to take out a loan in your name, they will likely be denied the loan.

Credit locks are available from the main credit bureaus — but usually at a price.

The bottom line: Choose a credit monitoring service that lets you lock and unlock your credit at a moment's notice. Most free services don’t offer credit locks.

4. Financial account monitoring (bank, investment account, etc.)

There are many types of financial fraud that won’t show up on your credit report. For example, criminals will add their name to your home title to try to improve their own credit score, which would likely bring down your credit score.

The bottom line: Check what other accounts your credit monitoring service also monitors. Ideally, it should monitor at least your credit, bank, and investment accounts.

5. Identity theft protection and alerts

Most free credit monitoring services focus almost entirely on monitoring your credit score and credit report for errors.

While this is helpful for understanding the health of your credit, errors on your credit report often mean that someone has already stolen your identity and committed financial fraud. Instead, you want a service that can help catch the thief before they have the chance to do too much damage.  

Identity monitoring — which includes Social Security monitoring and Dark Web surveillance — deals with scanning various platforms for signs of your personal information. If your information is found in a place it shouldn’t be — such as in court records for a crime you didn’t commit — chances are your identity has been stolen.

Knowing this as soon as possible gives you the chance to stop the fraudster from using your identity to commit crimes that could damage your financial health.

The bottom line: Pay close attention to what platforms a credit monitoring service monitors (the Dark Web, public records, social media, etc).

Make sure you’re able to add all of your sensitive information to their monitoring watchlist. This includes your:

• Social Security number (SSN)
• Driver’s license
• Passport
• Multiple phone numbers and email addresses

Many free services will only scan limited Dark Web sites and forums for signs of just your SSN.

6. Proactive digital security to safeguard your data and accounts

Some credit monitoring services will offer features like VPNs and antivirus software to help keep your information secure. The more features you have to protect your information, the less likely it is that criminals will be able to steal it and use it for financial fraud. Aura even includes an AI-powered spam and scam call and text blocker to help protect you if scammers have your phone number.

The bottom line: Proactive security features, including a VPN, antivirus, password manager, and safe browsing tools, should be an essential part of any credit monitoring app you’re considering.

7. Support and insurance against losses

Identity theft is often very unsettling and can be complicated to resolve. Yet, many free credit monitoring services will only alert you to suspicious activity, leaving you on your own to resolve it.

Even paid credit monitoring services that offer 24/7 support rely almost entirely on automated phone messaging systems or outsource their customer support. This can make it difficult to get the help you need when you become the victim of identity theft.

If you become the victim of fraud, you’ll also want to know that your finances are protected.

The standard amount for identity theft insurance is $1 million. However, most identity theft insurance policies will only cover legal expenses or stolen funds and not other related expenses such as lost wages or additional childcare.

Make sure you understand what your identity theft insurance covers.

The bottom line: Choose a service that provides 24/7 U.S.-based customer support, a dedicated Fraud Resolution agent for each case, and $1 million insurance policy that covers legal expenses, private investigator expenses, lost wages, stolen funds, care for loved ones, and travel expenses.

It’s also worth noting that most credit monitoring providers won’t include identity theft insurance in their basic credit monitoring plans (or will only include a small amount of coverage).

Is Credit Monitoring Worth It?

Ultimately, it’s up to you whether or not you want to sign up for a credit monitoring service. Many simply automate actions you can take on your own. For example, checking your monthly bank statements or reviewing your credit report.

Every American is also entitled to a free credit report from each of the three bureaus every week at AnnualCreditReport.com.

However, few people have the time or energy to check their financial and personal accounts on a daily basis.

An all-in-one solution like Aura does the work for you. Instead of stressing over data breaches and fraudsters, you get peace of mind knowing Aura is protecting your accounts and will cover you with trained Fraud Resolution Specialists and up to $1 million in identity theft insurance.

The Final Verdict: Choose All-in-One Protection

When it comes to your credit score, it can take a lifetime to build and just seconds to destroy it. Credit monitoring helps protect your financial well-being so you can live your life how you want.

For award-winning all-in-one protection, consider signing up for Aura.

For all your credit monitoring needs, sign up for a free Aura trial today.