Is Credit Monitoring Actually Worth It? How To Decide

Is Credit Monitoring Worth Paying For?

Your credit score is one of the most important components of your financial health. But few people realize how easy it is for fraud (or even honest mistakes) to end up on their credit reports and ruin their credit scores. 

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) [*]: 

Americans lost around $8.8 billion to fraud in 2022 — a 30% increase from the previous year. 

Credit monitoring services offer protection against various forms of financial fraud. ‍

But is it worth it to pay for credit monitoring? 

In this guide, we’ll review what credit monitoring does (and doesn’t) do, who actually needs it, and how much it typically costs. Then, we’ll cover five of the best free and paid credit monitoring services on the market today so that you can make the best decision to secure your financial health.

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What Is Credit Monitoring? Do You Really Need It?

Credit monitoring includes tools and services that track changes to your credit file — including hard credit inquiries, new credit accounts, and changes to your credit score. 

Depending on the service, credit monitoring tracks changes at one, two, or all three of the major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) and may offer additional features, such as Dark Web, bank account, and identity monitoring. 

Keeping a close eye on your credit score is a huge part of protecting your personal finances. But more importantly, credit monitoring allows you to detect suspicious activity before too much damage is done.

However, the truth is that anyone can perform basic credit monitoring tasks on their own. 

Every American is entitled to a free copy of each of their credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com. You can also regularly check your debit and credit card statements for signs of fraud, and proactively freeze your credit to stop scammers from opening new accounts in your name.

The difference is that credit monitoring does the work for you and tracks your financial health 24/7 — providing fast and reliable fraud alerts to immediately flag suspicious activity.  

Here’s a quick look at what credit monitoring services provide — along with their limitations:

While these are the main benefits of credit monitoring, not all providers offer the same features. For example, some providers offer three-bureau credit monitoring, while others only provide one-bureau credit monitoring.

Credit monitoring is also often bundled with all-in-one identity theft protection services that include identity monitoring, digital security tools, and identity theft insurance. 

The bottom line: While it’s possible to monitor your credit manually, you’re putting yourself and your family at risk of missing the early warning signs of financial fraud. Instead, a credit monitoring provider that includes fast fraud alerts is a more reliable way to protect your financial health.

Why you should always choose three-bureau credit monitoring

One of the most important factors to consider when choosing a credit monitoring provider is whether it offers three-bureau credit monitoring. This one feature can make or break the overall effectiveness of a monitoring service platform.

This is because the three major credit bureaus receive different information from various lenders and financial institutions. 

If you’re only monitoring reports from one credit bureau, you could miss important information that was only reported to the others bureaus.

Three-bureau credit monitoring is the one way to ensure the most accurate threat detection.

How Much Does Credit Monitoring Cost?

In general, prices for credit monitoring services range from around $10–$30 per month with annual plans ranging from $150–$350 per year. The price usually depends on the level of coverage and amount of additional features.

Since credit card fraud and identity theft are so closely linked, almost all paid credit monitoring plans include at least some level of identity monitoring. Minimum offerings for identity protection usually consist of Dark Web monitoring and SSN tracking.

There are also some free credit monitoring services available — however, these often only include one-bureau credit monitoring and slower or less reliable fraud alerts. 

Victims of data breaches are often offered free credit monitoring. But you should be aware that accepting these offers can sometimes limit your ability to join class action lawsuits or take other legal action against companies that leak your data. 

Who Needs Credit Monitoring the Most?

Anyone can become a victim of identity theft — however, some individuals are statistically at a higher risk than others when it comes to financial fraud and ID theft.

Here are the people who will benefit the most from credit monitoring: 

• Anyone whose identity has been stolen in the past. According to a 2022 report by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), around 50% of identity theft victims are repeat victims [*]. This means that if you’ve ever been targeted before, you’d benefit significantly from credit monitoring services and notifications flagging fraudulent activity.
• Anyone whose information has been compromised in a data breach. If your sensitive information gets stolen, bad actors can use it to run dangerous scams, gain entry to your credit accounts, and steal your identity. Victims of data breaches often have no idea that their security has been compromised, which puts them at even greater risk.
• Those who know they won’t or can’t keep up with self-monitoring their credit. Basic credit monitoring practices are highly effective for the average person, but only when performed consistently. If you don’t have the time or discipline to maintain these financial habits, it’s safest to invest in a credit monitoring service.
• Those who have family members to protect. Many credit monitoring providers offer family plans that extend coverage to the member’s children and elderly relatives. This can be an excellent way of looking after vulnerable people in your life who need extra help protecting their finances and credit histories.

The 5 Best Credit Monitoring Services in 2023 (Free and Paid)

1. Aura
2. Identity Guard
3. Experian IdentityWorks
4. CapitalOne CreditWise
5. ID Watchdog

Unfortunately, most credit monitoring apps are designed to give you insight into your credit scores but don’t always provide the best protection against credit fraud or mistakes on your credit reports. 

That’s why, when looking at the best credit monitoring services in 2023, we focused on some specific criteria:

• How extensive is the credit report monitoring?
• How fast are the fraud alerts?
• Is identity protection included? What other features are offered?
• Does it include fraud recovery services?
• Does it include fraud insurance coverage?

Here are our recommendations for the best credit monitoring apps and tools:

1. Aura: Award-winning credit monitoring and identity theft protection

Aura offers an all-in-one intelligent safety solution for families and individuals. When it comes to credit monitoring, Aura not only includes three-bureau credit monitoring with the industry’s fastest and most reliable fraud alerts³, but it also addresses other personal security needs like identity theft insurance and personal information monitoring. 

With Aura, you get: 

• Award-winning identity theft protection: While a relatively new product, Aura has already gained endorsements and awards from industry experts like Inc. Magazine, Forbes, and Money.com.
• Financial account monitoring: Aura monitors your bank, credit card, and investment accounts for signs of fraud — and alerts you in near real-time of anything suspicious.
• AI-powered digital security and scam protection tools: Aura proactively protects your data, devices, and accounts with powerful antivirus, a military-grade virtual private network (VPN), secure password manager, AI-powered Call Assistant, and more.
• 24/7 White Glove Fraud Resolution Support: If you need help reading your credit reports or responding to a fraud alert, Aura’s U.S.-based team of specialists is available 24/7 to help.
• Up to $5 million in identity theft insurance: If the worst should happen, every adult member on an Aura plan is covered for up to $1 million in eligible losses due to identity theft (including lost wages, stolen funds, and lawyer fees). 

Why you’d want to choose Aura

Aura plans and pricing

Almost all credit monitoring apps charge a monthly fee for their services. Unfortunately, many providers offer complicated pricing plans that start off with affordable basic protection but quickly add up if you want the best security possible.

With Aura, every plan includes almost all features — including three-bureau credit monitoring and $1 million in identity theft insurance per adult member. 

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

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

With Aura, the price of your first year is simply the price you pay — there are no outrageous renewal fees, unlike other services.

The bottom line: Aura is the best option for all-in-one safety against credit fraud, identity theft, hacking, and scams. Plus, with up to 60% off plans and a 60-day money-back guarantee, Aura is one of the most flexible and affordable options available. 

2. Identity Guard: Longtime industry leader in consumer protection services 

Identity Guard was among the first companies to offer effective anti-fraud services to consumers. Over the past two decades, Identity Guard has protected more than 38 million Americans. 

Recently, Identity Guard and Aura joined forces to offer modern protection against identity theft and fraud, including near real-time alerts and three-bureau credit monitoring (on certain plans).

Why you’d want to choose Identity Guard

Identity Guard plans and pricing

Identity Guard’s prices are competitive, but some of its most important features are only available at the highest pricing tier. For example, if you want three-bureau credit monitoring, Experian CreditLock and annual three-bureau credit reports, you’ll need to opt for the Ultra plan.

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

• Value: $5.39/month (individual) and $8.99/month (family)
• Total: $11.99/month (individual) and $17.99/month (family)
• Ultra: $17.99/month (individual) and $23.99/month (family)

The bottom line: Identity Guard’s Ultra plan includes many of the same powerful credit monitoring and financial fraud protection features as Aura — but at a higher price point for both individuals and families. 

3. Experian IdentityWorks: Free credit monitoring from a major credit bureau

IdentityWorks is owned by Experian — one of the three main credit bureaus — which means it places a special focus on credit monitoring. However, IdentityWorks uses a tiered approach for its protection plans, with important features (such as identity theft protection and three-bureau credit monitoring) only available on the more expensive Premium plan. 

Why you’d want to choose Experian IdentityWorks

IdentityWorks plans and pricing

IdentityWorks is one of the few providers that has a free plan. However, it only includes one-bureau credit monitoring — as well as a FICO credit score tracker and free credit scores and reports from Experian. 

• Basic: Free
• Premium: $24.99/month
• Family: $34.99/month

The bottom line: IdentityWorks gives you peace of mind by deriving some financial data straight from the source. However, compared to other credit monitoring services, it’s significantly more expensive and doesn’t include the same depth of features.

💡 Related: LifeLock vs. Experian IdentityWorks — Which Is Best For You? →

4. CapitalOne CreditWise: Powerful credit monitoring tools for all

One of the best free credit monitoring services on the market is CapitalOne’s CreditWise plan. Signing up is completely free — no monthly fee is required for any CreditWise services.

CapitalOne offers credit safety features like VantageScore 3.0 credit reports from TransUnion, credit score monitoring and security alerts, and a credit score simulator tool.

As with most free credit monitoring options, identity monitoring features are very limited. For example, CapitalOne only offers Dark Web alerts that notify you if your Social Security number (SSN) is leaked online.

Why you’d want to choose CapitalOne CreditWise

CreditWise plans and pricing

All CreditWise features are free. 

The bottom line: CreditWise could be a good option if you’re looking to apply for credit and want to use its credit simulator tools. However, CreditWise comes up short in protection against credit fraud and identity theft.

5. ID Watchdog: Credit protection from a major credit bureau

lD Watchdog is Equifax’s in-house credit monitoring service. Paid plans are offered for individuals and families, with prices slightly lower than similar competitors. Like IdentityWorks, one advantage of ID Watchdog is that credit monitoring and alerts come directly from a major credit bureau.

ID Watchdog also monitors other financial accounts besides your credit score, which makes for broader overall protection. However, these services are only available with the most expensive plan.

Why you’d want to choose ID Watchdog

ID Watchdog plans and pricing

ID Watchdog’s Premium plan is by far a better option for credit monitoring and protection — but you have to pay for it. 

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

• Select: $14.95/month (individual) and $23.95/month (family)
• Premium: $21.95/month (individual) and $34.95/month (family)

The bottom line: ID Watchdog is a good option for credit protection — especially with its multi-bureau credit lock and integrated fraud alerts. However, you’ll pay a premium for its services and won’t get the same degree of identity theft protection and digital security tools that you would get with Aura. 

💡 Related: The 7 Best Credit Karma Alternatives in 2023 →

How You Can Protect Your Financial Health

Credit monitoring is one of the surest ways to protect your credit score and overall financial well-being. However, it’s not the only tool that you can use to stay safe against financial fraud. 

Here are some of the best proactive steps that you can take to start improving your financial health right now:

• Review your credit reports regularly. All Americans are entitled to three free credit reports per week — one from each of the three main credit reporting agencies — until the end of 2023. Visit AnnualCreditReport.com to access yours, and check for incorrect information or fraudulent accounts. You can also learn how to dispute credit fraud. 
• Sign up for security alerts from your banks. Many banks and credit card issuers have security alerts available that flag potentially suspicious transactions. Aura can also monitor your debit, credit, and investment accounts and warn you of suspicious activity. 
• Freeze your credit with all three credit bureaus. Proactive credit freezes prevent bad actors from committing fraud by taking out lines of credit in your name. You can easily unfreeze (or “thaw”) your credit temporarily whenever you need to take out a loan.
• Secure all your online accounts with strong and unique passwords. For added security, enable two-factor authentication (2FA), and store all of your credentials in a secure password manager.
• Scan the Dark Web for your sensitive information. The sooner you find out that your data has been leaked, the better chance you have of shutting down scammers. Use Aura’s free Dark Web scanner to see if you’re at risk.
• Educate yourself about recent scams and internet safety tips. Dangerous scams and unsecured websites are among the most common ways that people lose control of their sensitive information.

The Bottom Line: Credit Monitoring Makes Sense for Most People

As losses from financial fraud reach an all-time high, having good credit is no longer enough. Even average consumers need some level of credit protection to keep their accounts safe.

Credit monitoring providers like Aura can help you manage all of your online accounts — both personal and financial — with the added benefits of fraud detection and insurance coverage to give you continued peace of mind.

Keep your bank accounts safe from scammers. Try Aura free for 14 days.