How to Read Your Credit Report and Dispute Errors

You can get your credit reports from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion for free once a week at AnnualCreditReport.com ^[1]. Read each one section by section: your personal details, your accounts, any collections or public records, and the list of companies that have looked at your file ^[2]. If something is wrong, you have the right to dispute it with the bureau and with the company that reported it, at no cost ^[3]. The bureau generally has 30 days to investigate ^[3]. This guide shows what to look for, how to write a dispute, and where to turn if the dispute goes nowhere.

How to get your free credit reports

The three national credit bureaus run one central site, AnnualCreditReport.com, along with a phone line and a mailing address ^[4]. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says these are the only official ways to order the free reports you are entitled to under federal law ^[4].

How often: You can check your report from each bureau once a week for free ^[1]. The bureaus made that weekly program permanent ^[4]. Separately, federal law gives you one free report from each bureau every 12 months on request ^[4]. The FTC also notes that Equifax offers six extra free reports per year through 2026 on its own website or at 1-866-349-5191 ^[3].

How to order:

• Online at AnnualCreditReport.com. Reports are usually ready to view right after you pass the identity questions ^[5].
• By phone at 1-877-322-8228. The report is mailed within 15 days ^[4].
• By mail, with the printable request form from AnnualCreditReport.com sent to the Atlanta post office box listed on that form. Your reports arrive by mail within 15 days after the request is received ^[4].

You will need your full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth and address. If you have lived at your current address for under two years, you will also need your previous one ^[5]. Each bureau asks its own security questions, even when you order all three at once ^[4].

Checking your own report this way does not affect your credit scores ^[5]. You do not have to pull all three on the same day. Some people spread them out through the year ^[5], though with weekly access there is no need to ration.

Watch for look-alike sites. The FTC warns that other sites pose as the official one, sometimes with misspelled web addresses, to sell services or collect personal data ^[4]. The bureaus and AnnualCreditReport.com will not email you to ask for your Social Security number ^[4].

Extra free reports you may qualify for

Beyond the weekly reports, federal law gives you more free copies in certain cases ^[4]:

• A lender, landlord, insurer or employer turned you down or took another negative step based on your report (an "adverse action"). Ask within 60 days of the notice.
• You are unemployed and plan to look for work within 60 days.
• You receive public assistance.
• Fraud, such as identity theft, has made your report inaccurate.
• A fraud alert is already on your file.

What is in a credit report, section by section

A credit report is a record of your credit activity and the status of your accounts ^[2]. Lenders use it to decide whether to lend and at what rate. Landlords, insurers and some employers (with your permission) can use it too ^[2]. The layout differs by bureau, but most reports have these parts ^[2]:

Your three reports may not match. Each bureau gets data from different sources, and lenders are not required to report to all three ^[4][2]. That is why the FTC suggests reviewing every one ^[4].

Common credit report errors

The CFPB groups the most common mistakes into three kinds ^[6].

Identity errors

• Wrong name, phone number or address
• Accounts that belong to someone with a similar name (a "mixed file")
• Accounts opened by an identity thief

Account status errors

• A closed account shown as open
• You listed as the owner of an account when you were only an authorized user
• Payments marked late when they were on time
• Wrong dates for the last payment, account opening or first missed payment
• The same debt listed twice, sometimes under different company names

Data errors

• Wrong current balance
• Wrong credit limit

A wrong date of first delinquency matters more than it looks. Most negative items can be reported for seven years, and that clock depends on the right dates ^[7].

What is not an error

Accurate negative information can stay on your report even if you dislike it. A bureau can generally report most negative items for seven years and a bankruptcy for up to ten ^[7]. The CFPB warns against paying a credit repair company to remove accurate items. No one has the right to delete correct negative information, and you can fix real errors yourself for free ^[7].

How to dispute an error: step by step

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is the federal law that governs credit reports. It requires both the bureau and the company that supplied the data (called the furnisher, such as your bank or card issuer) to fix information that is wrong or incomplete, for free ^[3].

Step 1. Collect your proof. Gather statements, payment confirmations, letters or anything else that shows the item is wrong. Keep the originals and send copies ^[8].

Step 2. Dispute with each bureau that shows the error. You can file online, by phone or by mail ^[3]. A mailed letter should include ^[8]:

• Your full name, address and phone number
• The report confirmation number, if there is one
• Each item you want fixed, with the account number
• A plain explanation of why it is wrong
• A request to correct or remove it
• A copy of the report page with the item circled or highlighted
• Copies of your supporting documents

The FTC suggests certified mail with a return receipt so you can prove the bureau got it ^[3]. For the mailing address, use the one printed on your credit report or the dispute address each bureau lists for mail disputes ^[3].

Phone lines for disputes are Equifax (866) 349-5191, Experian (888) 397-3742 and TransUnion (800) 916-8800 ^[8].

Step 3. Dispute with the furnisher too. Write to the company that reported the item, using the dispute address on your report or one the company gives you ^[8]. Furnishers generally must look into your dispute and answer within 30 days of receiving it ^[8].

Step 4. Keep a file. Save copies of every letter, the mailing receipts and notes from any phone calls ^[3].

A worked example

Say your Experian report shows a $640 store card balance as 60 days late in March, but your bank statement shows the payment cleared on time. Your dispute letter would name the store card and its account number, say the March payment was made on time, ask Experian to remove the late mark, and attach a copy of the bank statement with that payment highlighted ^[8]. You would send a second letter with the same proof to the store card company ^[8]. If Experian gets the letter on June 1, it has until about July 1 to finish, and up to 15 more days if you send new proof during that time ^[9]. If your Equifax and TransUnion reports show the same late mark, dispute it with each of them as well ^[3].

Dispute timelines under federal law

Here is what the law requires once a bureau receives your dispute:

While it investigates, the bureau must pass your evidence to the furnisher. If the furnisher finds an error, it must tell all three bureaus ^[3]. The bureau must send you the results in writing. If anything changed, it also sends a free updated report, which does not count as your free annual copy ^[3].

A bureau can treat a dispute as frivolous if it does not say what is being disputed or lacks enough detail to investigate. It must then tell you why ^[8]. Being specific in your letter avoids this.

After a correction, you can ask the bureau to send notice of the change to anyone who received your report in the past six months, or in the past two years for job screening ^[3][9].

If the dispute does not go your way

If the investigation keeps the item, you still have options:

1. Add a statement. You can ask the bureau to put a short statement explaining your side in your file. It will appear in future reports ^[3]. The law lets the bureau limit it to 100 words if it helps you write it ^[9].
2. Send more evidence. If you find new documents, file a new dispute with them.
3. File a complaint with the CFPB. The CFPB takes complaints about credit reports and sends them to the company for a response ^[11]. It notes that most companies respond within 15 days ^[11]. The law requires you to dispute with the bureau first, so file the complaint after that step ^[11]. You can attach up to 50 pages of supporting documents ^[11].

You can also reach the CFPB by phone at (855) 411-2372 ^[7].

If the error stems from identity theft, the CFPB points you to IdentityTheft.gov, the federal site for reporting and recovering from it ^[8]. An FTC Identity Theft Report can make it easier to have fraudulent accounts blocked from your file.

When to get extra help

Most disputes are simple enough to handle yourself. Consider a consumer protection lawyer if a bureau or furnisher keeps reporting an item you have clearly proved wrong, if the error cost you a loan or job, or if a mixed file keeps returning. A nonprofit credit counselor can help if the issue is real debt rather than an error.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a fee to dispute? No. Filing a dispute is free ^[5].

Will the bureau tell me the outcome? Yes. It must send written results along with a copy of your report based on the updated file ^[9].

Can I still get a report if I did not get a weekly one? Yes. The free report every 12 months remains your right under federal law ^[4].

Your next step

Go to AnnualCreditReport.com today and pull all three reports ^[1]. Print them or save them as PDFs. Work through the table above one section at a time, and circle anything you do not recognize. If you find an error, write one dispute letter per bureau using the checklist in Step 2, and mark your calendar 30 days out to check for the results. For more on how report data turns into a number, see our guide on how credit scores work.