The federal government gives us the right to a free credit report once a year. However, there’s no government mandate for annual free FICO Scores — the credit score lenders most often use to approve credit applications. You may be able to receive a free FICO Score by signing up for another subscription service, but that isn’t always a good option.

Free Access to Credit Scores Act — Consumers already have the ability to request their free credit report once a year, but a credit report does not include your credit score. These two items are often confused to be the same, which they are not. You generally must pay to see your credit score — it’s a three-digit grade that predicts how risky you are to a lender.