Credit Report Sites?

[Callisto]

So I need to get ahold of my credit report, I know it's wrecked and I need to start disputing some stuff and chipping away at things that I can manage. There's a kabillion of these 'free credit report' sites, I know that you're legally entitled to one or two free credit reports per year, but it seems like all these sites make you sign up for some sort of subscription that costs money before you can get your report.

Can anyone recommend me a good spot to get just my report without having to sign up for any other bullshit?

[Correction]

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

This is your one free report every 12 months. Don't sign up for any other 'services' as they are notoriously scammy.

[Callisto]

Awesome, thanks.

[archibaldcrane]

Creditkarma.com is 100% free and completely awesome as well - no signing up for bullshit free trials of credit monitoring programs. Annualcreditreport.com is the official govt one.

[Correction]

Just to be 100% clear, annualcreditreport.com is not a government site, it is run by the companies that lenders use to measure your riskiness. The site exists as a result of federal law requiring disclosure of your 'scores.'

But it is 100% run by companies (e.g. Experian) who ALSO run extremely shady shit like freecreditreport, which is an upsell to a monthly subscription to credit monitoring that isn't worth shit.

You WILL have to dodge upsells/sidesells left and right when dealing with annualcreditreport.com, but that's pretty easy if you take time to read what you're looking at and uncheck 'optional' things that cost money.

[Rhinox]

how safe is Creditkarma?

[Correction]

how safe is Creditkarma?

It's safe, and gives you a FICO-esque approximation of your score based on TransUnion data. I wouldn't start there if you're looking for errors on your credit report, or if I'm about to apply for a mortgage and need to know my real numbers.

[Senji]

Unless things have changed, they also don't give you your actual score for free, just the report.

[Correction]

Unless things have changed, they also don't give you your actual score for free, just the report.

The score is never free, it's the entire business of Experian/TransUnion/Equifax.
The report is mandated by law to be free every 12 months, and is never worth paying for unless something really horrible has happened to your finances and you need the information urgently for disputes.
People like CreditKarma because it's kinda like your score and probably not too far off the real thing, and is offered for free. Creditkarma makes money from advertising and I reckon they sell premium services elsewhere on the site, I've never really looked into it.

[archibaldcrane]

Creditkarma is nice because they take your particular credit situation and say "here is why your score is not as high as it could be, and what creditors look for in these particular areas" and present it in an articulate yet easy to understand manner for the layperson for free.

[Amastacia]

It is possible that your employer will finance or partially subsidize subscription to a credit site. Certainly not guaranteed of course, but worth looking into. Mine does and I jumped right on it, just stay miles away from the inevitable upsell (e.g. I can get a free Experian report pretty much any time, but they naturally want me to pay to see the big 3 side by side... funk dat).

Then again, the constant spam of crap emails from Experian letting me know someone has checked my credit or there's been a change (in other words, I made a mortgage or student loan payment that was reported) gets real old, real fast.

[Takedown3]

any canadian sites that are don't have a fuckton of scammy bs that anyone can offer up?