How do I find out what my credit score is?

I keep seeing these ads on websites to check my score but I'm afraid it's a scam or spamming tactic. Is there a right way to check your credit score? Are those ads legit? Are they really free?

Public Comments

1. You CAN see your score for free if you sign up for the plans, check your score, and then immediately cancel the service you signed up for. it's a bit of a hassle but completely legit. Good luck!
2. you are entitled to a free credit every year FreeAnnualCreditReport.com you can also so go to one of the 3 credit report agency and sign up they charge you every month (Experian, Transunion,Experian) Always FreeTripleScore.com gives you all 3 scores for a monthly fee,
3. Creditors use FICO scores. Equifax will sell you a FICO score. You can also purchase FICO scores at MyFico.com for Equifax and TransUnion. Consumers can no longer purchase FICO scores for Experian. If you sign up for any of those well advertised monitoring sites, you will get Fakko scores (their own formula). Scores directly from Experian and TransUnion will be Vantage (scale to 990 vs FICO's 850). Or TransUnion will sell you TransRisk (even more worthless). AnnualCreditReport.com will give you online access to your free annual credit report from each credit bureau. Scores are not included. If you pay your bills on time and check your credit reports annually for accuracy, your score will take care of itself. If you want an idea of what your score is, CreditKarma.com offers a free score estimater that's sorta close to FICO, give or take 50 points or so.
4. Each of the three national credit bureaus is required by Federal Law to provide you with a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months. The three credit bureaus run www.annualcreditreport.com where users can get their free credit reports. Credit scores are available as an add-on feature of the report for a fee.