What Is the Best Credit Monitoring Service? 7 Options for 2025

Is Credit Monitoring Really Worth It?

Credit monitoring services track changes to your credit reports, such as a drop in your credit score, new accounts in your name or adding an authorized user, or credit inquiries.

While these alerts are great for keeping an eye on your financial health, more importantly, credit monitoring provides one of the only ways to spot early warning signs of potential fraud and identity theft.

If identity thieves access your personal data, credit monitoring can warn you before they can damage your finances and good credit.

Unfortunately, not all credit monitoring services offer the same level of protection.

Here are some of the most important questions to ask when researching credit monitoring services:

• Three-bureau or one-bureau monitoring? Some lenders only report changes to one or two of the three major credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion). If you only monitor your credit at a single bureau, you could risk missing essential alerts.
• Which credit report changes are reported? Some credit monitoring services only alert you to “major” changes. But this ignores more subtle early warning signs of fraud or inaccuracies in your credit information that could harm your credit worthiness.
• How quickly do you receive fraud alerts? Speed matters when it comes to shutting down fraud. A recent customer survey found that Aura’s credit monitoring service provided the most reliable and fastest fraud alerts when compared to competitors3.
• Does it provide accurate and usable credit score information? There are numerous different versions of credit scores — from FICO® to VantageScore 3.0 to industry-specific scores. The score a credit monitoring service shows you may not be the same as what your lenders see.
• What happens if you see signs of identity theft or fraud? Unlike all-in-one solutions, standalone credit monitoring services (such as the ones offered by the credit bureaus) most likely won’t offer support for identity theft victims.
• How much does it cost? While there are free credit monitoring solutions, many have limited features that can leave you vulnerable to fraud.
• Are you signing away your rights to legal recourse? Most credit bureaus include an arbitration clause in their terms of service. This means you won’t be able to take part in a class-action lawsuit in the event that the bureau is part of a data leak (like the $425 million settlement for the 2017 Equifax data breach that leaked personal information of 147 million people).

The best credit monitoring services monitor your credit history with all three bureaus, provide fast and reliable notification of all changes, and include additional protection and support for victims of identity theft, hacking, and data breaches.

Here’s our top selections based on this criteria:

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The 7 Best Paid and Free Credit Monitoring Services

Most credit monitoring companies hit the mark on some — but not all — of the essential credit monitoring and protection features.

To help with your decision, we’ve done the research for you, digging through company and product information and customer reviews to highlight the pros and cons of the most popular options on the market today.

Note: Companies often periodically change their plans, pricing, and features. While we try our best to share the most up-to-date information, data is only current to the publishing date.

1. Aura

Why we picked it: It hasn't taken long for Aura to become a leader in the credit monitoring space. Since launching in 2017, Aura has topped the credit monitoring "best of" lists of Forbes, USNews.com, and CNBC thanks to its industry-leading fraud alerts3 and acclaimed support for victims.

Aura is an “all-in-one” solution that combines three-bureau credit monitoring with identity theft protection, digital security and online privacy tools, 24/7 support, and generous identity theft insurance.

Aura includes regular credit score and report updates, one-click Experian CreditLock, and credit freeze assistance.

You can also let Aura’s AI-powered transaction monitoring service keep tabs on your linked financial accounts — such as your checking and savings accounts, credit card, and investment accounts — and alert you in near real-time to suspicious activity.

Beyond monitoring, Aura works to proactively protect you from online threats, including identity theft, fraud, hacking, and scams. You get access to 24/7 Dark Web scanning and data breach notifications, digital security tools (antivirus, VPN, password manager, and more), and online privacy tools that will even reduce the amount of spam you receive.

If you become a victim of identity theft, you can enjoy peace of mind knowing you have 24/7 access to a dedicated U.S.-based support team and a minimum of $1 million in identity theft insurance.

Best plan & average cost: Aura Individual for $9.99/month.

Aura’s identity theft protection service plans all include the same high level of financial fraud protection. The only difference is in the number of people you wish to cover under your plan.

The individual plan protects one adult with three-bureau credit monitoring, monthly credit scores (and annual three-bureau credit reports), identity and bank account monitoring, cybersecurity tools for all of your devices, and up to $1 million in identity theft insurance.

Our verdict: For about the same price that you might pay for a lesser credit monitoring service, Aura gives you advanced device and identity protection on top of its robust credit monitoring — all from a single easy-to-use web or mobile app.

With the industry’s fastest fraud alerts, you’ll be warned first of the most common types of credit fraud, including if your data has been used to illegally open new credit accounts, suspicious hard inquiries or unexpected personal loans in your name.

2. Identity Guard

Why we picked it: Identity Guard has been an identity theft protection leader for more than 20 years, and has claimed to have helped more than 47 million customers and resolved over 140,000 fraud cases during that time.

Similar to Aura, Identity Guard offers all-in-one protection, but with a few feature limitations. You’ll still get Dark Web monitoring, ID theft insurance, and 24/7 U.S.-based support. But the service’s digital security tools are limited to Safe Browsing and a password manager.

Unlike Aura, Identity Guard offers three different plan tiers — each with varying levels of credit protection. Three-bureau credit monitoring, monthly credit score updates, and bank account monitoring is available on the Total and Ultra plans only. Credit lock, credit card and investment account monitoring limited to the most-expensive Ultra plan.

Best plan & average cost: Identity Guard Ultra for $25/month.

Identity Guard's Ultra plan includes premium credit protection features, such as 3-bureau monitoring, monthly credit scores, and an Experian CreditLock, plus bank account, investment account, and public records monitoring.

Our verdict: Identity Guard offers some of the most extensive credit and identity monitoring and protection in the industry. However, if you’re looking for a true all-in-one provider that includes digital security, Identity Guard may come up a little short.

📚 Related: The Top Identity Guard Alternatives To Consider →

3. Experian IdentityWorks

Why we picked it: Owned by Experian, one of the three major credit bureaus, IdentityWorks is backed by one of the biggest names in the credit industry.

IdentityWorks offers a Basic plan with free Experian credit report monitoring and FICO® score tracking. The Premium plan includes three-bureau credit monitoring, an Experian CreditLock, daily Experian FICO® scores, and identity alerts.

You’ll also get access to some unique features, such as non-credit loan alerts, identity validation alerts, and monthly privacy scans with help to remove your information from people search sites.

Best plan & average cost: IdentityWorks Premium for $24.99/month.

The IdentityWorks Premium plan includes more thorough credit monitoring than the free service. Plus, you get access to identity theft protection and insurance.

However, enrollment does require agreeing to the company’s terms of service, which include a binding arbitration clause and prevents class action lawsuits. This is the same as other credit bureau-provided services, such as ID Watchdog from Equifax and IdentityForce from TransUnion.

Our verdict: IdentityWorks offers reliable credit monitoring, but it lacks the digital security and other protective features that you might expect for the cost.

📚 Related: Is Identity Theft Protection Really Worth It? Only In These Cases →

4. CreditWise by Capital One

Why we picked it: Administered by Capital One, CreditWise allows users to monitor their financial health for free.

However, CreditWise only features two-bureau credit monitoring (TransUnion and Experian), a VantageScore® credit report tracker, and credit alerts. Users can request their credit reports 24/7 and get a better understanding of how financial decisions impact their credit scores.

Best plan & average cost: CreditWise has only one plan, and it's free.

Our verdict: CreditWise makes credit monitoring easy and accessible, but it won't do much for protecting your identity or your devices. 

5. LifeLock

Why we picked it: For nearly 20 years, LifeLock has been providing users with identity theft protection and credit monitoring. In 2017, when Symantec acquired the company, it added Norton’s digital security tools to some of its packages.

While LifeLock Standard plans only include one-bureau credit monitoring, its Ultimate plans feature three-bureau credit monitoring, unlimited VantageScore® updates, a TransUnion credit file lock, and up to $3 million in identity theft insurance. It also includes substantial identity and financial account monitoring.

Best plan & average cost: LifeLock Ultimate Plus for $19.99/month.

The Ultimate Plus plan includes three-bureau credit monitoring, unlimited credit score access, and identity monitoring with alerts. Note that this plan renews at a significantly higher rate in the second year, following an initial discounted rate. For example, at the time of writing, LifeLock Ultimate Plus cost $239.99 for the first year and $339.99/year after — an increase of around 42%.

Our verdict: LifeLock has one of the most recognizable names in the industry. But its extensive plans and steep renewal rates might not suit everyone long-term. Plus, the company has had a history of data security incidents, including a recent data leak that compromised the passwords of close to a million users.

📚 Related: Is LifeLock Worth It? What You Should Know Before Buying →

6. Credit Karma 

Why we picked it: Brought to you by the well-known financial software company, Intuit, Credit Karma offers a free credit and financial health monitoring tool.

Credit Karma provides free credit monitoring of TransUnion and Equifax credit reports, unlimited VantageScore® credit scores, and credit alerts. When you sign up, Credit Karma builds a credit profile for you so that you can track your credit score and improve your financial health.

What you should know about Credit Karma’s “free” services: The only way Credit Karma is able to offer its services for free is by promoting credit cards and other products (and taking a cut when you sign up for one of them).

In the past few years, Credit Karma has also been hit with a $3 million fine from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over false advertising of “pre-approved credit offers” as well as a security glitch that exposed personal finance data to other users.

Best plan & average cost: Credit Karma offers only one plan, which costs you nothing.

Our verdict: Credit Karma makes credit monitoring free and accessible for everyone, but the service does not prevent or protect you from identity theft. It has also faced fines and scrutiny over how its business operates and its lack of data protection for customers.

📚 Related: The 6 Best Credit Karma Alternatives (How To Choose) →

7. MyFICO®

Why we picked it: Developed by the company that invented FICO® credit scores, MyFICO makes it easy for users to track their credit scores and monitor their financial health.

MyFICO offers three plans, including a free option. But only the paid plans offer three-bureau credit monitoring, identity monitoring, mortgage and auto loans interest rate updates, and up to $1 million in identity theft insurance.

Best plan & average cost: MyFICO Premier for $39.95/month.

The Premier plan includes 3-bureau credit monitoring, monthly FICO score® updates, and limited identity monitoring — but at a higher price than almost any other service.

Our verdict: MyFICO claims that its tools give you a more accurate picture of the credit score more commonly used by lenders and financial institutions — but you’ll pay a higher monthly fee for that privilege. Plus, FICO® scores can be obtained for free from over 200 lenders. You’re better off supplementing another service with myFICO’s free plan to access your FICO credit score.

Do You Really Need To Pay For a Credit Monitoring Service?

The truth is that you can track your own credit file and scores mostly for free. For example, every American is entitled to access free credit reports from all three major bureaus every week at AnnualCreditReport.com.

Some banks and credit cards also offer free credit monitoring as an incentive for signing up, or you may even get free credit monitoring after a company or service you use is impacted by a data breach. This is often offered through specialized companies like Kroll or IDX.

However, monitoring your own credit or using free tools can come with serious downsides, such as:

• Limited scope. Free tools almost never include identity theft protection, insurance, or three-bureau credit monitoring.
• Reliability. Many services only alert you to major credit changes — missing many of the smaller and earlier identity theft red flags.
• Slow alerts. Changes to your credit reports (and associated fraud alerts) often arrive well after an event, which doesn't give you enough time to prevent damages.
• Lack of customer support. Companies may not provide the type of support you need, and it may not be available when you need it.

The bottom line: Monitoring your own credit is too much work for the average person. Even with a free tool, you’ll still need to potentially monitor your credit reports with other bureaus that aren’t covered on your plan. Plus, you’ll have no control or protection over how scammers use your stolen information — such as for hacking, identity theft, or worse.

For peace of mind, protection against scams, and support when you need it most, it’s worth committing to a paid service for credit monitoring.

Aura Keeps You Safer Than Stand-alone Credit Monitoring Services

You'll find no shortage of credit monitoring services to choose from, but very few can offer the same level of protection as Aura. Even better, you can try Aura free for 14 days to see if it’s right for you.