Credit Scores
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SmartCredit Review: A DIY Tool to Help Reach Your Credit Goals
Updated on March 17, 2026 Over the past decade or so, it seems that the general public has really started to understand how important credit is to their everyday lives. While I say this anecdotally, the rise in average credit score does support my theory. Unfortunately, even if you have a basic idea of how…
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Cred.ai Review: A Credit-Building Debit Hybrid (with a Unicorn)
Years ago, while watching YouTube’s Philip DeFranco Show, I was introduced to the Cred.ai Unicorn card and was instantly intrigued. Later that same day, I decided to apply for a card of my own. Since then, while I’ve written about the Unicorn card in various articles, I’ve never actually done a proper review of it.…
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Experian Boost Review: How Does it Work? Is it Worth it?
Building credit has long been a Catch-22 as getting approved for credit often means already having credit established. Luckily for consumers, in recent years there have been a few innovations that have addressed this issue in different ways. One such option is Experian Boost, which comes from Experian — one of the three major credit…
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A Guide to Building Credit and Increasing Your Credit Scores
When it comes to credit, there’s some good news. The average credit score in the United States has been steadily rising in recent years, coming in at 715 in 2023. That may be because, today, consumers not only have more ways to access their credit reports and scores than ever before but also because there…
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Building Credit: What Consumers Need to Know and Tools to Try
In the United States, consumers rely on their credit scores in a number of ways. Not only can your scores come into play when applying for a loan, mortgage, or credit card but can also be a factor when setting up utilities, starting wireless phone service, and much more. Heck, your prospective employer may even…
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What is Credit Sesame and How Does It Compare to Credit Karma?
Credit Sesame is a great place to start for learning about your credit and how to improve it, but is it better than Credit Karma?
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Credit Strong Review
When I walked into FinCon 2018, I had never heard of the concept of a credit builder loan. Thus my mind was slightly blown after I discovered Self Lender (now known as Self). Funny enough, 2019’s FinCon introduced me to another credit building loan company: Credit Strong. Like with Self, Credit Strong features a number…
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Are Credit Reports the Same as a Credit Score?
For as much as we hear about credit in general, many Americans are less aware of the specifics. A key example of this is that the terms “credit report” and “credit score” are used interchangeably despite being separate things. In fact, this misconception could lead consumers to ignore an important aspect of their credit that…
