Credit card
A formal application usually creates a hard inquiry.
What is a hard inquiry?
What Is a Hard Inquiry? How Hard Credit Pulls Really Work
What is a hard inquiry? It is a record created when a lender or other authorized business accesses your credit report in connection with an application or another permissible purpose that can be visible to lenders. Hard inquiries can affect credit scores, usually temporarily, and they can remain on a credit report for up to about two years. Understanding the exact company, date, and reason for the pull matters because an unfamiliar inquiry is not automatically fraudulent. This guide explains what hard pulls mean, how they differ from soft checks, and when closer review makes sense.
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What is a hard inquiry in plain English?
A hard inquiry is a record that can appear when a lender or another business accesses your credit report in connection with a credit application or another permissible purpose. It can be visible to lenders and may temporarily affect credit scores. The exact impact varies, and the inquiry can remain on the report longer than it affects scoring.
What to know before you start
- Hard inquiries commonly follow applications for credit such as cards, mortgages, auto loans, and personal loans.
- Hard inquiries can be seen by lenders and may affect scores temporarily.
- Soft inquiries do not affect credit scores.
- An unexpected hard inquiry should be identified before you assume it is fraud.
What Is a Hard Inquiry on a Credit Report?
A hard inquiry is a record of a credit-report access that is generally connected to an application for new credit or another qualifying credit decision.
CFPB guidance explains that hard inquiries can affect credit scores because scoring models consider how recently and frequently consumers seek new credit.
What Usually Causes a Hard Inquiry?
Hard inquiries commonly happen when you apply for a mortgage, auto loan, credit card, personal loan, private student loan, or another credit product that requires a lender to evaluate your creditworthiness.
Auto loan
A bank, credit union, or dealership lender may check credit.
Mortgage
Preapproval and loan processing can involve credit checks.
Personal loan
A formal loan application commonly results in a hard pull.
How Long Does a Hard Inquiry Stay on Your Credit Report?
A hard inquiry can remain on a credit report for up to about two years, although FICO generally considers inquiries from only the most recent 12 months when calculating scores.
The scoring effect usually becomes less important over time and can be smaller than other factors such as payment history and utilization.
What Is the Difference Between a Hard Inquiry and a Soft Inquiry?
A hard inquiry can affect credit scores and is generally visible to lenders, while a soft inquiry does not affect scores and is typically visible only to the consumer on the report.
Checking your own credit is a soft inquiry. Prescreened offers and many account-review checks are soft inquiries as well.
What If You See a Hard Inquiry You Do Not Recognize?
If you see a hard inquiry you do not recognize, identify the company, compare the date with recent applications, and contact the company if the connection is still unclear.
An unfamiliar name can be a partner bank or financing company, but an inquiry that remains unexplained may deserve an unauthorized-inquiry or identity-theft review.
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Handle It Yourself or Have a Specialist Help
Consumers can dispute inaccurate credit-report information directly and for free. Inquiry Removal is for people who want a specialist to organize the inquiries, prepare the appropriate communications, and review what happens next.
Questions answered
What is a hard inquiry? questions.
Clear answers about the topic and your available next steps.
Does every credit check create a hard inquiry?
No. Many credit checks are soft inquiries and do not affect scores. The purpose and context of the access determine how it is classified.
Does a hard inquiry always lower a credit score?
Not by a fixed amount. A hard inquiry may have a small temporary effect, and the impact depends on the scoring model and the rest of the credit profile.
How long is a hard inquiry visible?
Hard inquiries can remain on credit reports for up to about two years, even though FICO generally considers only the most recent 12 months.
Can I see who made a hard inquiry?
The full credit report commonly lists the company name and date, and may include contact information that helps identify the source.
Can a hard inquiry be removed?
A hard inquiry can be disputed when it is inaccurate, unauthorized, fraudulent, duplicated, or otherwise erroneous. Accurate legitimate inquiries are not removed merely because they are unwanted.
Is checking my own credit a hard inquiry?
No. Checking your own credit report is a soft inquiry and does not affect your score.
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