Which Credit Bureau Does American Express Pull From?
Understand how a major credit card issuer evaluates your financial history across various reporting agencies for new applications.
Lenders review an applicant’s credit history to assess the risk associated with extending credit. Credit bureaus compile this history. Understanding which credit bureaus a specific lender, such as American Express, typically uses can provide insight into the credit evaluation process.
Which Credit Bureaus American Express Uses
When evaluating applications, American Express often obtains credit reports from one or more of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. American Express primarily pulls from Experian, but may also access reports from TransUnion or Equifax.
The specific credit bureau American Express uses can vary based on factors like the applicant’s geographic location, the particular American Express product or card being applied for, and internal company algorithms or policies. An applicant’s existing relationship with American Express may also influence which bureau is accessed. Predicting the specific bureau is difficult, as some applicants report pulls from only one bureau, while others observe inquiries from two or all three.
Why Knowing This Matters
Knowing which credit bureau a lender might access is important because credit reports from each bureau can contain different information. Creditors do not always report account activity to all three bureaus, leading to variations in the data each bureau holds. For example, some creditors might only report to one or two of the major bureaus.
Reporting errors might also exist on one credit report but not another, creating discrepancies across your profiles. Additionally, different credit scoring models, such as FICO or VantageScore, interpret the data uniquely, which can lead to varying scores across the bureaus even with similar underlying information. A lender’s decision is based on the specific report and score they obtain. Therefore, an applicant might have a stronger credit profile with one bureau compared to another, making it advantageous to understand these potential differences.
Understanding Credit Inquiries
When a lender checks your credit for a new application, this is known as a “hard inquiry” or “hard pull.” This type of inquiry requires your explicit permission and can temporarily lower your credit score by a few points. Hard inquiries typically remain on your credit report for up to two years, though most scoring models only consider them for the first 12 months when calculating your score. Applying for a new American Express card will result in a hard inquiry from one or more of the bureaus.
In contrast, a “soft inquiry” or “soft pull” occurs when you check your own credit, or when a lender pre-screens you for an offer without a formal application. These inquiries do not require your permission for pre-screen offers and do not affect your credit score. Soft inquiries are only visible to you and do not impact your creditworthiness in the eyes of other lenders.
Accessing Your Credit Reports
Consumers are entitled to a free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. The official and government-mandated source for these reports is AnnualCreditReport.com. This website is the only truly free and authorized source for obtaining all three reports.
It is advisable to check your credit reports regularly for accuracy and to identify any discrepancies that could impact your creditworthiness, especially before applying for new credit. You can request all three reports at once, or space them out throughout the year to monitor your credit more frequently. Reviewing these reports helps ensure your financial information is correctly reflected, which can influence lending decisions.