Hard vs soft credit checks
Not every credit check affects your score.
Key points
- A hard check happens when you apply for credit. Several in a short time can lower your score for a while.
- A soft check happens when you check your own credit or a lender pre-screens you. It does not affect your score.
- Rate shopping for a mortgage or car loan within a short window is often counted as one enquiry.
What to do next
The estimator on this site never runs any credit check at all; it works only from your own answers.
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