If you're looking for help raising your credit score, a credit repair company might be the right fit for you.
Credit repair companies can offer a variety of services, but generally, focus on disputing inaccurate information on your credit report. The company then goes through the dispute process for you. While disputing items on your credit report is something that you can do yourself for no cost, credit repair companies can give you some extra help if needed.
Ahead, CNBC Select rounds up the best credit repair companies based on factors like fees, customer satisfaction ratings, company history, availability and money-back guarantees. (Read more about our methodology below.)
Best credit repair companies
Best overall
Credit Saint Credit Restoration
Cost
First work fee: $195 for clean slate package, or $99 for credit remodel and credit polish packages
Monthly fee: $119.99 for clean slate package, $99.99 for credit remodel package, $79.99 for credit polish package
Highlights
Credit Saint offers three packages for credit repair services and a 90-day money-back guarantee for services. It has received an A rating and is accredited by the Better Business Bureau.
App available
No
Pros
- Money-back guarantee available after 90 days in the program if no negative items have been removed from credit reports.
Cons
- Not available in South Carolina, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Maine, and Washington, D.C.
Who's this for: For those wanting to improve their credit with a credit restoration company, Credit Saint offers several levels of service and good ratings for customer satisfaction.
Standout features: The company offers a free consultation for new customers and backs its work with a 90-day money-back guarantee.
Runner-up
The Credit People Credit Report Repair
Cost
First work fee: $19
Monthly fee: $79 for standard, $99 for premium. The company also offers a six-month flat-fee option for $499.
Highlights
The Credit People's Credit Report Repair service is relatively affordable compared to other programs in the space. Even the most basic package (the standard package) includes unlimited challenges to all three credit bureaus. Upgrading to the premium package includes escalated disputes and monthly credit score reports and score refreshes.
App available
Pros
- Relatively low first work fees
- The company has been working in the space since 2001
Cons
- Not BBB accredited
Who's this for: The Credit People offers three tiers of service, and all three offer the ability to make unlimited challenges across all three credit bureaus.
Standout features: A satisfaction guarantee can help you waive your current month's fee and be refunded for the previous monthly service fee if you're not satisfied.
Best for customer satisfaction
The Credit Pros
Cost
First work fee: $119 for money management and prosperity packages, $149 for success plus package
Monthly fee: $69 for money management package, $119 for prosperity package, $149 for success plus package
Highlights
The Credit Pros is an AI-driven credit repair company that has been in business for over a decade. It offers unlimited disputes and access to a variety of letters to creditors for some packages.
App available
Yes
Pros
- 90-day money back guarantee is available on some packages
- Highly rated for customer satisfaction
Cons
- Relatively high first work fees
- Not BBB accredited
Who's this for: The Credit Pros is driven by artificial intelligence and offers three tiers of service for credit repair programs.
Standout features: All plans include credit monitoring at no additional charge, making it easier to spot potential fraud. Though it's not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), it has earned 3.93 out of 5 stars for customer satisfaction ratings with 122 reviews, the highest of the credit repair companies we reviewed.
Best for couples
Sky Blue Credit
Cost
First work fee: $99 for individuals, $149 for couples
Monthly fee: $99 for individuals, $149 for couples
Highlights
Sky Blue Credit Repair has been in business since 1989, and offers one package for credit repair services. The package includes custom disputes, coaches available for calls, and a 35-day dispute cycle.
App available
No
Pros
- $40 cost to add a second person to the plan
- A 90-day guarantee is available
Cons
- Not BBB accredited
Who's this for: Sky Blue offers some of the most affordable rates to add a spouse or partner to the credit repair program. While other companies charge a second fee to add another person, Sky Blue offers this option for a discounted $40.
Standout features: Unlike most other companies, Sky Blue only offers one credit repair service option so you won't need to upgrade to more expensive packages to unlock additional features.
More on our top credit repair companies
Credit Saint
Credit Saint has been in the credit repair business for over 15 years. It has an A rating with the BBB, and has strong customer satisfaction ratings with the bureau as well.
First work fee
- $99 for Credit Polish package
- $99 for Credit Remodel package
- $195 for Clean Slate package
Monthly fee
- $79.99 for the Credit Polish package
- $99.99 for the Credit Remodel package
- $129.99 per month for the Clean Slate package
The Credit People
The Credit People was founded in 2001 and has helped over 100,000 people with their credit scores and reports.
First work fee
$19
Monthly fee
$79 for the standard package and $99 for the premium package. The company also offers a six-month flat-fee option for $499.
The Credit Pros
The Credit Pros has been in business for 14 years and works with customers in 46 states.
First work fee
- $119 for the money management package
- $129 for the prosperity package
- $149 for the success plus package
Monthly fee
- $69 per month for the money management package
- $129 per month for the prosperity package
- $149 per month for the success plus package
Sky Blue Credit
Sky Blue Credit has been in the business the longest of the companies we considered and has been in the credit repair industry since 1989. It also maintains a 3.25 out of 5 stars with the BBB, though it's not accredited by the organization.
First work fee
$99 (review/setup fee)
Monthly fee
$99 per month
How credit repair works
Credit repair relies on disputing negative, inaccurate items on your credit report. Credit repair companies work on your behalf to remove this information by communicating with the three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) and/or financial companies, like your bank or a debt collector, to dispute the errors.
This is different from services like credit counseling, which is generally organized by a non-profit organization and can help you develop a budget, get copies of your credit report and create debt management plans.
A good credit repair company should never ask for payment upfront, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a government agency aimed at protecting consumers.
FAQs
Is it worth going to a credit repair company?
Credit repair companies can help you do some of the work to dispute negative items on your credit report. If you're finding it overwhelming to do alone, a company like this could help.
However, the CFPB warns that it may not be successful. It reminds consumers that negative information can't be removed if it's accurate, which could mean that a credit repair company won't be able to do much if that's the case.
Keep in mind, the Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA) provides consumers with several key protections, including:
- Consumers have three business days to cancel a contract without charge.
- Companies can’t guarantee that they can remove information from your credit reports.
- Companies can’t advise you to make false statements or change your identity to prevent the credit bureaus from associating information with you.
- Consumers can’t be charged any fee for services that haven’t been fully rendered.
How much do companies charge to fix your credit?
Credit repair companies generally charge an upfront fee and a monthly fee for their services. The upfront fee is usually between $79 and $195 and the monthly fee ranges from $59.95 to $149 per month for the companies we reviewed.
How can I fix my credit myself for free?
If you'd like to try raising your credit score on your own, there are ways you can do it for free. Here are several things to try that could help raise your credit score:
- Dispute errors on your credit report on your own. You can request your credit report for free once per year from annualcreditreport.com. If there is inaccurate information on your credit report, you can dispute these records for free in writing either by mail or on the credit reporting bureau's website.
- Set up a system to pay your bills on time each month. Paying bills on time can help you raise your credit score, so a calendar reminder could help you stay on top of due dates. Autopay could also help you make payments on time.
- Pay off debt. Your credit utilization rate is an important factor in your credit score. Paying off debt could lower the amount that you owe and lower your credit utilization rate.
- Add phone bills and utility bills to your credit report. If you have a strong record of paying your utilities, streaming services and phone bills on time, Experian Boost could add those things to your score.
- Be patient. One of the factors that go into your credit score is the length of time that an account has been opened. And, negative marks can fall off of your credit report after seven to 10 years.
Bottom line
The best credit repair companies can help you dispute inaccurate information on your credit report. If you've tried other methods to raise your credit scores, or can't dispute information yourself, a credit repair company could help.
Read more
Why trust CNBC Select?
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every credit repair review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit repair services. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best credit repair companies.
Our methodology
To find the best credit repair companies, CNBC Select analyzed more than a dozen U.S. credit repair companies.
When narrowing down and ranking the best credit repair companies, we focused on the following features:
- Fees. Credit repair companies charge both first-work fees and monthly fees for their services. We focused on those with the lowest fees. Additionally, we focused on those that were transparent about those costs and display them on their websites.
- Better Business Bureau accreditation. To be BBB accredited, companies must meet standards for transparency, honest advertising, trustworthiness, responsiveness and privacy, among other things.
- Customer satisfaction ratings. The BBB measures customer satisfaction through ratings left on its website. We considered both the rating and the number of reviews received.
- History. We considered the number of years a debt relief company has been operating.
- States where service is available. We considered the number of states where the service is available, prioritizing those that were more widely available.
- Discounts available. Some companies offer discounts for certain types of customers.
- Money-back guarantee. Many companies will refund customers if they're not fully satisfied within their first 90 days of joining.
After reviewing the features listed above, we sorted our recommendations by best overall and runner-up, best for discounts, best for customer satisfaction and best for couples.
Catch up on CNBC Select's in-depth coverage of credit cards, banking and money, and follow us on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date.
Money matters — so make the most of it. Get expert tips, strategies, news and everything else you need to maximize your money, right to your inbox. Sign up here.
