What's actually in your credit report

Reports are more than a score. Knowing the sections — tradelines, inquiries, public records, and personal information — makes them far easier to review.

Tradelines

Tradelines are your credit accounts: credit cards, loans, and collections. Each shows details like the account status, balance, credit limit, payment history, and the dates it was opened and last reported. Most disputes focus on tradelines.

Inquiries

A hard inquiry is recorded when a lender checks your report because you applied for credit. Soft inquiries — like checking your own report — are visible to you but do not affect scoring. Inquiries you do not recognize are worth reviewing.

Public records and personal information

Public records that can appear include certain bankruptcies. The personal-information section lists names, addresses, and similar identifiers the bureau has associated with you — errors here can be a sign of mixed or misattributed files.

This article is general educational information, not legal or financial advice, and makes no promises about results. Consider consulting a qualified professional about your specific situation.