Knowing what your credit scores are will give you valuable insight into your creditworthiness. In fact, your credit scores can play a key role in your ability to get a loan, mortgage, or credit card. It might even be a factor in your ability to lease an apartment.
Luckily, checking your credit scores is incredibly easy, and banks are making the process even easier with their online and mobile options.
Key Points
- Knowing what your credit score currently is will give you an indication of where you stand when you apply for credit products like loans.
- You can check your credit score for free with Canada’s Big Five banks, as well as with the credit bureaus and some online third-party services.
- Checking your credit score will have no impact on your score, as it’s considered a soft inquiry instead of a hard check.
Which Banks Can Check Your Credit Scores?
Yes, you can check your credit score through your bank, usually for free and without impacting your credit score.
| Platform | Cost | Impact to Score | |
| CIBC | CIBC Free Credit Score Service via TransUnion Credit View (via CIBC Mobile Banking App) | Free | None |
| RBC | TransUnion CreditView Dashboard (via RBC online banking) | Free | None |
| BMO | TransUnion CreditView Dashboard (via BMO online banking or mobile app) | Free | None |
| Scotiabank | TransUnion Credit Score (via Scotiabank online banking or mobile app) | Free | None |
| TD Bank | TransUnion Credit Score (via TD online banking or mobile app) | Free | None |
Can You Check Your Credit Scores Through RBC?
RBC offers clients access to their TransUnion credit score for free through the TransUnion CreditView Dashboard. You can access your credit score through this dashboard through your RBC app or online banking.
How To Check Your RBC Credit Score
- Log in to your online banking account.
- Choose “View Your Credit Score” in the My Services box on the right-hand side near the bottom.
- Choose “Continue” after reviewing the legal disclaimer.
- Choose “I Accept & Continue”.
RBC CreditView Dashboard: Extra Features
The RBC TransUnion CreditView Dashboard also comes with a Credit Score Simulator Tool which allows you to test how certain credit actions may impact your score.
Can You Check Your Credit Scores Through TD Bank?
Like the other banks, TD offers its clients the ability to check their credit score for free through TransUnion CreditView Dashboard via the TD app.
How To Check Your TD Credit Score
To start, you will need to download the TD app. Then you’ll need to log in using your TD online banking credentials.
- Once you’ve signed into your account in the app, click the More icon (☰) and choose “credit score” from the menu.
- Then you can review and agree to the terms and conditions.
Can You Check Your Credit Scores With CIBC?
Thanks to its partnership with TransUnion, CIBC provides clients with free access to their credit scores. You can check your credit score using the CreditView platform, either online or via the mobile banking app.
How To Check Your CIBC Credit Score
Whether you’re checking your credit score with CreditView via mobile or online banking, follow these steps:
- Select “Check Credit Score” from the menu.
- Agree to the terms and conditions.
CIBC CreditView Dashboard: Extra Features
The CIBC CreditView platform not only allows you to check your credit score for free, but it also offers other handy tools, including the following:
- Monthly Credit Report — Keep tabs on how your credit score is doing and how it compares to other Canadians.
- Interactive Score Simulator — Find out how your financial decisions might affect your credit score.
- Alerts — Get notified when something changes on your credit report to avoid identity theft or fraud.
Can You Check Your Credit Score With Scotiabank?
As a Scotiabank customer, you can check your credit score for free whenever you want with no impact on your score. Scotiabank has partnered with TransUnion to provide access to the credit bureau’s Credit Score tool.
How To Check Your Credit Score With Scotiabank
To check your TransUnion credit score as a Scotiabank client, you’ll need to log in to online or mobile banking. Once logged in, follow the prompts to take you to the TransUnion Credit Score tool.
Scotiabank Credit Score Dashboard: Extra Features
With the TransUnion Credit Score tool, you can:
- Keep tabs on your monthly credit history
- See your personal credit report
- Get advice on building healthy credit
Can You Check Your Credit Score With BMO?
BMO has also partnered with TransUnion to provide BMO customers with a free and easy way to check their credit scores through CreditView®. Users can use this tool to access their credit score and other cool perks like a ScoreSimulator. Checking your credit score with BMO’s CreditView® will have no impact on your credit.
How To Check Your Credit Score With BMO
To check your credit score as a BMO client, take the following steps:
- Log into your BMO Online Banking account or BMO Mobile Banking App.
- Open the Bank Services icon.
- Choose “My Credit Score” under the general section.
- Agree to the Terms and Conditions.
- Scroll down to the Score Simulator.
BMO CreditView Dashboard: Extra Features
With CreditView, you can:
- Access your credit report, which is updated once a month.
- Find out how your financial decisions may impact your credit score with the ScoreSimulator.
- Learn how to build a good credit history.
Does Checking Your Credit Scores With Your Bank Affect Your Credit?
Some people fear that checking their credit scores will negatively impact their credit score. But this is not true. Checking your own credit report or credit scores does not affect your credit, as it’s considered a soft inquiry.
Soft Inquiries
When consumers check their own credit report or credit scores, this is referred to as a soft inquiry, which does not have any effect on credit scores. Other examples of a soft inquiry include when companies send promotional credit card offers or when your current creditors review your existing lending accounts.
Hard Inquiries
While a soft inquiry does not affect your credit scores, a hard inquiry can. These occur when a lender requests a copy of your credit report after you apply for a loan product like a line of credit or credit card. The lender will want to review your credit history in order to determine your creditworthiness before agreeing to approve your loan application. Hard inquiries can temporarily pull your credit score down.
Why Does My Credit Score Differ With Different Banks?
In Canada, everyone has multiple credit scores for a few reasons:
Some Lenders Don’t Report To Both Bureaus
In Canada, there are two major credit bureaus: TransUnion and Equifax. However, not every lender necessarily reports their information about borrowers to both of these entities. Some may report to one or the other, while others may not report at all. Because of this, your credit score with one credit bureau may differ slightly from your score with the other.
Different Credit Scoring Models
There are different ways to calculate credit scores. Common factors that affect credit scores include:
- Payment history
- Credit history
- Debt to credit ratio
- Credit inquiry
- Public records
Different credit scoring models may place a slightly different amount of weight on each factor. As such, the credit score calculator may result in a slightly different credit score.
Variations In The Type Of Data Included
While there are basic fundamental factors that are considered when calculating a credit score, some credit score models may include other variables, such as mobile phone payment data or mortgage information, while others won’t.
Where Else Can You Check Your Credit Scores In Canada?
In addition to accessing your credit scores through your financial institution’s banking platforms, there are other ways to check your credit scores for free:
How To Check Your Credit Scores With CompareHub?
With Loans Canada’s CompareHub tool, you can find the best lender in Canada, comparison shop for the lowest rates, and get your free credit score.
How To Check Your Credit Scores With Mogo?
In addition to its personal loans, mortgages, prepaid Visa credit card, and identity fraud protection products, Mogo also offers its clients a way to view their credit scores through their partnership with Equifax. You can keep tabs on your Mogo credit score with free monthly monitoring with Mogo for 90 days. And with a Mogo Visa Platinum Prepaid Card, you can continue monitoring your score on an ongoing basis.
How To Check Your Credit Scores With Borrowell?
As a member of Borrowell, you can access your credit score for free, plus receive personalized tips, financial tools, and personalized financial product recommendations with bank-level security.
How To Check Your Credit Scores With Credit Karma?
By signing up with Credit Karma, you’ll benefit from access to your credit scores and report for free, as well as complimentary credit monitoring and educational articles to help keep your financial health in check.
| Cost | Credit Score | Credit Report | ||
 | Free | Yes | Yes | Visit Site |
 | Free | Yes | Yes | Visit Site |
 | Free | Yes | Yes | - |
Why Should You Check Your Credit Scores?
There are several benefits to pulling your credit report and checking your credit scores every so often – think of it as going to your family doctor periodically, but for your financial health
Get Insight Into Your Current Credit Health
If you don’t know what your credit scores are, you won’t have a clear understanding of how strong your credit profile is when you apply for loans or credit products. Your credit history is part of your financial profile. So, by reviewing your credit report, you’ll be better able to understand your current credit situation and your ability to get approved for credit products.
Know What Lenders See
When you apply for a loan, the lender will likely pull a copy of your credit report to assess your creditworthiness and determine the type of borrower you would be.
Low credit scores might mean you’d be a high-risk borrower, in which case the lender may not be willing to approve you for a loan, or if they do, you’ll be charged a higher interest rate. But high credit scores usually mean you’ve been responsible with your loan payments, and as such, the lender may be more open to approving you for a loan. Ultimately, lenders use credit scores to make lending decisions, so it helps you to know what they’re seeing.
Just keep in mind that you have multiple credit scores, and the one that lenders and creditors check may be different from the one you will see.
Spot Discrepancies
It’s possible for there to be errors on your credit report that may be negatively affecting your credit scores. But you won’t know if there are any mistakes if you don’t check your credit report once in a while. If you do notice any errors, be sure to have them investigated and removed right away.
Ward Off Identity Theft
A great way to protect yourself from identity theft is to check up on your credit report. This will give you the chance to see if any information on your credit report may be the result of fraud. If so, you should get in touch with the company associated with the account and the credit bureaus to tell them that there may be fraudulent activity occurring.
Difference Between Credit Scores And A Credit Report
While many people may use the words credit scores and credit reports interchangeably, they are in fact two separate elements.
Credit Report
Your credit report provides an overview of all your credit accounts over a certain period of time. Your credit report is created after you build some activity when you apply for your first loan or credit product.
Lenders look at your credit report when you apply for a loan or any other credit product. They also send information about your credit and loan accounts to the credit bureaus, who then update your report accordingly.
Credit Score
A credit score is a number that is calculated using a credit scoring model based on the information contained within your credit report. Each service that provides credit scores has a different credit scoring model, which may lead to you having multiple credit scores.
Lenders use your credit scores to determine your likelihood of paying a bill on time. Generally, the higher your credit scores, the more trustworthy and creditworthy you’ll seem. In Canada, the highest possible credit score is 900, with scores typically ranging from 300 to 900
Using your credit responsibly by paying your bills on time, and keeping your debt-to-credit ratio low are ways that can help improve your credit.
Final Thoughts
Maintaining a strong financial profile is important, and your credit scores play a key role. Given this, it makes sense to check on your scores regularly. Luckily, there are several ways to review your credit reports and scores, whether through your bank’s online platform or through one of many free digital services.
