Part of being financially responsible involves staying on top of your credit report. Your report shows you what’s been reported by creditors and should never be taken lightly. It will include everything from missed payments and account balances to charge-offs and credit inquiries. Gaining access to your credit report isn’t as troublesome as it used to be. There are plenty of places that will allow you to check your report and score regularly – for free – including the one’s below:

• Annualcreditreport.com – The government requires all credit bureaus to give you a free credit report at least once every 12 months.
• Creditsesame.com – Provides updated scores at least once per month.
• Quizzle.com – Offers a credit once every 6 months and is based on your Equifax credit report.
• Credit Karma – Offers your score based on Equifax and Transunion. It is updated pretty regularly.

Many of these sites will send you free alerts whenever something new shows up on your report. You may want to sign up for more than one website too just to keep track of the differences.