Is credit repair legitimate?

Credit repair is a legitimate service that helps consumers improve their credit scores by correcting inaccurate and misleading information on their credit reports. However, there are some bad actors within the credit repair industry, so it’s important to watch for credit repair scams.

Do I need to hire a credit repair company?

Not necessarily. You can always contact the credit bureaus directly to dispute an error on your credit report without going through a credit repair company. It is also possible to repair your credit over time, even if there is no inaccurate information on your report. For example, paying bills on time every month can improve your score. Review the pros and cons of credit repair companies before you make a decision.

How do I choose a credit repair company?

If you decide to use a credit repair company, invest a little time in choosing a credit repair company that will be a good fit for you. Start by checking out an overview of the best credit repair companies. You can compare companies based on services, rates, guarantees and online reviews from industry experts and real customers.

How long does credit repair take?

The amount of time it takes to increase your credit score depends on the overall health of your score and the issues causing it to be lower than you would like. For example, if successfully remove a misreported late payment from your record, your score could get a quick boost in just a few months. However, with a foreclosure or bankruptcy, it could take years to repair your credit. Also, accurate negative information will eventually fall off your report on its own, so there is no need to pay monthly fees to a company for years.

The Credit Pros Credit Repair Review

Best for: Range of service

The Credit Pros

4

Start-up fee: $119–$149
Monthly fee: $69–$149
Money-back guarantee: 90 days
Maximum number of disputes: Unlimited with the Prosperity and Success Plus packages
Types of letters to creditors/bureaus: Dispute, reference, intervention, cease and desist
Pros

Wide range of service offerings: Packages range from money management tools, such as budgeting and bill payment reminders, to unlimited disputes with all three credit bureaus. There’s even an option to open a credit line of up to $5,000 to help you build your credit record.

Spanish language accessibility: The website can easily be switched from English to Spanish, and there is a dedicated phone number for assistance in Spanish.

90-day money-back guarantee: If The Credit Pros fails to get any questionable credit history items deleted or updated, you can request a full refund.
Cons

The most affordable package does not include traditional credit repair services: The lowest-priced package does not include credit disputes or creditor interventions.

Services are more expensive than many competitors: The package that offers a standard suite of credit repair services costs a comparatively high $129 per month.

The Credit Pros offers a wide range of credit repair services to help customers improve their credit scores. If you need help managing your money to improve your credit, you can use The Credit Pros’ money management tools, like debt payment plans and budgets. Additionally, if you believe you have inaccurate information on your credit history, you might hire The Credit Pros to dispute the information with the credit bureaus and/or creditors. Correcting negative marks on your credit can potentially increase your credit score in just a few months.

While the service offerings are impressive, The Credit Pros is expensive compared to some other companies in the space.

The Credit Pros services

The Credit Pros offers the following services:

Access to credit reports and scores
ID Cover dark web monitoring
Fraud alerts from TransUnion
Bill reminder system
Debt payoff and budgeting system
Credit bureau disputes
Creditor interventions
Cease and desist letters
Letters of reference
Credit builder loan program

What The Credit Pros does not cover

The Credit Pros will not dispute accurate information on your credit record. The company can only dispute inaccurate, outdated or misleading information.

Credit repair packages

The Credit Pros currently offers three credit repair packages.

The Money Management package

For $69 per month, you get access to tools that can help you build your credit and protect your identity. This suite of services includes:

One-bureau credit reports
Fraud alerts from TransUnion
Dark web ID monitoring
Bill payment reminders
Debt payoff plans
Budgeting system

This package does not include traditional credit repair services like credit report disputes or creditor interventions. It also requires a comparatively high first-work fee of $119.

The Prosperity package

For $129 per month, you get everything from the Money Management package plus the traditional credit repair services, such as:

Unlimited disputes with all three credit bureaus
Creditor interventions
Cease and desist letters
Letters of reference

This package requires a first work fee of $129.

The Success Plus package

For $149 per month, you get everything included in the Prosperity Package and access to a Credit Builder Loan Program. This program offers a credit line of up to $5,000 from National Credit Direct. This loan is intended to give you a chance to build a good track record of managing credit responsibly. The Success Plus package requires a first work fee of $149.

Additional features

Free credit consultation

The Credit Pros offers a free credit consultation via chat or phone to help you understand how to improve your credit.

Spanish language assistance

The website can easily be translated into Spanish by clicking on the Mexican flag in the header. There is also a dedicated Spanish-speaking phone line at 973-968-6976.

90-day money-back guarantee

The Credit Pros offers a full refund if it fails “to get any of your questionable items deleted or updated on your credit report.”

The Credit Pros' accessibility and availability

The Credit Pros serves 46 of the 50 states and offers multiple contact methods for customers.

Availability

The Credit Pros currently serves 46 states. The states not serviced are Kansas, Maine, Minnesota and Oregon.

Contact information

Customer support is available by phone, online chat and email. However, service hours are not posted online. The customer support line is 800-411-3050, and the email address is info@thecreditpros.com.

The social media handles for The Credit Pros are:

Instagram: @thecreditpros
Facebook: @TheCreditPros
X: @thecreditpros

The Credit Pros customer experience

The Credit Pros provides customer-friendly features like an easy-to-navigate website, clear pricing and a flexible month-to-month subscription model you can cancel anytime.

However, as with most credit repair services, the customer experience depends largely on results. Customers are generally satisfied with The Credit Pros when they see an improvement in their credit scores and unsatisfied if they don’t see an improvement.

Contract duration

Customers do not need to sign a contract with The Credit Pros. Instead, you can subscribe to a monthly service package and cancel the subscription at any time to avoid further charges.

Customer and third-party reviews

BBB rating: 3.94 stars with 139 reviews. The Credit Pros is not currently accredited by the Better Business Bureau. However, it does have an A+ rating.
Consumer Affairs average rating: 4.8 stars with 104 reviews
Google Reviews average rating: 4.2 stars with 507 reviews
Trustpilot average rating: Due to a breach of Trustpilot’s guidelines. Trustpilot believes some of the reviews for TheCreditPros were fake reviews. As a result, Trustpilot is not currently providing a TrustScore.

*Review information accurate as of April 15, 2024.

It is important to remember that credit repair companies have limited capabilities. They can only correct inaccurate, outdated and misleading information on your credit report; they cannot remove accurate negative marks. Additionally, you have to do your part as a consumer. For example, if you pay your bills late, your credit score could go down, even if a credit repair company successfully disputed an error on your report.

The Credit Pros does have many strong reviews from satisfied customers. There are also the expected negative reviews from customers whose credit has not improved.

One notable complaint from The Credit Pros customer reviews is that there are stipulations on the money-back guarantee. For example, if The Credit Pros successfully corrects any information on your credit report, the guarantee becomes void.

Regulatory and legal

The Credit Pros has run into a few legal issues relating to advertising practices. Plaintiffs allege that The Credit Pros used auto-dialers and/or text bots to promote its services.

How The Credit Pros compares

The Credit Pros vs. Lexington Law

Lexington Law is missing some of the features available from The Credit Pros. For example, Lexington Law does not offer money management tools, dark web monitoring or a money-back guarantee. However, at just $99.95 per month, Lexington Law offers a lower price for traditional credit repair services. Lexington Law also provides an impressive library of free resources to help consumers fix credit issues, build a solid credit history, and maintain a good credit score.

The Credit Pros vs. Creditrepair.com

If you’re looking for a budget-friendly credit repair company, Creditrepair.com offers packages starting at a discounted rate of just $49.95 per month (normally priced starting at $69.95 per month). Creditrepair.com does not offer money management tools as The Credit Pros does, but its low-priced Direct package covers basic credit repair services, including dispute letters and quarterly credit score updates. Creditrepair.com does not include fraud alerts or dark web monitoring, but it does offer ID Theft insurance to provide a level of protection. Unlike The Credit Pros, Creditrepair.com does not offer a money-back guarantee.

The Credit Pros vs. Credit Saint

Like The Credit Pros, Credit Saint offers three service packages and a 90-day money-back guarantee. Credit Saint’s packages range from $79.99 to $139.99 per month. If you just need basic credit repair services, the $79.99 Credit Polish plan may be all you need. However, the $139.99 Clean Slate plan is most similar to The Credit Pros' $149 Success Plus plan. Credit Saint does not offer money management tools, but the Clean Slate plan offers a loan readiness program and access to the Rent-to-Own Home Program through Pathway Homes. Credit Saint is also BBB accredited, while The Credit Pros is not.

Frequently asked questions

Credit repair is a legitimate service that helps consumers improve their credit scores by correcting inaccurate and misleading information on their credit reports. However, there are some bad actors within the credit repair industry, so it’s important to watch for credit repair scams.
Not necessarily. You can always contact the credit bureaus directly to dispute an error on your credit report without going through a credit repair company. It is also possible to repair your credit over time, even if there is no inaccurate information on your report. For example, paying bills on time every month can improve your score. Review the pros and cons of credit repair companies before you make a decision.
If you decide to use a credit repair company, invest a little time in choosing a credit repair company that will be a good fit for you. Start by checking out an overview of the best credit repair companies. You can compare companies based on services, rates, guarantees and online reviews from industry experts and real customers.
The amount of time it takes to increase your credit score depends on the overall health of your score and the issues causing it to be lower than you would like.

For example, if successfully remove a misreported late payment from your record, your score could get a quick boost in just a few months. However, with a foreclosure or bankruptcy, it could take years to repair your credit. Also, accurate negative information will eventually fall off your report on its own, so there is no need to pay monthly fees to a company for years.

Methodology

Overall score	4.0
Services offered	4.5	The Credit Pros offers a wide range of services, but some of them are locked behind higher prices.
Affordability	3.3	The Credit Pros has higher setup fees than most competitors and high month fees for services specific to credit restoration.
Customer service	4.4	The Credit Pros offers several contact options and availability across most of the nation.
Expertise/Effectiveness	3.8	The Credit Pros has mixed reviews about its effectiveness and has had past legal issues.

To evaluate the best credit repair companies, the Bankrate team looked at the following factors:

Affordability: We looked at the overall affordability of the company, including start-up fees, late fees and monthly fees.
Customer service: To evaluate customer service, we considered factors such as customer service hours, the number of support channels, the prevalence of disclaimers and the number of states available.
Expertise and effectiveness: Companies were scored based on factors including number of years in the business, customer ratings, the average score improvement and if the company has experienced legal issues in the past.
Services: Credit repair companies were evaluated based on the number and types of services offered. We look at whether companies offer services such as identity theft monitoring, the number of disputes per month, credit score monitoring, education and debt trackers to evaluate how each company's services compare.