Glossary term
Soft Inquiry: A Painless Credit Check
Short answer
A soft inquiry, or soft pull, is a check of your credit. It is not tied to a new credit application, and it does not affect your credit scores. Only you see soft inquiries when you look at your own report.
Why it matters
Soft inquiries happen in many everyday situations:
- Checking your own credit
- A lender prequalifying you for an offer
- An existing creditor reviewing your account
- An employer running a background check with your permission
A soft inquiry is not a decision on a new credit application, so scoring models ignore it. Lenders reviewing your report also do not see soft inquiries made by others. This difference matters because prequalification and "see if you are approved" tools usually use soft pulls, while formally applying triggers a hard inquiry. Checking your own reports is always a soft inquiry and never hurts your scores. You can do this free every week at AnnualCreditReport.com.
Example
Nadia uses a card issuer's website to see which offers she prequalifies for. That check is a soft inquiry, so it does not affect her scores and no other lender will see it. When she decides to formally apply for the card she likes, the issuer then runs a hard inquiry to make its decision. She also pulls her own three reports each week to watch for errors. None of those self-checks touch her scores.
Terms used on this page
Guides that use this term
- How to Read Your Credit ReportA plain-English walkthrough of every credit report section — personal info, accounts, collections, public records, and inquiries — and what to verify in each.
- How to Get Your Free Credit ReportsFree weekly credit reports from all three bureaus come only from AnnualCreditReport.com. How to request them online, by phone, or by mail, upsell-free.
- Secured Credit Cards: How to ChooseHow secured credit cards work, what separates a good one from a fee trap, how people generally use them to rebuild, and when the deposit comes back.
Sources
This page is based on the following official and authoritative sources. Always check the source itself for the most current rules.
Educational information — not advice
This page provides general educational information about credit, debt, and consumer protections. It is not legal advice, financial advice, or credit repair services, and reading it does not create any professional relationship. Laws, procedures, deadlines, and dollar amounts vary by state and change over time.
For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney or qualified financial professional. See our full disclaimer.