The last time I actually paid for my credit score was before I bought my house, and that was basically a fit of paranoia to make sure it was crazy-awesome before the lender pulled it. There are plenty of “FAKE-O” credit scores out there, but the only place to get your real FICO score is .

I’ve actually checked my FICO score several times since then for free, as promos usually pop up every couple month or so. I always try to post them here, but am often a bit late. This happened again this week, with myFICO offering free scores to the first 3,000 people. It was announced on their Twitter feed , so you may want to follow them for future opportunities. (While you’re at it, follow me too. I sometimes post smaller or short-lasting deals only on my Twitter page.)

Here are the best promotional codes out there currently: TWEET25 to get 25% off your Transunion FICO and SW94608 to get 30% off your Equifax FICO. You enter the promo code relatively late in the buying process, right before entering your credit card information.

Whenever you do buy a score, I would recommend trying to correlate your score and the current information on your report. Then you can start to learn what changes really affect your personal score. I’ve applied for 12 credit cards and canceled 5 with almost no appreciable affect to my scores (see credit score ) – despite all the “rules” – only to have a huge balance on my mom’s credit card (with me as authorized user) show up and drop it by 30 points.

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