If you’re looking for help with your credit score, The Credit Pros may be one of the first companies you’ll come across. Unlike most other credit repair companies, The Credit Pros does things a bit differently. You can get help with repairing your credit, yes—but you can also get help with building your credit up from scratch if needed.
Taken together, this is a comprehensive suite of offerings that can help anyone prepare to rent a nice home, get an affordable mortgage, open a rewards credit card, or do any of the other things in life that require good credit. Before you sign up though, it’s important to understand the specifics of The Credit Pros’ services, and how they compare to other credit repair companies.
The Credit Pros isn’t the only outfit that can help you grow your credit score. Make sure you scope out the top credit repair companies first before deciding on the right one for your needs.
Pros Explained
- Great customer reviews: Compared with other companies, The Credit Pros has a widespread presence with overwhelmingly favorable reviews. That’s not everyone’s experience, of course, but it is a strong mark in favor of the company.
- Excellent customer support: It’s relatively easy to get ahold of someone through a variety of routes, including email, phone, fax, snail mail, and live chat on the website, on a mobile app, or through your online customer portal.
- Offers a 90-day money-back guarantee: If you’re not happy with your progress, you can cancel for a full refund for up to 90 days’ worth of services. This does come with some limitations, however—see the “Cons” section.
- Offers credit-building tools, not just credit repair: Per customer support, The Credit Pros offers a $5,000 line of credit for people on the Money Management plan to help build their credit. It also offers a credit builder loan for people on the Success Plus plan to do the same thing.
- Credit monitoring and ID theft insurance at no extra cost: Many other credit repair companies require you to sign up for a third-party credit monitoring service in order to complete work, and this isn’t included in their fee. But with The Credit Pros, it is, so you won’t have to worry about any upsells right off the bat.
Cons Explained
- A bit on the expensive side: The Credit Pros isn’t the most expensive option out there compared with other credit repair companies, but it’s not too far off either.
- Credit-building tools may be limited: The two cheapest packages only offer regular monitoring of your TransUnion report, one of the three main credit bureaus. According to customer support, the credit builder line of credit also only shows up on your Experian report, which won’t help your TransUnion or Equifax reports at all.
- Money-back guarantee comes with strings attached: The 90-day money-back guarantee is only available for the Prosperity and Success Plus packages, not for the Money Management package. Even then, if The Credit Pros is successful at getting any incorrect information removed, this voids the money-back guarantee; it only applies if they’re unable to help. It also doesn’t apply if you’ve hired any other credit repair companies in the last 180 days.
Types of Services
The Credit Pros offers three different levels of service depending on what you’re looking for, and your budget. According to the website, it takes three to five business days before the company starts working on your credit, but we heard from customer support that the company may start working within one day.
Prosperity Plan
The Prosperity Plan is The Credit Pros’ lowest-tier credit repair plan, for people who have verifiable errors on their credit reports. Credit monitoring and score updates are only available for one of the three credit bureaus (TransUnion) with this plan, which is a bit unfortunate.
However, this package does assist with sending unlimited disputes to remove incorrect information from your credit reports. If you’re having trouble dealing with creditors, such as getting nonstop collection calls and other types of harassment, The Credit Pros can help alleviate these situations too. It can also send out several types of dispute letters, and even write you a letter of credit recommendation if you need to use your credit before it’s cleaned up.
Letters of recommendation from credit repair companies certainly don’t hurt, but your creditors have no legal obligation to pay them any heed either.
Success Plus Plan
If you’re more serious about repairing your credit and you’re not on a limited budget, the Success Plus Plan might be a better option.
It includes everything in the Prosperity Plan, plus two main extras: You’ll get full monitoring coverage for each of the three credit bureaus (instead of just TransUnion). You’ll also get access to a credit builder loan, which will add another positive account to all three of your credit reports as long as you make all of your payments on time.
Money Management Plan
If you’re new to building credit or you just don’t have anything inaccurate on your credit reports, most credit repair companies are unable to help you. This package, available from The Credit Pros, is different. Instead of focusing on fixing mistakes, it’s geared more towards developing good credit habits that show up in your credit reports and your credit score.
Similar to the Money Management plan, this package only includes monitoring of your TransUnion report, which isn’t too helpful since the other two are equally important.
First, a credit analyst will go over your credit reports. Your credit analyst will sit down with you (virtually), answer any questions you have about building credit, and help you develop a customized plan for your situation.
One of the more unique ways The Credit Pros does this is by offering you a $5,000 line of credit from National Credit Direct. You can only use this to shop for purchases in the National Credit Direct store, however, so it’s rather limited, and the prices are very high as well. Nevertheless, even just having this account listed on your credit report will usually help as long as you don’t rack up too much of a balance or miss any payments.
Although this credit line can help build credit, the downside is it’ll only be listed on your Experian credit report, so it won’t have any impact on your TransUnion or Equifax reports and their associated scores.
It’s fine to use credit cards to build credit, but always try to pay them off in full each month, especially if you’re new to using credit cards. That keeps your balance at a more manageable level.
Company Features
One of the nicest things about The Credit Pros is the sheer number of features it offers compared with other credit repair companies. Everyone gets a free consultation, which is especially important to use before signing up with The Credit Pros because the company offers so many package options. They’ll be able to help you figure out which package is best for your needs.
The Credit Pros also offers custom advice and guidance for all of its package levels. For example, if you’re not sure about the best way to pay off your debt to help your credit, they’ll be able to advise you on the best course of action. If you run a business and need help with your business credit score, they may also be able to assist in that department too.
If you’re smartphone-inclined, The Credit Pros may appeal to you because it’s one of the few credit repair companies to offer an app-based service. You can even chat live with a credit analyst through the app and ask any questions.
Customer Service
The Credit Pros’ customer support is exceptional, with a few points that could be improved. You can reach customer support from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday. That might be a bit inconvenient for folks wanting to chat early in the morning on the West Coast.
However, The Credit Pros do make themselves available across a wider-than-normal range of platforms. Unlike most companies that only offer email and phone support, you can also chat with a live representative fairly quickly and easily within customer service hours. Live chat is available within your online customer portal, through the app, and even on the front-facing website, for people who aren’t current customers of The Credit Pros.
- Phone: (800) 411-3050
- Email: [email protected]
- Fax: (973) 732-0794
- Mailing address:
7750 Okeechobee Boulevard
Suite #4-765,
West Palm Beach
FL 33411
Company Reputation
Reviews of The Credit Pros are plentiful and generally very positive across the internet, almost without exception. This is good to see because it means a large number of people are working with the company, and they usually are very happy with the service.
By our count, as of August 2022 over 1,700 customers have left reviews and ratings of the company across six different review websites, including Google, Trustpilot, Yelp, the Better Business Bureau, Google Play store, and the Apple Itunes store. The Credit Pros maintains a rating of over four stars on each one of these websites, except for Yelp, with 29 reviews and a two-star rating. Keep in mind that sometimes these websites can be biased. But given the consistent nature of the reviews, we think that is minimal in this case.
There are some unhappy customers who (understandably) weren’t aware of the limitations of the company’s money-back guarantee and who didn’t see an improvement in their credit scores. But on the whole, most people are well-satisfied.
Contract Duration
You are free to cancel your service at any time without any cancellation fees. Most people end up canceling service when they’ve seen the success they’re looking for in terms of a better credit score.
If you’re not happy with the service, you can get a full refund within five days of signing up. But if you go past that mark, things become more limited. You may be able to get up to 90 days’ worth of fees refunded, but only if you meet the following criteria:
- You haven’t hired another credit repair agency within the past 180 days.
- You followed all of the instructions, terms, and conditions laid out in the contract.
- You paid for either the Prosperity or Success Plus packages (the Money Management package is not eligible for a 90-day money-back guarantee).
- The Credit Pros hasn’t sent out any dispute letters within 30 days from the time you hired them, or they weren’t able to remove any inaccurate information from your credit report within 90 days.
One thing to keep in mind with the Money Management program—which is designed for folks looking to build their credit rather than repair any errors—is that credit building is usually a longer process than credit repair. It often only takes a few months to get errors fixed on your credit report, whereas building a strong credit profile can take years. Of course, you’re always free to cancel service when you feel like you have a good handle on things, but you won’t be eligible for the money-back guarantee with that package.
A good fee-only, fiduciary financial advisor can also help advise you on how to grow your credit score, as well as every other aspect of your financial life. They’re more expensive, but they’re better able to integrate everything together, including your credit, investments, savings, budget, and your future plans.
Cost
In return for the better-than-average service that you’ll get with The Credit Pros, you will have to spend a bit more compared to other companies. Here’s what you can expect to pay for each plan:
| Plan | First Work Fee | Monthly Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Prosperity | $119 | $119 |
| Success Plus | $149 | $149 |
| Money Management | $119 | $69 |
The Credit Pros does offer some discounts to lower the cost for certain folks. If you’re currently receiving Social Security income or are active-duty military, you may be eligible for a discount. In addition, the company grants limited discount opportunities for people needing an exceptional amount of work on their credit reports.
How to Choose a Credit Repair Company
Choosing a credit repair company can be tough. After all, if you knew what to look for, you may have been able to fix your credit on your own. If you need a bit of help, though, here’s how to zero in on the best option for you:
- Know what to look for with credit repair scams: Unfortunately, the credit repair world is plagued with many scams. Red flags include promises to remove all negative marks from your credit reports (even accurate ones), telling you to not contact the credit reporting agencies yourself, or refusing to tell you your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
- Know how much hand-holding you need: Some companies, like The Credit Pros, offer white-glove service and as much interaction with a live credit analyst as you need. Other companies offer a more hands-off approach.
- Narrow it down to a few companies to interview: After you’ve done your research in scoping out potential credit repair companies to hire, narrow it down to just a few and then reach out to them to ask questions. Treat it like you’re interviewing someone for a job, because you are.
- Ask about any and all fees you might be charged: Many credit repair companies charge extra for things you’d expect to be included with the service price, such as disputing hard credit inquiries. Before you choose a credit repair firm, ask about any and all fees the company charges.
- Don’t sign up for long-term contracts with no way to get out: Some companies may pressure you to sign a contract for a specified amount of time, with no way to back out of the contract for free or get your money back if you’re dissatisfied. Credit repair takes as long as it takes, and if it’s finished sooner, you should be able to move on without any penalty.
Alternative Choices
| The Credit Pros | Credit Versio | Credilife | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Services Offered | Credit building, Credit and hard inquiry disputes, Credit monitoring, Identity theft insurance, Business credit repair | Software-driven credit analysis, Credit disputes, Credit education, Credit monitoring, Identity theft insurance | Credit and hard inquiry disputes, Credit monitoring, Identity theft insurance for a fee |
| Max. Number of Monthly Disputes | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Letters to Creditors/Bureaus | Credit Disputes, Letter of Reference | Credit Disputes | Debt Validation, Credit Disputes, Letters for Anything Derogatory, Goodwill Removal, Cease-and-Desist |
| Min. First Work Fee | $69 | $0 | $21.99 |
| Min. Monthly Fee | $119 | $19.99 | $135 |
| Customer Service Platforms | Email, phone, live chat online and in app | Email, phone | Email, phone |
Final Verdict
The Credit Pros is an excellent choice for most people looking for credit repair. It’s hard to find a company that’s more highly rated, offers more customer support, and features so many different service options. That said, if you’re on a budget or looking to do more of your own work yourself, there are other companies that may work better for you.
The Credit Pros is our highest-rated credit repair company, but if you’d like to shop around see all of our picks for the best credit repair services in the industry.
How We Review Credit Repair Companies
Our team evaluated 17 credit repair companies and collected over 600 data points before selecting our top choices. We weighed 39 criteria, giving the highest weights to those that are the most significant for customers.
The top picks were selected based on:
- Costs and fees (weighted 40.5% in total)
- Services offered (34%)
- Customer experience (22.5%)
- Stability (3%)
We took into account factors like how many disputes will be sent per month, what kinds of dispute letters will be sent, cancellation and return policies, and how long companies have been in business. This information was used in our company’s star ratings and best picks.
