Difference Between Hard Credit Inquiries and Small Credit Inquiries: Part 2

There are two kinds of inquiries that can happen on your credit report. They are hard inquiries and soft inquiries. In part 1 of Difference Between Hard Credit Inquiries and Small Credit Inquiries, we covered what hard inquiries are. In part 2, we will cover soft inquiries.

What is a soft inquiry?

These types of inquiries usually happen when a person or organization checks your credit report as part of a background check. This may include:

Employer background checks,
Getting pre-approved for credit card offers
Checking your own credit score.

One major difference between hard inquiries and soft inquiries is that they can happen without your permission. The good news is that it won’t affect your credit score and in some cases may not be recorded in your credit report, depending on the credit bureau.

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