How Many Points Does a Hard Inquiry Affect Credit Score?

If you are interested in applying for a new credit card or loan, you may be curious about the number of points that a hard inquiry subtracts from your credit score. The correct answer is that there are not that many.

When a potential lender checks your credit report to determine whether or not you are a good candidate for a loan or credit card, this is known as a hard inquiry. When you apply for a new loan or credit card, or when a lender checks your credit for any other reason, you risk having this occur.

There is a slight chance that your credit score will drop as a result of a hard inquiry, but this is not something you should be overly concerned about. This is why:

A hard inquiry will only remain on your credit report for two years. That is not a very long time in the grand scheme of things, and as time passes, the impact it has on your score will become less and less significant.

Second, the number of points deducted from your total due to complex inquiries is usually relatively low. If you already have a good credit score, adding or subtracting a few points isn’t impact it significantly.

You can lessen the adverse effects of a hard credit inquiry by, among other things, ensuring that you have a solid credit history and using various credit types.

Therefore, if you’re concerned that a hard inquiry will harm your credit score, you shouldn’t be. If you keep up the excellent work that you’ve been doing, this problem will go away on its own in due time.