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Personal Finance · head to head

Credit Karma vs Mint

Credit Karma logo

Credit Karma

Personal Finance

Free credit scores, reports, and more

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Mint logo

Mint

Personal Finance

All your money in one app

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Credit Karma state tax filing costs 15 USD even though federal filing is 0 USD; Mint service transitioned to Credit Karma platform; standalone Mint features migrated elsewhere
  • They diverge on capability: Credit Karma covers Free credit score, Mint covers Expense tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Credit Karma and Mint actually diverge.

Attributes where Credit Karma and Mint differ
AttributeCredit KarmaMint
Pricing modelfreemiumfree
Founded20072006

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, IOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Credit Karma

  • Free credit score
  • Credit report monitoring
  • Credit card recommendations
  • Tax filing
  • Credit bureaus
  • Financial institutions
  • IOS support

Only in Mint

  • Expense tracking
  • Budgets
  • Bill tracking
  • Credit score monitoring
  • Financial insights
  • Bank connections
  • Bank-level encryption
  • Verisign secured

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Credit Karma

  • Monitoring a credit score and the factors affecting it for freenot Mint
  • Comparing credit card and loan offers with Approval Oddsnot Mint
  • Filing federal tax returns at no chargenot Mint

Mint

  • Legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connectionsnot Credit Karma
  • Users transitioning to Credit Karma for continued money management featuresnot Credit Karma

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Credit Karma

  • State tax filing costs 15 USD even though federal filing is 0 USD
  • Credit Spark builds score history against TransUnion, and the site states that not all lenders use TransUnion credit reports or scores
  • Card and loan listings are advertising placements, disclosed on the site as compensation from third party advertisers
  • Send and score update frequency limits are not published on the site

Mint

  • Service transitioned to Credit Karma platform; standalone Mint features migrated elsewhere
  • Bank connections supported for only 17,000 financial institutions; many regional or international banks not supported

Pricing, plan by plan

Credit Karma

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Credit score monitoring
    • Credit reports
    • Personalized recommendations

Mint

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Mint review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Credit Karma if

  • You need free credit score.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want credit report monitoring.
Credit Karma review

Choose Mint if

  • You need expense tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want budgets.
Mint review

Questions people ask

Is Credit Karma or Mint better?
Neither clearly leads. Credit Karma starts at Free and Mint at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Credit Karma or Mint?
Credit Karma starts at Free and Mint at Free.
Does Credit Karma or Mint run on more platforms?
Credit Karma runs on Web, IOS, Android. Mint runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Credit Karma for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Credit Karma best used for?
Credit Karma is most often used for monitoring a credit score and the factors affecting it for free, comparing credit card and loan offers with approval odds, filing federal tax returns at no charge. Of those, monitoring a credit score and the factors affecting it for free and comparing credit card and loan offers with approval odds are not what Mint is typically brought in for.
What can Credit Karma do that Mint cannot?
Credit Karma covers Free credit score, Credit report monitoring, Credit card recommendations, Tax filing. Mint covers Expense tracking, Budgets, Bill tracking, Credit score monitoring. Both handle Web support, Android support.
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