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Personal Finance · head to head

Personal Capital vs Credit Karma

Personal Capital logo

Personal Capital

Personal Finance

Invest wisely, retire confidently

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Credit Karma logo

Credit Karma

Personal Finance

Free credit scores, reports, and more

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Personal Capital wealth management requires a 100,000 USD minimum for Investment Services, 250,000 USD for Wealth Management and 1,000,000 USD for Private Client; Credit Karma state tax filing costs 15 USD even though federal filing is 0 USD
  • They diverge on capability: Personal Capital covers Investment tracking, Credit Karma covers Free credit score.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Personal Capital and Credit Karma actually diverge.

Attributes where Personal Capital and Credit Karma differ
AttributePersonal CapitalCredit Karma
Founded20102007

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), 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 Personal Capital

  • Investment tracking
  • Retirement calculator
  • Fee analyzer
  • Net worth tracking
  • Bank accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Real estate

Only in Credit Karma

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

Both cover

  • Web support
  • IOS support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Personal Capital

  • Tracking net worth and investment accounts in one dashboardnot Credit Karma
  • Managed portfolio construction with tax loss harvesting for high balance investorsnot Credit Karma
  • Retirement planning projections across linked accountsnot Credit Karma

Credit Karma

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

Where each one falls short

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

Personal Capital

  • Wealth management requires a 100,000 USD minimum for Investment Services, 250,000 USD for Wealth Management and 1,000,000 USD for Private Client
  • The annual advisory fee is charged as a percentage of assets under management on a tiered structure rather than a flat subscription
  • Assets are custodied at Pershing Advisor Solutions rather than by the provider itself

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

Pricing, plan by plan

Personal Capital

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Account tracking
    • Net worth monitoring
    • Investment analysis
  • Premium$undefined/month
    • Financial advisor access
    • Personalized advice

Credit Karma

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

Which should you pick?

Choose Personal Capital if

  • You need investment tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want retirement calculator.
Personal Capital review

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

Questions people ask

Is Personal Capital or Credit Karma better?
Neither clearly leads. Personal Capital starts at Free and Credit Karma at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Personal Capital or Credit Karma?
Personal Capital starts at Free and Credit Karma at Free.
Does Personal Capital or Credit Karma run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, IOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Personal Capital for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Personal Capital best used for?
Personal Capital is most often used for tracking net worth and investment accounts in one dashboard, managed portfolio construction with tax loss harvesting for high balance investors, retirement planning projections across linked accounts. Of those, tracking net worth and investment accounts in one dashboard and managed portfolio construction with tax loss harvesting for high balance investors are not what Credit Karma is typically brought in for.
What can Personal Capital do that Credit Karma cannot?
Personal Capital covers Investment tracking, Retirement calculator, Fee analyzer, Net worth tracking. Credit Karma covers Free credit score, Credit report monitoring, Credit card recommendations, Tax filing. Both handle Web support, IOS support, Android support.
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