William LipovskyBanks and credit card companies typically do not publicly release information about which credit bureaus they pull reports from when evaluating applications. Some credit card companies may typically pull from one, like Equifax, but may pull from another bureau if the applicant has a borderline credit score.
Below we list the cards that tend to pull from Equifax — at least as the first or primary means of measuring your creditworthiness. Keep in mind that there’s no way to guarantee which report a credit company will use to determine creditworthiness. We based our list on reports from applicants and cardholders.Â
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Credit Cards Reported to Use Equifax Only
There are three major credit bureaus — Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian — that financial institutions pull data from to determine an individual’s credit rating. The fundamental difference between these three credit bureaus is how they determine individual credit scores. Each bureau could potentially calculate a different score for the same person. Specifically, Equifax utilizes its own scoring system called the Equifax Credit Score.
It’s virtually impossible to know with absolute certainty which of these three agencies a credit card company will consult when you apply for a credit card since credit card companies do not share this information publicly and may pull from different bureaus depending on your location. However, based on reports from applicants and cardholders, we have compiled a list of cards likely to pull Equifax below.
Chase Credit Cards That Use Equifax
Chase cards often pull both Equifax and Experian or may pull another combination of bureaus depending on your location. However, based on customer reports, the following Chase card primarily uses Equifax.
Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card
- Intro offer: $60 Amazon.com gift card upon approval
- Rewards: 3% back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market; 2% back at restaurants, gas stations, and drugstores; and 1% back everywhere else
- Annual fee:Â None
- Find out more
Citi Credit Cards That Use Equifax
Some customers have reported mixed results when applying for a credit card with Citi. Certain card applications may pull from other credit bureaus besides Equifax. However, customers mostly report Equifax pulls for the following card:
Citi Diamond Preferred Card
- Intro offer: 0% APR for 18 months
- Rewards: Citi Entertainment — special access to presale tickets and exclusive experiences at concerts, sporting events, etc.
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
Discover Credit Cards That Use Equifax
Applicants report that Discover commonly uses either Experian or Equifax, so there is no guarantee that Discover will use Equifax when you apply. However, many cardholders say that their applications pulled Equifax only, particularly when using Discover’s online pre-approval tool.
Discover it Cash Back Credit Card
- Intro offer: 0% APR for 14 months on purchases and balance transfers; 3% introductory Balance Transfer Fee
- Rewards: 5% Cashback Bonus at different places every quarter up to a quarterly maximum; 1% cash back on all other purchases
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
Discover it Chrome Credit Card
- Intro offer: 0% purchase and balance transfer APR for 14 months; 3% introductory Balance Transfer Fee
- Rewards: 2% Cashback Bonus on your first $1,000 in combined gas and restaurant purchases each quarter; Discover will also match all the cashback you’ve earned at the end of your first year.
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
Discover it Miles Travel Credit Card
- Intro offer: 0% APR on purchases for 14 months
- Rewards: Unlimited earning of 1.5 Miles on every dollar you spend on purchases
- Annual fee:Â None
- Find out more
Discover it Student Cash Back Credit Card
- Intro offer: 0% APR for six months
- Rewards: 5% cashback at different places each quarter; 1% cash back on all other purchases
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
USAA Credit Cards That Use Equifax
USAA credit cards are available to military service members and their families. As with the other credit card companies listed here, while the cards below commonly use Equifax during the application process, USAA may use a different credit reporting agency when you apply. Consumer reports note that USAA may also pull Experian or TransUnion depending on your location.
USAA Preferred Cash Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card
- Intro offer: None
- Rewards: 1.5% cash back on all purchases
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
USAA Rewards Visa Signature Card
- Intro offer: 2,500 bonus points after your first purchase
- Rewards: Unlimited points; earn two points per dollar on dining and gas, one point on all other purchases
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
USAA Rate Advantage Visa Platinum Credit Card
- Intro offer: None
- Rewards: Same low rate for all transactions: purchases, cash advances, and balance transfers
- Annual fee: None
- Find out more
USAA Military Affiliate Visa Signature Card
- Intro offer: 0% APR for 12 months and 2,500 bonus points after your first purchase
- Rewards: One point for every $1 spent
- Annual fee: $0
- Find out more
In Summary
It’s impossible to know with absolute certainty which credit bureau(s) a credit card company will contact after you apply. However, understanding which bureau(s) are typically used by which credit card issuers may help you decide the specific card for which you may want to apply. The credit cards listed above — including cards from Chase, Citi, and USAA — typically pull from Equifax, based on consumer reports.
See our related research for information on cards that mainly use Experian and cards that mainly use TransUnion.
Loren Eaton
Kait Scirri
Sonya Bateman
Hannah Williams
Katie Spence
Erika Crawford
Cathy Desmet
Lindsey Desmet
Joseph Cho
Maria R. Riegger, Esq.
Discover pulled my Equifax June 2017 and I was approved for a $10000. They might have also pulled my expedia. Chase And Amex all TU and EX,capital one uses Equifax
Hi Credit Card Man,
Thanks for sharing your experience, it’s great to get reader input on this kind of question. While our research did reveal that Chase pulls from Equifax, as we explained in the intro, it’s impossible to know exactly where they’ll pull from. It’s also difficult to tell exactly when they’ll vary from their norm and pull from a different bureau.
They use your geographical locale
Barclaycard from my research online and my 2 applications almost exclusively pulls transunion.
Hi Austin,
Thank you for this information. We will update the article to reflect this.
Please update this INACCURATE information. I was recently approved for the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card and they pulled my Transunion report. Barclays also pulled from Transunion.
Hi there!
Thanks for this information! We have updated the article to reflect your findings.
All of my Chase cards including Sapphire Reserve, United Explorer, Southwest Premier, and Southwest Plus, have pulled exclusively from Transunion! I know this because I have freezes on all the credit bureaus and had to temporarily take the freeze off Transunion for each application.
Hi Claudia,
Thanks so much for this information. We always appreciate reader input to make sure our articles are accurate and up-to-date. We will look into this and update the article, as necessary.
I just applied for the Southwest card and they pulled experian.
When I applied for the disney visa from chase they pulled transunion not equifax.
Hi Amy,
Thanks for providing us with this information. We have updated the article to reflect this.
Chase pulled Experian and Transunion, didn’t even pull Equifax (I’m a member with Equifax and they didn’t get an inquiry).
Hi Dan,
Could you tell me which Chase card you were applying for? We always strive to keep our lists updated as we receive new information. Thank you!
Applied for Chase Ink Business card and Chase pulled Experian.
Thanks for the update. Yes, there are types of Chase cards that will pull Experian. You’ll notice that we limited our list to the Chase Sapphire, Chase Slate, and Chase Freedom.
Applied for Chase Freedom Card 3-17-17, they pulled Experion only.
Hi Don,
I’ve just recently received other reports of the Chase Freedom card pulling Experian rather than Equifax; it seems that practices may have changed for this card, so I’ve gone ahead and removed it from our list in an effort to keep the article as accurate and up-to-date as possible. I apologize for any inconvenience that the article has caused, and thank you for bringing the issue to our attention!
This entire list is hogwash. I recommend all reader to disregard this information as it is not accurate AT ALL and other CRAs will be pulled
Hi Jon,
I’m sorry to hear you feel that way about our article! It’s impossible to say with 100% certainty that a particular card will only pull from a certain bureau every time an application is run. However, we are regularly updating our list as we find new information from consumers who report different experiences with different credit cards. If there are specific cards on our list that you believe are inaccurately represented, please don’t hesitate to let us know and we’ll be happy to review our information.
Thats true. my chase card apped in 2016 & 2017 is always pulled from TU.
Hi Johndoer,
We’ve just recently removed the Chase Freedom card from our list after receiving multiple reports that this card pulled from other credit bureaus. Do you happen to remember if the card that pulled from TransUnion was the Chase Freedom card? If it was a different card, you’re welcome to let us know and we’ll be happy to investigate further. Thanks for writing in!
So this is the Credit Cards we *think* use Equifax only list. Please clarify in the title.
Omid,
I really appreciate your comment, and you’re right. It’s impossible to be 100% certain that a credit card or bank won’t pull data from any one (or all three) of the credit bureaus. Right now, the articles in this series are under review, and we’ll be updating them to include the most accurate information we can. Thank you for your feedback!
So I applied for a Citi card based on this info and immediately got email notification from both Transunion and Experian that they pulled credit info. Got declined… How did you come up with that they pull Equifax only??
Please advise…
Hi Omid,
I’m sorry to hear that you were declined for your credit card application! Because the credit card companies don’t publicly disclose the exact algorithms and factors that determine which credit bureaus will be contacted for any given application, it’s very difficult to know with total certainty which credit cards will always or mostly pull Equifax (or any other credit bureau or combination of credit bureaus). Our list is mostly compiled by reviewing customer reports about the credit bureaus that were contacted in their own applications. I’ve gone ahead and made a note in the Citi section of the article that other credit bureaus may be contacted and to proceed with caution, so that other readers can have a forewarning if they are in a similar situation. Again, our sincere apologies for the problems with your application, and thank you for writing in with your experience!
Same thing happened to me. If you can’t say with certainty you should not list the information with certainty.