Credit Karma Kicks Off Credit Education Month with New Consumer Education Website

SAN FRANCISCO, March 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Credit Karma, an online consumer finance platform with more than 35 million members, today launched a new consumer education website in honor of March's Credit Education Month to better educate consumers about credit health.    

The new site, CreditEducationMonth.com, is designed as a first stop for consumers to educate themselves on the importance of actively managing credit, illustrating the impact of credit scores and what influences them, how to read a credit report and how consumers can take control of their credit situation.

"Awareness and education are the foundation for consumers in improving their credit health," said Greg Lull, Credit Karma's Head of Consumer Insights. "We hope CreditEducationMonth.com will help consumers appreciate the potential cost associated with less-than-great credit and provide them with the right information and tools to improve their financial situation."

Credit Karma commissioned a survey¹ for Credit Education Month that exposes a gap between perception and reality in how Americans view their own credit situation. Two-thirds of Americans categorized their credit as "excellent" or "good" when only 41.9 percent of Americans have excellent or good credit scores (scores of 700 and above).² While credit awareness and education are vital for consumers' financial health, only 48 percent of those surveyed stated that they are "completely comfortable" managing their own credit.

CreditEducationMonth.com puts a price tag on this lack of credit education. Based on Credit Karma data, a typical consumer with a credit score of less than 640 could potentially pay an estimated $229,538 more in interest between the ages of 18 to 65 than a typical consumer profile with a score greater than 750. This figure is four and a half times greater than what the median American household makes in one year before tax.³

This new site supports Credit Karma's ongoing mission to help consumers become more credit conscious. For more information, visit www.CreditEducationMonth.com.

About Credit Karma

Credit Karma is working to re-engineer one of the largest industries in the world - consumer finance. Beginning with a free credit score and report, the bloodlines of personal finance, Credit Karma brings more transparency and certainty to credit and finance with free monitoring, data-driven resources and personalized recommendations.

Credit Karma's mission is to help consumers have a better future by simplifying decision-making and management of personal credit and finances. Available online and on iOS, Android and Windows Phone, Credit Karma is empowering more than 35 million consumers.

Headquartered in San Francisco, Calif., Credit Karma has raised $193.5 million in financing to date, including a $75 million follow-on in September 2014 led by Google Capital, Tiger Global and Susquehanna Growth Equity.

¹ A survey was conducted online within the United States among 1,050 adults 18 and older, from February 10 to 12, 2015, for Credit Karma using Qualtrics' research suite. This survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent at a 95 percent level of confidence.
² Based on information provided by VantageScore Solutions, LLC.
³ US Census Bureau statistics for 2013

Media Contacts:

Melissa Barto
JCUTLER media group
[email protected]

Christina Ra
Credit Karma
[email protected]

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SOURCE Credit Karma