Suze Orman's Not Exactly Fiscal Advice

Author, power lesbian, Saturday Night Live inspiration, and CNBC talking head Suze Orman recommends, in her O magazine column this month, that readers check their credit score on myFICO.com, which just so happens to be a website she has business dealings with. Also, this: Americans are entitled to one free credit report from each of the three credit bureaus every 12 months, which means no entering your credit card number on a checkout form to find out the same data Orman recommends you pay $49.95 for.
Below, two our favorite SNL moments.
And: Stupid Hulu won't let you embed this one, so go here to watch it.
Scroll Posts

This is inaccurate. What you're paying for with the $49.95 Suze package is your FICO SCORE, which no one gets for free. Your FICO score is not your credit report. You need to check your facts, Jossip (apparently, you need to check your FICO score as well).
I should have noted as well (and I'm starting to feel like I work for Suze! But all of this is clear to anyone who watches her show): that site is the only place one can get their FICO score, which is the gold standard when it comes to lenders determining whether or not they'll give you credit. She does tell her viewers this, and that she gets no cut from them whatsoever. She DOES get a cut if you go to that site and decide to purchase her $49.95 FICO kit instead of the three scores a la carte for $13.95 each, but in two years of watching the show, I've only heard her mention the kit once or twice, and she's very take it or leave it about it.
To reply to D Shrute…Um the FICO site is NOT the only place that you can get your FICO score…I worked for Equifax US in 2003 and they offer the SAME score as the FICO site since they have an understanding with FICO for a lesser price…. and the FREE credit file if you do your research in the credit laws in the US requires that you WRITE in to get it and it is snail mailed to you…so to say that jossip did not do their research when clearly you have not either is a bit much…They also offer a credit watch program for I think 9.95 a month and you are able to get a free credit file online every day if you want with out doing any "hard" inquires on your credit file which in turn does not lower your credit file….a lot of sites out there offer the credit report directly online but what consumers to not realize is that these site do a hard inquiry EVERY time to pull your own report….keep that in mind when you check your report…its always better to got directly on the bureau's site to get it…..Ohh and Equifax if I am not mistaken offers all 3 reports for 29.95…but don't quote me on that one thats what we offered when I was working there…..
Phil - things must have changed since 2003, because the score that Equifax has provided me is 20 points off my FICO Equifax score. And when I used to work for a lender, ALL we'd take was the FICO score. Occasionally people would come to us with the score given to them by the individual credit bureaus if it was higher than their FICO; we'd call them FAKOs, and we disregarded them.
Also, you don't have to write in to get your free credit file as you've indicated. You can go to annualcreditreport.com and pull it right now.