{"id":15508,"date":"2025-09-19T14:13:49","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T19:13:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/?p=15508"},"modified":"2025-09-19T15:02:44","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T20:02:44","slug":"how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/","title":{"rendered":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve ever applied for a new credit card, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/personal-loans\">personal loan<\/a> or even rented an apartment, you may have seen a \u201chard inquiry\u201d show up on your credit report. For many people, this can be worrying \u2014 especially if you\u2019re already trying to build or repair your credit.<\/p>\n<p>The good news is that hard inquiries don\u2019t last forever, and their effect on your credit score is usually small and temporary. Understanding how they work can help you feel more confident about applying for credit when you need it.<\/p>\n<h2>How long do hard inquiries stay on your credit report?<\/h2>\n<p>A hard inquiry stays on your credit report for two years, but it usually only affects your credit score for about one year. After 12 months, scoring models like the FICO\u00ae Score stop including it in your score calculation, even though it still appears on your report.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what that means for you:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Short-term impact, quick recovery.<\/strong> A single inquiry might drop your score by just a few points, and those points often return within a few months if you\u2019re managing your accounts well.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Lenders expect them.<\/strong> Most lenders understand that you\u2019ll apply for credit from time to time. One or two inquiries are not a red flag.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Shopping around is safe.<\/strong> When you\u2019re comparing rates for a mortgage, auto loan or student loan, inquiries made within a short period (typically 14 &#8211; 45 days) are usually grouped together as one.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Credit history plays a role.<\/strong> If you\u2019re just starting to build credit, inquiries may have a bigger effect. But for those with a longer history, the impact is minimal.<\/p>\n<p>Everyday examples of when you\u2019ll see a hard inquiry can include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Applying for a credit card<\/li>\n<li>Financing a car purchase<\/li>\n<li>Taking out a personal loan<\/li>\n<li>Getting approved for a mortgage or refinance<\/li>\n<li>Applying for student loans<\/li>\n<li>Signing a lease when a landlord checks your credit<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The bottom line is that hard inquiries are part of the process of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-to-improve-your-credit\/\">building credit<\/a>. They\u2019re not something to panic about \u2014 and they matter far less than habits like paying bills on time and keeping balances low.<\/p>\n<h2>What is the difference between a hard credit inquiry and a soft credit inquiry?<\/h2>\n<p>Not all credit checks are the same. The main difference comes down to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/hard-vs-soft-credit-inquiries\/\">whether or not they affect your score<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Hard inquiry (hard pull).<\/strong> Happens when you apply for credit and a lender reviews your report. This can lower your score slightly.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Soft inquiry (soft pull).<\/strong> Happens when your credit is checked for non-lending purposes. These don\u2019t affect your score.<\/p>\n<p>Examples of hard inquiries:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Applying for a credit card<\/li>\n<li>Taking out a mortgage or auto loan<\/li>\n<li>Agreeing to a personal loan or a student loan<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Examples of soft inquiries:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/does-checking-credit-score-lower-it\/\">Checking your credit score<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Receiving a pre-approval offer in the mail<\/li>\n<li>An employer running a background check<\/li>\n<li>Checking loan eligibility without submitting a full application<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you\u2019re rate shopping for a loan, submit your applications close together. Credit scoring models usually treat multiple hard pulls for the same loan type within a short timeframe as just one inquiry.<\/p>\n<h2>How do hard inquiries affect your credit score?<\/h2>\n<p>Hard inquiries are part of the \u201cnew credit\u201d category in your FICO<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> Score, which makes up about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.myfico.com\/credit-education\/credit-scores\/new-credit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">10% of your overall score<\/a>. This category also includes factors like how many new accounts you\u2019ve opened recently.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how they typically affect you:<\/p>\n<p><strong>One inquiry.<\/strong> Usually lowers your score by only a few points.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Several inquiries in a row.<\/strong> Multiple inquiries can raise concerns for lenders, especially if your credit history is limited.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Longer history.<\/strong> If you\u2019ve built good credit habits, the impact is often barely noticeable.<\/p>\n<p>Everyday scenarios:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Applying for a personal loan <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-does-a-personal-loan-affect-credit-score\/\">might cause a small dip<\/a>, but your score often rebounds quickly.<\/li>\n<li>Submitting multiple credit card applications at once could make lenders cautious.<\/li>\n<li>Shopping around for a mortgage within a short window usually counts as just one inquiry.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While hard inquiries can cause a temporary drop, they\u2019re not something that will make or break your credit.<\/p>\n<h2>Can you remove a hard inquiry from your credit report?<\/h2>\n<p>You can\u2019t remove a legitimate hard inquiry before it naturally falls off after two years. But if you spot one you didn\u2019t authorize, you should take action.<\/p>\n<p>How to dispute an unauthorized hard inquiry:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Check your reports for free at <a href=\"http:\/\/AnnualCreditReport.com\">AnnualCreditReport.com<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Identify the inquiry \u2014 note the creditor\u2019s name and the date.<\/li>\n<li>File a dispute with the credit bureau (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.equifax.com\/\">Equifax<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.experian.com\/\">Experian<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.transunion.com\/\">TransUnion<\/a>) online, by phone or by mail.<\/li>\n<li>Provide proof if you believe it\u2019s related to fraud or identity theft.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Examples of unauthorized inquiries:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A credit card or loan account opened in your name without your knowledge<\/li>\n<li>A lender pulling your credit after you didn\u2019t agree to an application<\/li>\n<li>Fraudulent activity tied to identity theft<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If the inquiry is legitimate \u2014 such as applying for an auto loan or a credit card \u2014 it will remain until it expires. But remember, its effect on your score is temporary.<\/p>\n<h2>When does a hard inquiry not affect your credit?<\/h2>\n<p>Some inquiries either don\u2019t count against your score or are treated differently:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Loan rate shopping.<\/strong> Mortgage, auto loan, and student loan inquiries made within 14 &#8211; 45 days are usually grouped as one.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pre-approvals and account reviews.<\/strong> These are logged as soft inquiries and don\u2019t affect your score.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Employment checks.<\/strong> When an employer runs a credit check, it\u2019s considered a soft pull.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Existing account reviews.<\/strong> Credit card companies sometimes review your report to adjust your terms, but this won\u2019t lower your score.<\/p>\n<p>For example, if you apply for an auto loan at three dealerships in the same week, your report may show three inquiries. But credit scoring models usually count them as one, so your score is protected.<\/p>\n<h2>Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n<p>Hard inquiries are simply part of using credit. They stay on your report for up to two years, but their effect on your score usually fades after one. While you can\u2019t remove legitimate inquiries, you can dispute unauthorized ones and focus on the bigger factors that shape your credit \u2014 like paying bills on time and keeping balances low.<\/p>\n<p>By understanding how hard inquiries work, you can feel less anxious about applying for credit and more confident in the steps you\u2019re taking to build a healthy financial future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve ever applied for a new credit card, personal loan or even rented an apartment, you may have seen &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15518,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[623],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-credit-health"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","pp_post_mime_type":"publish","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report? - NetCredit Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Hard inquiries stay on your credit report for two years but only affect your score for about one. Learn what that means and how to protect your credit.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report? - NetCredit Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hard inquiries stay on your credit report for two years but only affect your score for about one. Learn what that means and how to protect your credit.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NetCredit Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-19T19:13:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-19T20:02:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"393\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Eddie Rybarski\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Eddie Rybarski\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report? - NetCredit Blog","description":"Hard inquiries stay on your credit report for two years but only affect your score for about one. Learn what that means and how to protect your credit.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report? - NetCredit Blog","og_description":"Hard inquiries stay on your credit report for two years but only affect your score for about one. Learn what that means and how to protect your credit.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/","og_site_name":"NetCredit Blog","article_published_time":"2025-09-19T19:13:49+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-19T20:02:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":750,"height":393,"url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Eddie Rybarski","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Eddie Rybarski","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/"},"author":{"name":"Eddie Rybarski","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2b6667b01daf82bce002f31412e5ff4a"},"headline":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report?","datePublished":"2025-09-19T19:13:49+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-19T20:02:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/"},"wordCount":1069,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png","articleSection":["Credit Health"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/","url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/","name":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report? - NetCredit Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png","datePublished":"2025-09-19T19:13:49+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-19T20:02:44+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2b6667b01daf82bce002f31412e5ff4a"},"description":"Hard inquiries stay on your credit report for two years but only affect your score for about one. Learn what that means and how to protect your credit.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/25-00390-02_NC-How-Long-Do-Hard-Inquiries-Stay-on-Your-Credit-Report-DRA-1a01.png","width":750,"height":393},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/how-long-do-hard-inquiries-stay-on-your-credit-report\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/","name":"NetCredit Blog","description":"Explore resources to help you build credit, strengthen your finances and borrow wisely.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2b6667b01daf82bce002f31412e5ff4a","name":"Eddie Rybarski","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/03\/Eddie_Rybarski-150x150.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/03\/Eddie_Rybarski-150x150.jpeg","caption":"Eddie Rybarski"},"description":"Eddie Rybarski is a Senior Copywriter for Enova International. Formerly a multimedia journalist, his work has been featured in various local news outlets. Eddie received his certification for financial education instruction from the National Financial Educators Council.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/eddierybarski\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/author\/erybarskienova-com\/"}]}},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-12 09:23:01","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15508"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15524,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15508\/revisions\/15524"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15518"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}