8 Best Rent Reporting Services in 2023

Rent reporting services provide a great way for people with bad credit or no credit to build credit that could lead to positive credit history. If you dutifully make your rent payments on time, this can be reported to the three major credit bureaus in order to positively impact your credit score or establish a credit score. Tenants cannot report rent payments to the credit reporting agencies on their own, but a third-party rent reporting service can help.^[1]

This post details nine rent reporting services that have been chosen based on overall cost, extra services and features, business reputation and ease of use for both landlords and tenants.

How to choose a rent reporting service

Different rent reporting services have different benefits, drawbacks and pricing options, so carefully consider each one before you choose. For example, if you don't have a formal lease or rental agreement, you can use only a couple of the options below.

Also, some services don't report to all three credit bureaus and do not impact all types of credit scores. In fact, only certain scoring models even take rent payments into consideration, and most rent reporting services impact a limited list of scoring models. So choose carefully by considering the features of each service below and make an informed decision.

In addition, your current landlord may already have a service, in which case, you could compare the costs of signing up for an individual service or using the one provided by your landlord. Be sure to compare costs carefully and check to see if the landlord charges additional fees for processing the rent reporting.

Reporting services for tenants

1. Boom

Boom describes itself as an app that is flexible, allowing you to split your rent into smaller installments in addition to its rent reporting services. To access Boom, you go to the website, enter your phone number and the app is texted to you. If your landlord accepts this method of payment, the company will start reporting your payments to the three major credit bureaus.

• Cost and fees:

  • $24 annually: Report your ongoing rental payments when you subscribe for a year.
  • $10: One-time enrollment fee
  • $25: Report past payments (up to 24 months)

• Landlord involvement required: No

• Credit bureaus reported: All three

• Accepts past rent: Yes, up to 24 months

• Extra services: BoomSplit, which allows you to split up rent payments

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, all residents on the lease are eligible.

• Lease requirement: Yes

2. Credit Rent Boost

Credit Rent Boost is another company focused on elevating your credit scores through rent reporting. It offers ongoing rent reporting services to help build a good credit score over time as long as you have on-time payments, with your account showing up in less than two weeks. This provider also conducts past rent reporting for up to two years of payment history.

• Cost and fees:

  • Annual plan: $49 per year for one renter, $88 for two and $117 for three
  • Monthly Subscription: $6.95 for one renter, $9.95 for two and $12.95 for three
  • $25 enrollment fee, which is waived if you add past reporting
  • Past rent reporting for 12 months: $49 for one renter and $94 for both two renters or three renters
  • Past rent reporting for 24 months: $65 for one renter and $125 for both two renters or three renters

• Landlord involvement required: Yes

• Credit bureaus reported: TransUnion and Equifax

• Accepts past rent: Yes, up to 24 months

• Extra services: Expedited service (extra fee of $100) to report to the credit bureaus within 72 business hours of receiving all documents

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, works with all names on the lease

• Lease requirement: Yes or written agreement with owner, landlord or management company

3. Self

Self not only allows you to report positive rent payments, but also cell phone and utility payments, giving you more opportunities to impact your credit score. It's super convenient, as Self's rent reporting service identifies debit card payments, automatic bank transfers, and payment platforms like Venmo, CashApp and Zelle paid directly from your bank account.

• Cost and fees:

  • Free with signup
  • $6.95 per month to add utility and cell phone payments

• Landlord involvement required: No

• Credit bureaus reported: All three

• Accepts past rent: LookBack (Adds up to 2 years of past payments)

• Extra services: Reports cell phone and utility payments as well by upgrading your subscription. Includes free credit monitoring and and up to $1 million in identity theft protection with upgrade.

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, with their own account and subscription

• Lease requirement: No

4. Rental Kharma

Rental Kharma promises to report all of your past rent for a flat rate of $50, adding all of your rental payment history at your current address to the TransUnion and Equifax credit reports. Rental Kharma does not require you to change anything about your current payment arrangement with your landlord, and you do not need to connect a bank account.

• Cost and fees:

  • $50 one-time setup fee, which includes all past rental history at your current rental address
  • $8.95 per month for ongoing reporting to keep your account open and current

• Landlord involvement required: Yes, includes a brief call with the landlord to confirm

• Credit bureaus reported: TransUnion and Equifax

• Accepts past rent: Yes

• Extra services: Offers free, expedited service

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, for a $25 setup fee and $5 monthly fee

• Lease requirement: No

5. RentReporters

RentReporters is a rent reporting service with a four-step process. First, you sign up by providing basic information about you and your landlord, then RentReporters verifies up to four years of past rental payments. After that, the payments are reported to Equifax and Transunion. The company also offers services to landlords, such as helping them reward tenants for paying on time.

• Cost and fees:

  • $94.95 setup fee
  • $9.95 per month after that (or pay an annual fee at one time, which equates to $7.95 per month)

• Landlord involvement required: Yes, when reporting past rent history

• Credit bureaus reported: TransUnion and Equifax

• Accepts past rent: Up to 24 months of past rent history

• Extra services: Offers a free service called RentCheck that allows you link your bank account that you use to pay rent, that way, your current rent payments get reported faster since it requires no contact with your landlord

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, for a discounted fee of $50

• Lease requirement: No

6. Rock the Score

Rock the Score reports both your historical data and your ongoing rent payments. You can also add a spouse or a roommate, which includes historical reporting for the additional person, for a total fee of $65 with the enrollment fee waived as well as the first month’s payment. You will pay a one-time enrollment fee plus a monthly reporting fee. You can also choose the one-time historical reporting fee if you want past rent payments reported.

• Cost and fees:

  • $48 one-time setup fee
  • $6.95 per month after that

• Landlord involvement required: Yes

• Credit bureaus reported: Equifax and TransUnion

• Accepts past rent: Up to 24 months for a $65 one-time fee

• Extra services: N/A

• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, for $65, which includes historical reporting; enrollment fee and the first month’s payment are waived

• Lease requirement: Yes

Reporting services for landlords

7. Esusu Rent

Esusu Rent gears its service that it claims can help renters elevate their credit scores and owners and property managers maximize returns. The company also says that you can view and monitor credit reports and credit score improvements so you can see what kind of an impact this rent reporting is actually having on your score. This provider also offers other financial resources to renters.

• Cost and fees: Landlords and property owners must pay for the service, and they may pass a fee along to their tenants.
• Landlord involvement required: Yes
• Credit bureaus reported: All three
• Accepts past rent: Reports up to 24 months for a flat fee of $50 as long as the tenant wanting the reporting was on the same lease being currently reported
• Extra services: Helps landlords capture and report rental data
• Covers spouse or roommate: No
• Lease requirement: Yes

8. RentTrack

RentTrack gears itself toward both property management companies and renters, aiming to be an end-to-end solution for reporting rent payments to all three credit reporting agencies. RentTrack offers its service for a monthly subscription fee, and you can use its website or convenient app to manage your account.

• Cost and fees: Ongoing monthly subscription fee, calculated upon signup, and a one-time fee of $50 for historical reporting, plus $6.95 per month per person
• Landlord involvement required: Yes, they must provide the data
• Credit bureaus reported: All three for rent reporting
• Accepts past rent: Up to 24 months of previous payments for a one-time fee of $50, but service only applies to current lease address with current landlord
• Extra services: Credit monitoring, credit insights, a monthly credit score, and $1,000,000 Identity Theft Insurance
• Covers spouse or roommate: Yes, with their own RentTrack subscription
• Lease requirement: Yes

How rent reporting affects your credit score

Rent reporting impacts your credit score because it shows potential lenders whether you’re capable of making monthly payments for a major expense on time each month. Although rent isn’t considered a loan, paying it consistently on time positions you as someone who takes financial obligations seriously and pays them responsibly. Plus, on-time rent payments may help you establish a strong payment history, which accounts for 35% of your FICO® score^[2] and 40% of your VantageScore® 3.0.^[3]

Can late payments hurt your credit score?

Yes, just as on-time rent payments can help your credit score if you use a third-party reporting service, late or missed payments will also hurt it. Keep in mind that some providers don’t report missed payments within a certain window or at all. If you have a spotty rent payment history or you struggle to make payments on time, it may be a good idea to wait until you are in a better financial position before using these services.^[2]

Is reporting rent worth it?

The question of whether it’s worth it to report rent depends on your personal financial situation. If you have been making rent payments on time for a long time, and you find yourself on the lower end of the credit score range, it may impact your credit score to report ongoing payments as well as past payments. But if your financial situation hasn’t been solid and you can’t be sure that rent payments going forward will be on time, it may be best to hold off. Also, avoid paying large fees for this service — especially if it will risk making you late on rent!

Choose a service that works best for your personal needs

You can select from many services available for rent reporting. They are all different, and ultimately you need to determine which one is right for you to help you build good credit. Should you choose one that reports to all three bureaus and how does cost factor in? Should you select one that also records utility and cell phone payment information or one that allows you to include your roommate or spouse? Maybe you like the idea of a service that digs up two years worth of past payments.

When selecting a service, you have to evaluate the costs as well as how each might serve your current situation. Consider your options and find the service that best meets your unique needs.

Disclaimer: FICO is a registered trademark of Fair Issac Corporation in the United States and other countries.

Sources

1. U.S. News & World Report. "How Can You Get Credit for Paying Rent?" https://money.usnews.com/credit-cards/articles/how-can-you-get-credit-for-paying-rent. Accessed August 3, 2022.
2. MyFICO. "What is Payment History?" https://www.myfico.com/credit-education/credit-scores/payment-history. Accessed August 3, 2022.
3. VantageScore. “The Complete Guide to Your VantageScore,” https://vantagescore.com/press_releases/the-complete-guide-to-your-vantagescore/. Accessed August 16, 2022.

About the author

Ana Gonzalez-Ribeiro, MBA, AFC® is an Accredited Financial Counselor® and a Bilingual Personal Finance Writer and Educator dedicated to helping populations that need financial literacy and counseling. Her informative articles have been published in various news outlets and websites including Huffington Post, Fidelity, Fox Business News, MSN and Yahoo Finance. She also founded the personal financial and motivational site www.AcetheJourney.com and translated into Spanish the book, Financial Advice for Blue Collar America by Kathryn B. Hauer, CFP. Ana teaches Spanish or English personal finance courses on behalf of the W!SE (Working In Support of Education) program has taught workshops for nonprofits in NYC.

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