Is This Credit Building Product Worth It?

Credit scores have a major impact on your financial health. A good credit score could save you thousands when financing a major purchase, such as a home or vehicle. 

However, building credit is easier said than done. Lenders want to see a good credit history before you open an account, but you’ll need credit accounts to establish a credit history. 

Kikoff is a service that helps you improve your credit score. In this Kikoff review, we’ll explore the opportunity to see if it’s a good fit for your needs. 

Summary

Snippet summary: Kikoff offers a line of credit to those looking to improve their score in most states. You’ll make minimum monthly payments of $5 to build credit at Experian and Equifax. 

Pros

• Build your credit
• $750 line of credit
• No interest payments
• No fees

Cons

• Confusing add-on service offering
• Must make purchases from Kikoff store

What is Kikoff?

Kikoff is an online platform that is based in San Francisco and offers products designed to help users build their credit scores.

The company aims to provide effective, fair and simple ways for consumers to achieve their financial goals by helping them improve their credit. It boasts that it creates an equal opportunity for everyone, regardless of where they are in their financial journey.

Kikoff addresses three key factors that make up 80% of your credit score.

These include:

• Payment history
• Credit utilization
• Average account age

With no interest charges and no credit pull, the company provides a unique way to help consumers build their credit. 

The site boasts that it has hundreds of thousands of users who are maximizing their credit using the service.

How Does Kikoff Work?

Kikoff offers a chance to build credit. Here’s how that opportunity plays out in real life.

How to Sign Up for a Kikoff Account

The process starts with signing up with Kikoff. 

You’ll need to be at least 18 years old and have a Social Security number. As of writing this, Kikoff is available in every state except Delaware and Indiana. 

Additionally, you’ll need to create an account with your email and selected password. 

You can choose from two different products:

• Kikoff Credit Account: Basic account to improve credit scores
• Credit Builder Loan: Optional add-on to further build credit

While the Kikoff site has quite a bit of information about their Kikoff Credit Account, information about their Credit Builder Loan is more sparse. Since it is an add-on, you may need to sign up for the Kikoff Credit Account first to get more details about the Credit Builder Loan.

How to Use the Account and Kikoff Store

According to Kikoff, you’ll be instantly approved without a credit check. At this point, you’ll have a $750 line of credit to use at the Kikoff store. 

Although you’ll have to use the credit line to make purchases in the store, you don’t have to spend your entire line of credit. 

Within the store, you can expect to find digital products about financial literacy and entrepreneurship. Generally, you’ll find many options starting at the $10 price point. 

After you’ve made a purchase in the Kikoff store, you’ll be required to start making a minimum monthly payment of $5. When you make those payments, Kikoff will report your payment history to the different credit bureaus. 

If you are worried about missing a payment, consider setting up AutoPay. This feature allows you to put your credit building on autopilot. 

Kikoff Credit Bureau Reporting

Once you start making payments, you might see a boost in your credit score. This is because Kikoff reports your payments to Equifax, Experian and Transunion. However, the bureau it reports to depends on which Kikoff product you use.

The Kikoff Credit Account reports to Equifax and Experian, while the Credit Builder Loan reports to Transunion and Experian.

Of course, the results of this credit-building tool will vary based on your unique situation. But, according to Kikoff, customers with credit scores under 600 points saw a 58-point increase. 

It might take some time to see results. In fact, it can take up to six weeks to see Kikoff on your credit report. 

That said, building a record of on-time payments can only help your credit score. 

How Much Does Kikoff Cost?

If you want to start building credit with Kikoff, you’ll only need to pay $5 per month for the Kikoff Credit Account. In addition, the Credit Builder Loan product costs $10 per month.

You won’t encounter any interest, annual fees, administrative fees or late fees. 

Is Kikoff Worth It?

Kikoff is a great tool for anyone who is looking to build credit. At just $5 per month, it’s a worthwhile option if you want to take your credit to the next level. 

However, some users will find more value in the service than others. In general, you’ll get the most out of Kikoff if you are starting with a low credit score or no score at all. 

How Kikoff Impacts Your Credit

Kikoff offers a useful credit-building opportunity. But how exactly does it help improve your credit?

Payment History

When it comes to your credit score, payment history is the most important factor. In fact, this factor accounts for 35% of your FICO score. 

The importance of your payment history makes sense. After all, lenders want to make sure that you’ll pay your bills on time before lending you money. With Kikoff, you have the opportunity to build a long history of on-time payments. 

Kikoff even offers an automatic payment option to help you avoid accidentally missing a payment. With each payment you make on time, Kikoff reports the positive information to the different credit bureaus. 

Credit Utilization

Credit utilization is the second most important factor in your FICO score. It accounts for 30% of your score. 

Essentially, this is a measurement of how much credit you are using against how much credit you have. For example, if you have a balance of $100 and a credit limit of $1,000, your credit utilization ratio is 10%. 

A lower credit utilization ratio is good for your credit score. Kikoff gives you an opportunity to keep this ratio low. With store items starting at $10 and a credit limit of $750, you can easily maintain a low credit utilization ratio. 

Account Age

Account age plays a role in your credit score. An older average account age will have a positive impact on your credit score. 

Kikoff doesn’t allow your Credit Account to expire automatically. Instead, it will continue to sit on your credit report, which leads to an increase in your average account age. 

Although you can cancel your Kikoff Credit Account, your credit score might benefit from leaving it open. 

Unique Features of Kikoff

When it comes to differentiating itself from the competition, Kikoff stands out in a couple of unique ways.

Open-Ended Time Commitment

When you sign up with Kikoff, there’s no minimum or maximum time commitment. You can start building credit today without the worry of this relatively small bill impacting your budget for the long term. 

If you want to stop making the $5 monthly payment, it’s easy to close your Kikoff account. That means you can adjust if your financial situation changes. 

Kikoff Store

The Kikoff store is filled with digital products, and you can use the Kikoff line of credit to purchase items. According to the reviews, you’ll find plenty of e-books and other informative content in the store. 

If you are looking for educational resources about personal finance, you can improve your credit while building knowledge. 

Kikoff Reviews

There are many credit-building platforms available. Reading user reviews can give you an idea of what may or may not work for your unique situation. 

Here’s how Kikoff stacks up on various rating websites: