Choosing the right credit-building tool can make or break your financial health. Here’s everything you need to know when choosing between StellarFi and Extra®.
How do StellarFi and Extra stack up? Compare features, perks, pricing, and more so you can choose the most effective and affordable option:
StellarFi’s $4.99/month plan reports up to $500 in bills; StellarFi’s $9.99/month plan reports up to a $25,000 limit.
Extra starts at $149 a year or $20/month for the no-rewards plan. Cardholders can earn five reward points for every dollar spent, or 1% cashback for every purchase if they opt for the $199/year or $25/month rewards program.
StellarFi reports to the two credit bureaus: Experian® and Equifax®.
Extra reports only to Experian and Equifax at the beginning of each month.
Sign up for the StellarFi Virtual Bill Pay Card in two minutes and you can see an improvement in your credit score in 30 days.
Extra should appear on your credit report by the 20th of the following month.
StellarFi members can view their credit score and credit report at any time, and both are updated frequently.
Your credit score can be the determining factor in whether you’re able to rent a home, get approved for a mortgage, or get a good interest rate on a car loan. Having good credit can save you money in the long run, through access to better interest rates and more favorable borrowing terms. Here are some scenarios in which your credit score makes a difference:
StellarFi is a simple but revolutionary way to build credit. With StellarFi, you can build credit without the downsides of other credit-building products and services. Get started with:
StellarFi is easy to use. You just need a bank account and monthly household bill payments — like your go-to streaming service, utility bill, and rent — to get started.
These are the steps to start building credit with StellarFi:
With StellarFi, your bills are automatically paid and they’ll automatically help you build credit.
StellarFi affects the credit factors that contribute most significantly to your credit score and builds credit with all major credit bureaus. Here’s how StellarFi works directly on your credit score:
StellarFi is for anyone looking to build, improve, or maintain their credit scores. Here are some of the best reasons to use StellarFi:
So, what are the downsides? Here are some situations in which StellarFi may not be a good fit:
The Extra Debit Card is similar to StellarFi in that you can use it to pay all your bills. To use the Extra Debit Card:
Here are some of the benefits of the Extra debit card:
Here are some of the drawbacks of using the Extra Debit Card:
Every individual’s credit and financial situation is different, so building credit is not a one-size-fits-all scenario.
Like most credit-building products, your chances of building a good credit profile also depend on making on-time payments and maintaining good credit behavior across the multiple credit accounts you may be using. Neither StellarFi nor Extra can impact any past transactions – missed or late payments and the resulting negative credit history. They can only impact your future credit scores and credit history with consistent usage.
Extra would be a good choice for those who want to take a more gradual approach to building credit by starting with small daily purchases. Extra is also a good option if you already have a Plaid-compliant bank account from where you make most or all of your primary daily and monthly transactions.
StellarFi is a good option for members across different points in their credit-building journey, and not just for beginners. StellarFi reports up to $25,000 of bill payments. Since Extra reports your total daily expenditure every month, the amount it reports may vary. Also, the daily spend limit is relatively lower than a monthly spend limit so you may not be able to make large purchases on a single day. This means you can only use Extra for smaller bills and purchases like a restaurant dinner and not larger bills like rent.
StellarFi is meant for those who want to make a more significant long-term impact on their credit by using substantial monthly bills they are already paying. Monthly bills are more manageable and consistent, helping consumers build a more solid, reliable financial behavior profile. StellarFi’s also a great solution for those who would like to manage their bills and view their credit scores and reports in one dashboard.
By comparing credit builders side-by-side, you’re sure to find the right tool, or combination of tools, for your goals.
View your current credit score and access your detailed credit report, just by creating your account.
Make automatic bill payments using your StellarFi Virtual Bill Pay Card. Next, we report on-time payments to major credit bureaus each month.
See your credit score increase while we build your payment history, optimize your credit utilization, and more.