Which Credit Bureau Does PayPal (or PayPal Credit) Use?

J

john evans

Member
I’m thinking of signing up, but I’m trying to be strategic since I already have a recent inquiry on my Experian report and I’d rather avoid another one there.

From what I understand, PayPal Credit is backed by Synchrony Bank, so technically it’s not PayPal doing the pull. I’ve heard mixed things—some say they pull from Experian, others say Equifax or TransUnion. Seems like it might depend on your location?

Also, do they just do a hard pull during the initial application, or is there any kind of ongoing reporting?
  • Which bureau they pulled for you?
  • Did it show up as a hard inquiry?
  • Do they report monthly to all three bureaus?
 
Yep it’s true......Synchrony Bank is behind PayPal Credit. For me (California), they pulled from TransUnion, hard inquiry. Showed up instantly on Credit Karma. They do report to all 3 bureaus monthly, in my experience.
 
Your state definitely plays a role. In NY they hit my Experian. If you’re concerned try freezing Experian before applying......it sometimes forces them to use another. No guarantees though.
 
Yes PayPal Credit = Synchrony Bank. Synchrony almost always does a hard pull when you apply. It varies which bureau they pull from based on your zip code. They do report monthly to all 3 major bureaus.
 
Ohio here. Got hit on Equifax. Didn’t see any notifications from the other two. Approved for $4k limit with a 690 score in case anyone’s wondering.
 
If you’re close to applying for a mortgage, AVOID Synchrony-backed products. The hard pulls + new account reporting can tank your score by a few points short term.
 
Technically Synchrony has systems that default to pulling Experian but if your Experian file is thin/frozen/locked, it’ll go to TransUnion or Equifax. The fallback behavior varies by application portal.
 
Mine hit TransUnion Texas, got approved instantly, $2,500 limit. They started reporting to all 3 bureaus the next month. Didn’t hurt my score too much but YMMV.
 
Honestly not sure how much value PayPal Credit even brings anymore. High APR, weird terms...is it really worth the hard inquiry?
 
If you're worried try the PayPal Credit prequal page through PayPal itself....sometimes they soft pull first, though it’s rare. Most roads lead to a hard pull eventually.
 
Got approved last year. They pulled Equifax and i got $3k limit. Used it to buy a 3D printer and paid it off in 2 months. Now it just chills on my report helping my utilization.
 
Synchrony reports to all 3 monthly. And yes it’s a hard pull 100% of the time unless you get prequalified through a promo partner which is rare.
 
I used to work in consumer lending. Synchrony usually pulls from Experian unless locked. They report to all 3. They're also one of the quicker bureaus to update data each month.
 
If your credit's in decent shape it’s worth trying. One hard pull won’t destroy your life. I applied got $2k limit and it actually helped my score after a few months.
 
Don’t forget PayPal Credit isn’t covered by the same protections as credit cards under the Fair Credit Billing Act. If you have disputes it’s a headache.
 
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