How Authorized-User Tradelines Actually Work
· 5 min read
An authorized-user tradeline is a seat on an existing credit card. The cardholder — the credit sponsor — adds you as an authorized user, and the card issuer starts reporting that account on your credit report as well as theirs.
You never receive the card, never see the account number, and never make a purchase on it. What you get is the account's history: its age, its credit limit and its payment record, reported under your name.
What Shows Up On Your Report
Once the issuer reports, the account appears on your credit file with the date it was opened, its limit, its current balance and its payment history. Credit scoring models read it the way they read any other revolving account.
- Account age — the original open date, not the date you were added.
- Credit limit — which adds to your total available revolving credit.
- Balance — which is why sponsors are expected to keep balances at 15% or less of the limit while you're on the account.
- Payment history — the sponsor's on-time record.
Why Timing Matters
Card issuers report once per billing cycle, on their own schedule. That's why every listing has a purchase deadline and a Reporting Period: you have to be added before the issuer's statement date for the account to report in that cycle.
Our guarantee is built around that schedule. If a tradeline doesn't post to two credit bureaus by the end of its Reporting Period, you choose a full refund or an exchange for another tradeline.
What It Doesn't Do
An authorized-user account doesn't remove negative items, doesn't make you responsible for the debt, and doesn't guarantee any particular score. Some lenders also look past authorized-user accounts when they underwrite a loan by hand. It's one input among many, and nobody can honestly promise you a number.
See Today's Tradelines
Bank, limit, age, Reporting Period and price for every listing. If it doesn't post, you choose a full refund or an exchange.
Browse Tradelines