How Buying Tradelines Can Hurt Your Credit Score (2026)

Saving money on buying tradelines can hurt does not have to be complicated. We rounded up the essentials so you can spend less and skip the guesswork.

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• If you’ve got a low credit score or a limited credit history, buying tradelines , which is also referred to as “piggybacking” , may seem lik...

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If you’ve got a low credit score or a limited credit history, buying tradelines , which is also referred to as “piggybacking” , may seem like a good idea. 

After all, numerous companies that sell tradelines promise that you’ll get a near-immediate boost to your credit score, which could be the difference between buying a jalopy and getting a loan for a daily driver. 

While that’s true in some cases, buying tradelines can be expensive and risky. And it doesn’t always work. So we recommend avoiding this approach in favor of safer, more reliable options. 

Here are the most key things to know about the idea of buying tradelines:

• While buying tradelines is legal, it’s against numerous credit providers’ terms of service. This means if you get caught, you may be permanently banned from working with certain companies.
• Buying tradelines is legal, but you could get into trouble if you use your credit gains to get a loan or credit card. (If lenders suspect that you artificially inflated your credit score through purchasing tradelines, then used that enhanced score to obtain credit, they could consider this fraudulent behavior.)
• Even if you avoid the worst possible outcomes, buying a tradeline is not guaranteed to work, depending on the specifics of your credit history. 
• There are better, safer, and cheaper alternatives, such as starter credit cards, a credit builder loan from a reputable provider, or piggybacking on your parents’ or spouse’s credit accounts.
• You can add other types of payments to your credit reports, such as rent and utilities, to build your credit score quicker.

In this article:

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• What Is a Tradeline? 
• How Buying Tradelines Work
• Is Buying Tradelines Legal?
• Why Buying Tradelines Can Hurt Your Credit 
  • 1. It may be against the credit card provider’s terms of service
  • 2. You will suffer from any negative credit behavior of the card owner
  • 3. It puts you at risk for identity theft
  • 4. It’s expensive and not guaranteed to work
  • 5. The cardholder can remove you as an authorized user, erasing any positive payment history (and thus lowering your score)
• What to Do Instead
  • Piggyback on a family member’s or trusted friend’s card
  • Find a co-signer
  • Get a secured credit card
  • Get a credit builder loan
  • Add other types of bills to your credit reports
  • Dispute errors on your credit report
• Bottom Line: Buying Tradelines Is a Risky Idea

What Is a Tradeline? 

“Tradeline” is the industry term that describes each account that appears on your credit report. Every time you open a credit account, you establish one. 

For individuals, there are two primary types of tradelines:

• Installment accounts. This category includes things like mortgages, student loans, auto loans and credit accounts with fixed payments over a set time period.
• Revolving accounts. These are credit cards and other lines of credit with variable payments due, which can be borrowed from and paid off at will.

The tradeline associated with each account includes basic information such as the account type, activity, balance and limit. These details help credit scoring companies like Equifax and TransUnion determine your creditworthiness by demonstrating things like your payment history and how long your credit accounts have been open.

When tradelines show positive credit behavior, they can improve your credit score. When they show problematic behavior , like missed payments or charged-off accounts , they can significantly lower your credit score.

It’s common for family members to share tradelines by adding their spouses and children to their credit accounts as “authorized users.” This is called piggybacking. And if the cardholder has a good credit history, it can offer a significant boost to the person receiving the tradeline.

Then there’s the legally and ethically murky practice of buying tradelines, which is when someone who is looking to improve their credit pays to become an authorized user on a stranger’s credit account (typically a credit card).

Our research for this article revealed that the cost for each tradeline ranges from a few hundred dollars to a couple of thousand dollars.

Setting the Foundation: MONEY MANAGEMENT How To Build Credit At 18: Six Smart Tips Read More

How Buying Tradelines Work

You’ll typically work with a tradeline broker to purchase a tradeline. These companies recruit people with exceptional credit histories to sell space as an authorized user on their accounts. The buyer pays the broker and the broker pays the seller a commission.

You don’t get to stay on the seller’s card indefinitely. These arrangements typically last a couple of months (i.e., just long enough for the tradeline to show up on your credit report). Once the agreed-upon term has been reached, you’ll be removed from the card as an authorized user. 

The benefit of this is that it gives you a window of higher credit during which you have a better chance of getting a loan or credit card of your own, or a better rate on a loan for a high-value purchase.

To be added as an authorized user, yo have to provide your ID and Social Security number. That’s key to know because there are a lot of scams in this industry. No organizational body governs tradelines, which adds an element of risk when you’re handing over your personal information to a broker. While there are legitimate brokers in this space, there’s a lot of risk as well.

You typically don’t get a credit card for the account when you purchase a tradeline, so you can’t impact it either way. However, you’re at the mercy of the primary account holder, so your credit could be negatively affected if they start mismanaging the account.

Is Buying Tradelines Legal?

Thanks to a 1974 law called Final Thoughts

The bottom line: a little research on buying tradelines can hurt goes a long way. Compare your options, watch for seasonal offers, and never pay full price when a better deal is one click away.

Originally published at thewaystowealth.com.