117 short video courses across 12 categories — from reading your first credit report to dispute strategy, business credit, and your legal rights. Every course ends with a quiz; finish a category to earn a certificate.
Browse the full catalog without an account. Create a free account only when you're ready to watch courses, save progress, take quizzes, earn badges, or download certificates.
117 courses101 free courses with an accountQuizzes, streaks, badges & certificates
Learn how your credit report and credit score differ, where to get each, and why errors are fixed on the report, not the score.
Lesson 2 of 10 3 min
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 850 University free?
Most 850 University courses are free with an 850ai account (no credit card required). Some advanced courses are marked Premium and are included with paid 850ai plans.
What topics does 850 University cover?
Credit foundations, reading your credit report, DIY credit repair, dispute strategies, negative items, credit building, business credit, financial strategies, advanced techniques, your legal rights under the FCRA and FDCPA — and even credit basics for kids.
How long are the courses?
Courses are short-form video lessons, typically 3-10 minutes each, followed by a quiz. Passing quizzes earns XP, streaks, badges, and category certificates.
Do I get a certificate?
Yes — completing all courses in a category earns a category certificate, and progress tracking (XP, streaks, badges) is built into your 850ai account.
Start learning — and fixing — today
850 University is built into 850ai: learn how credit works while the AI analyzes your report, finds errors, and generates your dispute letters.
Learn the difference between hard and soft inquiries, how rate shopping is often counted, and how to check your inquiry list for names you don't recognize.
Learn what remarks and dispute comments on your report mean, why they matter to lenders, and how to catch a dispute comment that stayed after it should have cleared.
Identify what makes an item negative and what hurts your credit the most.
1
What Makes an Item Negative
Learn what counts as a negative item, how it differs from things that are only unfavorable, how long accurate negatives can report, and when a dispute fits.
Late Payments: How One Missed Payment Changes the Story
Learn when a late payment usually gets reported, how lates step up from 30 to 120 days, why their weight fades, and what goodwill letters and disputes are for.
Learn the two common types of bankruptcy, how long each can report, how included accounts should look, and how to check them against your court papers.
Medical Collections: Why Medical Bills Need Extra Care
Learn why medical bills need extra care, what the bureaus changed about reporting medical debt, and how to check the bill, the insurance, and your report.
Learn where rental problems show up, how a tenant screening report differs from a credit report, what a rental collection is, and how to protect yourself at move-out.
Utility, Phone, and Subscription Collections: Small Bills, Big Credit Damage
Learn how utility, phone, internet, and subscription bills can reach your credit report through collections, the final-bill trap, and what proof to keep.
Paid, Settled, and Unpaid Negatives: What They Really Mean
Learn what paid in full, settled, and unpaid mean on a negative account, how lenders may read each, the tax side of settling, and how to check your report after.
Learn how negative items age on a credit report, why the date of first delinquency sets the clock, and how the reporting period differs from the statute of limitations.
Pull your reports, find what's hurting you, gather evidence and run your own disputes step by step.
1
How to Pull All Three Reports for Free
Learn how to pull your free reports from all three bureaus on the official site, save dated copies, and read each report in the same order.
Lesson 1 of 13 3 min6-question quizStudy guide
2
Revolving Accounts vs. Installment Loans
Learn how to read revolving accounts and installment loans on your report, why card balances drive utilization, and how cost can guide which debt to pay first.
Lesson 2 of 13 3 min6-question quizStudy guide
3
How to Find What's Actually Hurting Your Credit
Learn how to triage your credit report: read key factors, sort items into five bins, separate errors from accurate items, and rank what to work on first.
Lesson 3 of 13 3 min6-question quizStudy guide
4
What Are Data Furnishers
Learn what data furnishers are, how they send your information to the bureaus, what the law expects of them, and why disputing at the source matters.
Learn the main rights the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you over your reports, from free copies and disputes to freezes, fraud alerts, and time limits.
Learn why disputing accurate accounts can backfire, how to sort your accounts into three piles, and the three questions to answer before you send a dispute.
Learn to tell authorized hard inquiries from unauthorized ones, research names you don't recognize, and dispute only the inquiries you never authorized.
Learn the bureaus' medical collection reporting policies, common medical billing errors, the proof each one needs, and when to leave an accurate bill alone.
Learn how federal student loans move between servicers and collections, where handoff errors hide, and how to dispute only the lines that don't match your records.
Learn how a bankruptcy shows up in two layers on a credit report, which errors to check in each, how to prove them with the court file, and where to send disputes.
Learn where the personal information on your report comes from, which fields to dispute or leave alone, the proof for each, and why you fix the source too.
Learn the trade-offs of disputing online, by phone, or by mail, how to match each problem to the right channel, and how to save a record of what you sent.
Learn how disputes travel through e-OSCAR, how to lead with one clear fact, dispute directly with the furnisher, compare reports, and escalate in order.
Learn five credit card patterns underwriters tend to notice, why lenders read the whole report and not just the score, and calmer habits to build instead.
Learn the basic business structures, why an EIN and business bank account matter, and how matching records and licenses help a business stand on its own.
Learn how business credit cards work, what a personal guarantee means for you, how reporting can reach your personal file, and what to read before signing.
Learn what underwriters generally weigh in a business funding decision: time in business, revenue, cash flow, credit, collateral, and honest documents.
Learn five habits that keep a business credit card useful: separate spending, pay in full when you can, watch utilization, space applications, and use rewards wisely.