Does Happy Money do a hard inquiry?

Yes, Happy Money does a hard inquiry when you apply for a loan. This credit report inquiry will likely drop your credit score by about 5 to 10 points, but you'll be able to get back on track with a few months of on-time payments.

Happy Money's hard inquiry will stay on your credit report for two years, but it won't affect your credit after one year, and the impact may subside before then. To see how your individual credit score may be affected by a hard inquiry, you can use the credit score simulator on WalletHub.

It's worth noting that some people may be uncertain about whether Happy Money does a hard inquiry because there's only a soft inquiry during the pre-qualification process. Soft inquiries do not impact your credit score. But that's just the first step, and a hard inquiry is required when you officially apply.

If not having a hard inquiry is important to you, lenders that don't do a hard pull at all include Opploans, Integra Credit and NetCredit.