Legitimate credit repair companies can help you remove inaccurate information from your credit report, which may be damaging your credit score. However, they can't do anything for you that you couldn't do on your own—and for free. In addition, there are some disreputable credit repair companies that you should avoid.

Banks come into the picture of credit repair when you've had problems with your past credit; some banks may be willing to offer low-limit secured credit cards to help rebuild your credit. If used wisely, these active accounts can slowly raise your credit score over time.