Where to verify
Official consumer finance resources worth bookmarking
These official consumer finance resources are where to check the things a calculator cannot: your actual credit report, whether a bank or credit union is federally insured, your federal student loan details, how to file a complaint, and the published rate data regulators release. Each one is run by a federal agency or required by federal law, and all of them are free to use.
Where can I verify financial information for free?
Use the official sources. Free credit reports come through AnnualCreditReport.com, the site authorized by federal law. The FDIC and NCUA confirm whether deposits are insured. Federal Student Aid shows your federal loans. The CFPB takes complaints, and the Federal Reserve publishes rate data in its H.15 and G.19 releases.
Where can you check your own information?
Your credit reports
Federal law entitles you to free credit reports from each nationwide credit bureau through AnnualCreditReport.com. The CFPB explains how to read a report and dispute errors.
Deposit insurance at a bank
The FDIC's BankFind tool confirms whether a bank is FDIC-insured. Coverage is up to $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, per ownership category.
Deposit insurance at a credit union
The NCUA's credit union lookup confirms federal share insurance, which follows the same $250,000 standard limit for federally insured credit unions.
Your federal student loans
Your Federal Student Aid account shows your federal loan balances, servicer, interest rates and repayment options. FSA also explains consolidation and repayment plans.
Where can you get help or file a complaint?
Consumer complaints
The CFPB accepts complaints about credit cards, loans, bank accounts, credit reports and debt collection, and forwards them to the company for a response.
Rules in plain English
The CFPB's consumer pages explain auto loans, credit cards, student loans and debt collection rights in everyday language.
Investing basics
The SEC's Investor.gov explains compound interest and the Rule of 72, and offers its own compound interest calculator to check results.
Savings bonds
TreasuryDirect, run by the US Treasury, explains how Series I savings bonds earn interest and how to buy them.
Where do official interest rate figures come from?
We never quote current market rates as facts. If you want published figures, these are the primary sources.
| Source | Publisher | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| H.15 Selected Interest Rates | Federal Reserve | Treasury yields, the federal funds rate and other benchmark rates |
| G.19 Consumer Credit | Federal Reserve | Consumer credit outstanding and average rates on car loans, personal loans and credit cards |
| National Rates and Rate Caps | FDIC | National average deposit rates for savings, checking, money market accounts and CDs |
| Consumer Price Index | Bureau of Labor Statistics | Inflation, used to see what savings earn after rising prices |
| Interest topics in tax guidance | IRS | How interest income and deductible interest are reported on your tax return |
What can you use on this site alongside them?
- 65 calculators across five topics
- 10 in-depth guides on interest, borrowing, debt payoff and saving
- A glossary of 42 plain-English terms
- An FAQ hub that gathers common questions
- Curated collections for common life situations
- A sources list on every page
How do you know a resource is the official one?
Look at the address before you share anything. Federal agency sites end in .gov, and the free credit report site authorized by federal law is AnnualCreditReport.com. Official sources will not charge you to view your free credit reports or to check deposit insurance.
Be wary of look-alike sites, ads placed above search results, and anyone who contacts you first offering to "fix" credit or forgive loans for a fee. The CFPB and Federal Student Aid publish warnings about common scams, and you can report one through the CFPB complaint system.
Source library
Every primary source we cite
Official pages from regulators and federal agencies, grouped by publisher. Links last checked October 17, 2026.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Central Source LLC (authorized by federal law)
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
eCFR / National Archives
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Reserve Board
Federal Student Aid (U.S. Department of Education)
Federal Trade Commission
Internal Revenue Service
National Credit Union Administration
Social Security Administration
State of California Department of Justice
TreasuryDirect (U.S. Department of the Treasury)
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
U.S. Department of Energy & EPA
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Investor.gov)
W3C
Frequently asked questions
Where do I get my free credit reports?
Go to AnnualCreditReport.com, the only site authorized by federal law to provide your free reports from the nationwide credit bureaus. You can also request them by phone or mail. Checking your own reports does not affect your credit score. If you find an error, the CFPB explains how to dispute it with the credit bureau and the company that reported it.
How do I check whether my bank is FDIC-insured?
Use the FDIC's BankFind tool and search by the bank's name. It shows whether the institution is FDIC-insured and its official name. For a credit union, use the NCUA's credit union lookup instead, since credit unions are insured by the NCUA rather than the FDIC.
How do I file a complaint against a lender or card issuer?
Submit it through the CFPB's online complaint system. Describe what happened, attach documents if you have them, and say what you want resolved. The CFPB forwards it to the company, which is generally expected to respond, and you can track the status online.
Where can I see my federal student loan balance and servicer?
Log in to your Federal Student Aid account. It lists every federal loan, its balance and interest rate, and the servicer that handles it. Private student loans do not appear there; check your credit report or contact the lender for those.
Where can I find official average interest rates?
The Federal Reserve's G.19 release reports average rates on car loans, personal loans and credit cards, and its H.15 release covers benchmark rates such as Treasury yields. The FDIC publishes national average deposit rates. These are averages, not the rate you will be offered.
Is there an official compound interest calculator I can compare with?
Yes. The SEC's Investor.gov site has a compound interest calculator. Enter the same deposit, rate, time and compounding frequency into it and into our compound interest calculator, and the results should match closely. We use it for spot-checks. If you see a gap larger than a few cents, check that both use the same compounding and deposit timing, then tell us.
How can I tell a real government website from a fake one?
Federal government websites end in .gov and use HTTPS. Official services such as free credit reports and deposit insurance lookups do not charge a fee. If someone calls or messages you first, asks for payment to fix credit or forgive loans, or pressures you to act fast, treat it as a warning sign.
Does this site link to commercial resources?
Our resources page only points to government agencies and the federally authorized credit report site. Optional partner links, which are not live yet, appear elsewhere on the site, are always labelled, and run through our /go/ pages. Nothing on this page earns us money, and none of the agencies listed endorse our site.
Check the source, then run the numbers
Pair any official figure with the matching calculator to see what it means for you.