Working Credit NFP

What Working Credit NFP does

Working Credit NFP is a Chicago-based 501(c)-class nonprofit founded in 2014 that delivers free credit-building education and one-on-one counseling to underserved individuals across the United States. Its core service offering combines a 45-minute live virtual or in-person credit building workshop with 12 months of personalized counseling from a dedicated credit building counselor, supplemented by guidance on credit builder loans and secured credit cards. The organization operates a B2B2C distribution model in which employer partners (ComEd, Tyson Foods, Boston Children's Hospital), government agencies (NYC Housing Authority, Cook County, Boston Mayor's Office of Returning Citizens), educational institutions (Morgan State University, City Colleges of Chicago), and social service nonprofits (United Way, Tzedek DC) refer their employees, residents, students, or clients into the program at no cost to the participant.

The underlying technology is intentionally minimal: Working Credit runs no proprietary software platform and instead orchestrates delivery through commodity third-party tools — Salesforce for CRM and participant data, Zoom for virtual workshops, Calendly for scheduling, and PayPal for donation processing. The competitive differentiator is human service delivery and validated outcomes rather than software: a Northeastern University randomized controlled trial (2019) and an Urban Institute study demonstrate measurable credit score gains, with Black and Latinx participants improving 44-45 points over 18 months versus 11 points for white participants. The program maintains educational content through a Resource Center and Counselors' Corner blog.

Working Credit's revenue mechanics are those of a mission-driven nonprofit: it does not charge participants and does not sell to individual consumers. Funding flows from a mix of employer sponsorship of programs, foundation grants (including a disclosed $500,000 Citi Foundation grant in December 2021), individual donations processed via PayPal, and institutional research partnerships (Capital One co-funding the second Urban Institute study). Leadership comprises Co-Founder/CEO Ricki Lowitz, Co-Founder/Director of Strategic Partnerships Susan Simon, Chief Program Officer Kristin Schell, and Chief Strategy Officer Rose Mary Brown, with Dr. Jacqueline Scott serving as Board President.

Name

Working Credit NFP

Legal name

Working Credit

Website

https://workingcredit.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Working Credit NFP is a Chicago-based nonprofit founded in 2014 that delivers free credit-building workshops and 12 months of one-on-one counseling to underserved workers and community members, distributed through employer, government, housing authority, and university partnerships across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Credit Counseling Services

NAICS

Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Credit Counseling & Debt Management Plans (DMP) (FSAKAJAH)

Keywords

• Credit building counseling
• Financial education services
• Nonprofit credit counseling
• Employee financial wellness
• Credit score coaching

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Working Credit NFP is a not-for-profit organization that raises funds from individual donors and institutional funders. The organization maintains a Candid/Guidestar profile and solicits donations via PayPal on its website. Funders include foundations and government grants that support program operations.
2. Employer/Partner Sponsored Programs: Working Credit's programs are offered free of charge to participants. The organization enters into partnerships with employers, nonprofits, housing authorities, and government agencies who fund or sponsor access to Working Credit's workshops and 12-month counseling program for their employees or clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Working Credit NFP delivers free credit building workshops and one-on-one counseling to help participants establish, improve, and sustain prime credit scores. The program combines 45-minute virtual Credit Building Workshops with 12 months of personalized Credit Building Counseling and Coaching, distributed through partnerships with employers, housing authorities, government agencies, universities, and community nonprofits. All services are provided at no cost to participants, funded by partner sponsorships, grants, and donations.

Product overview

Working Credit NFP offers a unified credit building program combining two core service offerings: the Credit Building Workshop (a 45-minute live virtual session covering credit fundamentals and scams) and 12 months of one-on-one Credit Building Counseling and Coaching (personalized financial guidance with a dedicated counselor). These are supplemented by on-demand virtual workshop content and co-branded marketing materials for partner organizations. The program also provides guidance on credit building financial products such as credit builder loans and secured credit cards. An online Resource Center delivers educational content on credit-related topics. The organization does not offer a software platform but rather a service-based program delivered through counselors and virtual workshops.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Credit Building Counseling and Coaching Twelve-month one-on-one virtual counseling program pairing each participant with a dedicated credit building counselor who develops a personalized Credit Action Plan, teaches credit system fundamentals, and guides participants through credit building strategies to achieve financial goals.
• Credit Building Workshop Forty-five-minute live virtual workshop delivered via Zoom that introduces participants to the credit scoring system, the cost of poor or no credit, fundamental rules of credit scoring, strategies to build strong scores, and common credit-related scams to avoid.
• On-Demand Virtual Workshop Series Subscription-based series of pre-recorded credit building workshop content that participants can access at any time, complementing the live workshop offering.

Quantifiable outcome

• 59% of participants with starting scores increased their scores by an average of 42 points within 12 months
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• ComEdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerComEd is one of Working Credit's 48 employer-level partners. Working Credit provides credit building workshops and counseling to ComEd employees as part of the utility company's workforce financial wellness benefits.
• Cook County Guaranteed Income Promise PilotcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking Credit partners with Cook County's Guaranteed Income Promise Pilot, providing credit building services to pilot participants to help them build financial resilience alongside guaranteed income support.
• Morgan State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMorgan State University is a systems-level partner offering Working Credit's credit building program to university students and/or employees.
• New York City Housing AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNYC Housing Authority is a government partner that refers public housing residents to Working Credit's credit building program to support financial stability among public housing tenants.
• Tyson FoodscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTyson Foods is an employer partner offering Working Credit's credit building services to its workforce as an employee benefit.
• Tzedek DCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTzedek DC is a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit that partners with Working Credit to provide credit building counseling to its clients.
• Boston Mayor's Office of Returning CitizenscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Boston Mayor's Office of Returning Citizens partners with Working Credit to provide credit building services to returning citizens in Boston, helping individuals re-entering society establish credit and avoid predatory lending.
• Pine Bluff Chamber of CommerceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking Credit's work in Pine Bluff, Arkansas is featured in partnership with the Pine Bluff Chamber of Commerce, with coverage by NBCU Academy.
• United Way (Boston Builds Credit)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking Credit was selected to lead United Way's Boston Builds Credit initiative in March 2025, a major community credit building program designed to improve financial outcomes for Boston residents.
• Boston Children's HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoston Children's Hospital offers Working Credit's workshop and one-on-one counseling as an employee benefit. Participant Dunia used the program to build her credit to a 700 score.
• City Colleges of ChicagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking Credit partners with City Colleges of Chicago, where students seeking debt forgiveness through the Fresh Start Student Debt Forgiveness Program are required to attend Working Credit's credit building workshop and work with a counselor.
• Chicago Furniture BankminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChicago Furniture Bank hosted Working Credit workshops for its employees and referred staff to the counseling program. Participant Jaime Hauad discovered Working Credit through this employer.
• Prepared Place MinistriesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrepared Place Ministries, a faith-based nonprofit in North Philadelphia serving women affected by incarceration, partners with Working Credit and refers participants to the credit building program. Founder Camille used the program personally before referring her clients.
• Self-Help Federal Credit UnioncoreTechnology or IntegrationSelf-Help Federal Credit Union is a Community Development Financial Institution that offers Credit Builder Loans, one of the key credit building tools Working Credit counselors recommend to participants who need to establish credit from scratch.
• Self, Inc.coreTechnology or IntegrationSelf, Inc. (also referred to as Self) is a national financial technology company offering Credit Builder Loans and secured credit cards that Working Credit recommends as tools for participants to establish or rebuild credit.
• Urban InstituteflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Urban Institute has conducted rigorous studies of Working Credit's program, finding that Black and Latinx participants make credit score gains that exceed those of white participants. Working Credit is currently pursuing a second study with the Urban Institute, partially funded by Capital One, to understand how past experiences with the credit system affect credit gains.
• Northeastern UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNortheastern University conducted a randomized controlled trial of Working Credit's program with young adults in Boston in 2019, finding multiple positive significant effects on the treatment group including lower car loan interest rates, with young Black men faring the best.
• Candid (GuideStar)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking Credit maintains its full organizational profile on Candid (formerly GuideStar), a nonprofit information service that provides transparency ratings and organizational data for nonprofits.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Self Financial: Self is a fintech that offers credit builder loans and secured credit cards to consumers. Working Credit actively recommends Self's products to participants, making them a partner and partial overlap in the credit building value chain—Self provides the product, Working Credit provides the counseling.
• MoneyLion: MoneyLion is a mobile banking and credit building platform offering credit builder loans, cash advances, and financial tracking. Comparable as a credit building services provider reaching consumers directly, competing with Working Credit's educational and counseling model.

Direct peers

• GreenPath Financial Wellness: GreenPath is a national nonprofit credit counseling and financial wellness agency that provides one-on-one credit counseling, debt management plans, and financial coaching to consumers. Most directly comparable to Working Credit's free counseling model, though it operates on a broader scale and includes debt management services.
• Money Management International (MMI): MMI is one of the largest nonprofit credit counseling agencies in the U.S., offering credit counseling, housing counseling, debt management plans, and financial education. Directly comparable to Working Credit as a nonprofit credit counseling provider serving consumers free of charge.
• InCharge Debt Solutions: InCharge Debt Solutions is a nonprofit provider of credit counseling, debt management, bankruptcy counseling, and financial education. Comparable to Working Credit in its nonprofit credit counseling service delivery and free participant access model.
• Mission Asset Fund: Mission Asset Fund is a nonprofit pioneering Lending Circles, zero-interest social loans that help immigrants and low-income families build credit. Directly comparable as a nonprofit credit building organization focused on underserved populations similar to Working Credit's target segments.
• Credit Builders Alliance (CBA): Credit Builders Alliance is a nonprofit that helps other nonprofits and mission-driven organizations embed credit building into their services. Directly comparable as a nonprofit working specifically on credit building (rather than debt management), with similar partnership-driven delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Credit Karma: Credit Karma is a large consumer fintech offering free credit scores, monitoring, and credit building product recommendations. A broad incumbent competitor to Working Credit's credit building educational mission, though delivered as a software platform rather than human counseling.
• National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC): NFCC is the largest national nonprofit umbrella organization for credit counseling agencies, setting standards and providing shared infrastructure for member agencies. Broader incumbent comparable to Working Credit as the ecosystem of U.S. credit counseling nonprofits.

Others

• National Consumer Law Center: NCLC is a nonprofit advocacy and research organization focused on consumer protection and credit justice for low-income consumers. Adjacent peer that shares Working Credit's equity and credit access mission, though operating through policy and litigation rather than direct service delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/WorkingCredit
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@workingcredit
• Facebookfacebook.com/workingcredit
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/working-credit-nfp
• Instagraminstagram.com/workingcredit

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Working Credit NFP