The changes could be the result of changes in your credit report, such as a new hard inquiry from a credit application or a credit card issuer sending an update to the credit bureaus with your latest balance and payment information.
score differences are common and the result of small variations of when info is reported and the weight of that info. Large gaps are usually caused by scoring model differences or what and when info is displayed. You might expect all credit scores to be the same or slightly around the same, but they usually aren't.
FICO® and VantageScore® are the two most popular credit scoring models today. The credit scores they assign are equally reliable and accurate, based on the specific credit scoring model that's being used. Scores can and do fluctuate as new data is received.
This is due to a variety of factors, such as the many different credit score brands, score variations and score generations in commercial use at any given time. These factors are likely to yield different credit scores, even if your credit reports are identical across the three credit bureaus--which is also unusual.
The main reason your TransUnion and Equifax scores may differ is their algorithms. Each credit bureau uses its own algorithm to compute your score. Credit bureaus can also only work based on the information they receive.
What is the highest credit score possible? To start off: No, it's not possible to have a 900 credit score in the United States. In some countries that use other models, like Canada, people could have a score of 900. The current scoring models in the U.S. have a maximum of 850.
Lenders use it to help determine whether to approve someone for a loan or a mortgage and assess how much interest they might be charged. The FICO Score 8 can range from 300 to 850, with anything over 700 usually considered good credit health.
Payment history has the biggest impact on your credit score, making up 35% of your FICO® score. Amounts owed, which includes your credit utilization ratio, comes in at a close second, accounting for 30% of your score. The higher your credit score, the more likely you are to qualify for certain types of credit.
Still, you typically need a good credit score of 661 or higher to qualify for an auto loan. About 69% of retail vehicle financing is for borrowers with credit scores of 661 or higher, according to Experian. Meanwhile, low-credit borrowers with scores of 600 or lower accounted for only 14% of auto loans.
An Equifax credit score isn't used by lenders or creditors to assess a consumers' creditworthiness. Instead, many lenders use FICO Scores® to help determine a potential borrower's creditworthiness. FICO uses credit scores from the three reporting agencies, including Equifax and Transunion, to determine their score.
Using more of your credit card balance than usual — even if you pay on time — can reduce your score until a new, lower balance is reported the following month. Closed accounts and lower credit limits can also result in lower scores even if your payment behavior has not changed.
For a score with a range of 300 to 850, a credit score of 670 to 739 is considered good. Credit scores of 740 and above are very good while 800 and higher are excellent.
Your credit score may be different because creditors don't always report to all three major credit bureaus. The type of credit scoring model used to calculate your score could also lead to a different score.
Not Paying Bills on Time
Your payment history is the most influential factor in your FICO® Score, which means that missing even one payment by 30 days or more could wreak havoc on your credit.
Late payments are probably the most obvious thing that can hurt your credit score. If you have a missed payment and are more than 30 days late on a payment, it will show up on your credit report and lower your score. In fact, even one missed payment can drop your score by up to 100 points.
Even better, just over 1 in 5 people (21.2%) have an exceptional FICO credit score of 800 or above, all but guaranteeing access to the best products and interest rates.
There's no single, specific credit score that will automatically qualify you for a mortgage (though having the maximum score of 850 certainly never hurts). However, while lenders might not set precise qualifying numbers, they do have minimum credit score requirements.
Auto lenders may rely more on Equifax and Experian for credit report insights, but TransUnion also sells consumer data to a number of automotive lenders. Credit scoring models such as FICO® Auto Score 9 generate a credit score based on the debt and payment information in a consumer's credit report.
VantageScore vs.
FICO scores are the most widely used scores used by lenders to determine the creditworthiness of consumers. This means more institutions use FICO over any other scoring model to decide if someone should get a loan, mortgage, or any other credit product.
The credit bureaus may have different information.
And a lender may report updates to different bureaus at different times. So, it's possible that Equifax and TransUnion could have different credit information on your reports, which could lead to your TransUnion score differing from your Equifax score.