Your credit score is a three-digit number that has a strong influence on your financial life. It can influence how much interest you’ll have to pay on loans and credit cards, or whether you’ll be able to get them at all. It could also influence the kind of home or car you’ll be able to buy.
FICO® Scores generally range from 300 to 850. They’re calculated with algorithms created by the Fair Isaac Corp., which is why they’re called FICO® Credit Scores.
Generally, people with a good credit score have a long history of making their credit card and other loan payments on time. Payment history typically makes up 35% of the total calculation. Amounts owed typically makes up about 30%. Other considerations are length of credit history, about 15%; credit mix (having accounts such as mortgages, loans and credit cards), about 10%; and new credit (or credit inquiries received from new creditors) about 10%.
The data in your credit report directly affects our FICO® Score and it’s a good idea to check your credit report once per year through the free resource, AnnualCreditReport.com. Similarly, if you have signed up for a service to check your credit score or you are provided your score by a lender, for example, you’ll know where you stand. And when you know more about your score, you can find out where you fall on this credit score chart.
Published September 12, 2016.
Updated August 26, 2021.
