What Is a Good Credit Score? Understanding the 300 to 850 Range
There is no single number that counts as a good credit score. Most credit scores, including FICO and VantageScore, use a 300 to 850 range, and each lender sets its own thresholds. Broadly, scores in the upper portion of that range are treated as good, while scores near the bottom are treated as weaker.
This guide is general educational information for U.S. readers. It is not financial advice and does not describe your individual credit file. Figures such as score ranges and timeline estimates are typical examples, not promises.
Key takeaways
- Most credit scores, including FICO and VantageScore, run from 300 to 850.
- FICO's published band labels place the good band in the middle of the range, but lenders set their own cutoffs for approval and pricing.
- Payment history at 35% and amounts owed at 30% carry the most weight in FICO scores, while VantageScore does not publish fixed percentages.
- A score reflects one credit file at one moment, so different models and different agencies can produce different numbers for the same person.
- Most negative information stays on a credit report for seven years, while a Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for ten years and a Chapter 13 bankruptcy for seven.
- Free credit reports from each nationwide credit reporting agency are available through AnnualCreditReport.com, currently on a weekly basis.
There is no single number that counts as a good credit score. Most credit scores, including FICO and VantageScore, use a range of 300 to 850, and every lender sets its own thresholds, so the score that is competitive for one card or loan may be less competitive for another. Broadly, scores in the upper portion of the range are treated as good, while scores near the bottom are treated as weaker.
What counts as a good credit score?
Good is a market label rather than a legal rule. Scoring companies publish band labels that divide the 300 to 850 range into named categories, and lenders decide which categories they will accept for a given product. FICO's published bands, as summarized in Experian's credit education library (Experian), place scores of 670 to 739 in the good band, 740 to 799 in very good, and 800 to 850 in exceptional.
| FICO band label | Score range | Position within the 300 to 850 scale |
|---|---|---|
| Exceptional | 800 to 850 | Top of the scale |
| Very good | 740 to 799 | Well above the middle of the scale |
| Good | 670 to 739 | Above the middle of the scale |
| Fair | 580 to 669 | Around the middle of the scale |
| Very poor | 300 to 579 | Bottom of the scale |
Those labels are conventions rather than firm cutoffs. A lender may approve an application from someone in a lower band and decline one from someone in a higher band, because a score is only one input into an underwriting decision. VantageScore publishes its own band labels, and its boundaries do not line up exactly with FICO's, so the same file can be sorted into a slightly different category depending on which model a lender uses. Credit score ranges explained covers the labels in more detail.
What is a great credit score?
Questions about a great credit score usually concern the top of the scale rather than the minimum a lender will accept. Under FICO's published labels, the highest band runs up to 850, and there is little practical difference between two scores inside it, because lenders generally apply the same treatment across that band when pricing a loan or card. Which model a lender uses, and how the two major models differ, is covered in FICO vs VantageScore.
What a credit score does not measure
A credit score is limited to what a credit file contains. It generally does not reflect income, savings, employment history or assets, and it does not include payments that are not reported to the nationwide agencies, such as many rent, utility and cell phone accounts. That gap is one reason a strong score and a strained financial position can exist side by side, and the reverse as well. Lenders that consider income or assets collect that information separately, from the application rather than from the score. The Federal Reserve, for instance, publishes aggregate consumer credit statistics through its G.19 release, which measures total outstanding consumer credit rather than any individual score.
Why the same score can be judged differently
A credit score is one part of a lender's review, and the review varies by product and by lender. Two applicants with identical scores can receive different offers because of:
- The product: mortgage, auto loan, credit card and personal loan underwriting each weigh risk differently.
- The scoring model and version: FICO and VantageScore release new versions over time, and a lender may still use an older one.
- The timing of the data: balances and account statuses are reported by lenders and change from month to month.
- Information outside the score: income, the debts listed on the application, and the applicant's existing relationship with the lender.
- The credit reporting agency: the three nationwide agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, hold files that can differ from one another.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau maintains a consumer overview of credit reports and scores (CFPB) that describes why a person may see several different numbers and what each one represents.
How a credit score is calculated
A score summarizes the information in a credit file at a point in time. FICO publishes approximate weights for the five categories it considers; VantageScore uses its own weighting and does not publish fixed percentages.
| Factor | Approximate weight in FICO scores | What it reflects |
|---|---|---|
| Payment history | 35% | Whether accounts were paid as agreed, as reported by lenders |
| Amounts owed | 30% | Balances relative to limits, and total debt reported |
| Length of credit history | 15% | Age of accounts and how long they have been open |
| New credit | 10% | Recently opened accounts and recent hard inquiries |
| Credit mix | 10% | The variety of account types on file, such as revolving and installment |
The weights explain why two people with similar balances can receive different scores, and why one recent event can move a score more than several older ones. The calculation itself is described in how credit scores are calculated. Each of the nationwide agencies publishes its own consumer education material, including Equifax, and the credit score hub collects the related guides.
The two factors that carry the most weight
Payment history and amounts owed together account for roughly two thirds of a FICO score. Payment history is the record of whether accounts were paid as agreed, and it is the first thing most lenders examine. Amounts owed is usually looked at as credit utilization, the ratio of a revolving balance to its limit, along with the total debt reported across accounts. Payment history and credit scores and credit utilization explained describe how each is measured and reported.
Length of credit history, new credit and credit mix carry smaller weights, at 15%, 10% and 10%. They tend to matter at the margins, and they move slowly: account age changes with time, while inquiries and newly opened accounts carry less influence as they get older.
Reports, scores and where the data comes from
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA, 15 U.S.C. section 1681) gives consumers the right to a free credit report from each nationwide credit reporting agency every 12 months, and the three agencies currently provide free reports weekly through AnnualCreditReport.com. A report and a score are separate products: the report lists the account data, while the score is a number calculated from it. Credit reports, credit checks and credit monitoring cover what each one shows and how each is used.
If an item is disputed, the FCRA generally requires the credit reporting agency to investigate within 30 days, and that period can extend to 45 days when additional information is provided during the initial 30-day window. The FCRA was enacted in 1970 and amended by the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act in 2003. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, created by the Dodd-Frank Act in 2010 and operating since 2011, supervises the consumer reporting market and publishes research about it.
How long information stays on a credit report
Because scores are calculated from currently reported data, the age of each item matters.
| Item | Time on a credit report |
|---|---|
| Most negative information, including late payments | 7 years |
| Chapter 7 bankruptcy | 10 years |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy | 7 years |
| Hard inquiry | 2 years |
| Initial fraud alert | 1 year |
| Extended fraud alert | 7 years |
A late payment reported five years ago carries less influence than one reported last month, and a hard inquiry is no longer listed after two years. Length of credit history explained describes how account age is measured.
Fraud alerts, security freezes and identity theft
FCRA section 605A (15 U.S.C. section 1681c-1) covers fraud alerts, and section 605B (15 U.S.C. section 1681c-2) covers blocking information that resulted from identity theft. A security freeze is free to place, temporarily lift or remove under federal law. A freeze restricts access to a file, which affects a lender that needs to pull a score, so the timing of a freeze relative to an application matters. Credit freeze and Credit lock explain how the two tools differ, and identity theft and credit profile cover the reporting process, which includes IdentityTheft.gov and IRS Form 14039.
This page is provided for education only and is not financial advice.
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Frequently asked questions
What is a good credit score?
Most scoring models use a 300 to 850 range, and FICO's published band labels place the good band in the middle portion of that range. The practical answer depends on the lender and the product, since each lender sets its own cutoffs for approval, interest rate and credit limit, and the model a lender uses can change where a given file lands.
Is there an official threshold that makes a score good?
No. Federal law does not define a good score. The band labels come from the scoring companies, and the acceptance thresholds come from individual lenders, so a number that is treated as strong for one product may be treated as average for another.
What is a great credit score?
A great score is generally understood as one in the top band of the scale, which under FICO's published labels runs up to 850. Scores within that band are usually treated the same way by lenders for pricing purposes, and the scale does not extend beyond 850.
Do all lenders use the same credit score?
No. FICO and VantageScore use different weighting methods, both release multiple versions, and the three nationwide credit reporting agencies hold files that can differ from one another. A consumer can therefore have several different scores at the same moment.
How often can a free credit report be obtained?
The FCRA gives consumers the right to a free credit report from each nationwide credit reporting agency every 12 months, and the three agencies currently provide free reports weekly through AnnualCreditReport.com. Reports list the account data, while scores are separate products calculated from that data.
How long does a late payment stay on a credit report?
Most negative information, including late payments, stays on a credit report for seven years. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for ten years and a Chapter 13 bankruptcy for seven years, while hard inquiries typically remain for two years.
Related guides
- Credit Score Ranges Explained
- How Credit Scores Are Calculated
- Fico Vs Vantagescore
- Payment History And Credit Scores
- Credit Utilization Explained
- Length Of Credit History Explained