Of course, the lower your credit score, the higher your interest rates will be.īe careful with your credit applications, though. It depends on the lender or credit card issuer. However, it’s not unheard of for someone in the mid-500s to get approved. Getting approved for a car loan typically requires a score in the low- to mid-600s. So if your credit score is close to the average FICO score, your mortgage prospects look promising. For conventional loans, lenders usually require a minimum score of 660. If you still qualify for the loan buy your score falls below that number, you’ll need to put down 10% of the loan price at the time of closing. An FHA home loan, for example, only requires a score of 580 to qualify and take advantage of the program’s 3.5% down payment. Since the average credit score falls within the “good” category, you can do quite a bit in terms of loans. An average FICO credit score of 716 FICO is a record high. If you look at the credit score range above, you’ll see that a credit score of 716 falls just within the “good” rating. Now that you understand the basics of credit scores, are you ready for the big reveal?Īccording to MyFICO, the average FICO score in America for 2021 was 716. Here’s how those FICO scores break down into rating categories: FICO Score Rating Categories Lenders do this to mitigate the risk of loan default.įICO scores range from 300 to 850, with 850 being the highest score possible. Since someone with a lower credit score is deemed less likely to repay the loan, they’ll receive a higher interest rate. They use them to decide whether to approve your application, and what interest rate to charge you. However, some of them use other credit scoring models. Most lenders and credit card issuers use FICO’s credit scoring model to determine how likely you are to repay borrowed funds. The FICO credit scoring model uses the information in your credit report to create a numerical representation of your creditworthiness. Ready to find out? Putting Credit Scores into ContextĬredit scores are most frequently crafted by a company called FICO.

We’ve got the inside scoop on how you stack up in the wild world of credit.

With all this competition for credit, housing, and even jobs, it’s natural to wonder what the average credit score is and how it compares to everyone else’s. This means your credit score can even affect whether you’re picked for your dream job. In some cases, potential employers will even check your credit to see how responsible you are. That’s because your credit score affects just about every aspect of your life: your ability to get a mortgage, qualify for a car loan, or rent an apartment. Credit score talk is all over the place these days, from online forums to the office break room.

Credit score range 2019