You’ve paid every bill on time and you’re finally starting to get out of debt. After months of work, you log into your banking app to check your credit score. Determined to achieve perfect credit, you see that your score is 750. You’re excited because your score is going up — but is a 750 credit score enough to achieve your goals?
Earning a 750 credit score is a major achievement. But should you stop here — or should you focus on increasing your score? We’ll take a closer look at the 750 credit score and show you how you can use MoneyLion’s credit tools to help raise your score even more.
Is a 750 Credit Score Good?
A 750 credit score falls into the “good” score range under the VantageScore model and “very good” under the FICO score model. VantageScore and FICO are both companies that develop credit scores for lenders and creditors to use to evaluate loan applicants.
A 750 credit score will give you access to better interest rates than scores in the 600s. A 750 credit score will also allow you to open a loan or credit card with nearly any credit provider. However, to get access to the best rates possible, you’ll want to increase your score into the 800s.
It’s important to know what makes up your score if you want to improve it. First, let’s take a closer look at where exactly credit scores come from. The factors that contribute to your FICO score (the most popular scoring model among lenders) include:
Payment history: Do you remember to make your loan and credit card payments on time? Or are you guilty of missing a due date or two? Payment history makes up about 35% of your FICO score.
Credit utilization: Credit utilization is a term that describes what percentage of your credit you use on a month-to-month basis. For example, if you have a $1,000 credit line and you use $500 every month, you have a 50% credit utilization. Keep a low credit utilization rate to raise your score. Credit utilization makes up about 30% of your FICO score.
Credit history: Creditors and banks want to see how you’ve managed your credit lines over a long period of time. Your credit history length makes up about 15% of your FICO score.
Credit mix: Creditors like to see that you have experience managing multiple types of credit. A healthy mix of loans, credit cards and other credit types contribute to 10% of your score.
Recent inquiries: When you apply for a new card or credit line, creditors do a “hard inquiry” on your credit report. Hard inquiries temporarily lower your credit score. Your recent inquiries make up about 10% of your FICO score.
You might also want to know what makes up your VantageScore. The factors that contribute to your VantageScore include:
Payment history: Just like your FICO score, payment history is the dominant factor in your VantageScore as well. In fact, 40% of your VantageScore comes from your payment history.
Age and type of credit: VantageScore combines the age and credit history of FICO into a single factor and accounts for about 21% of your score.
Credit utilization: Credit utilization is also important in the VantageScore model and makes up 20% of your score.
Total balances: Do you keep a lot of money on your credit cards? Or do you only charge the occasional night out with friends? Your total credit balance comprises 11% of your VantageScore.
Recent behavior: Your recent behavior includes inquiries and spending habits and makes up about 5% of your VantageScore.
Available credit: In addition to your total balances, your available credit also plays a role in your score calculation. Your total available credit accounts for 3% of your score.
What is the Highest Credit Score?
Now that you know what makes up your credit score, where do your scores come from and how high can they go? Credit scores come from information contained in your credit report. A credit report contains information on how you’ve used credit in the past and loans you have now. Credit reports come from credit reporting bureaus, which collect and store information on almost everyone who uses credit. The three major credit reporting bureaus are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
Credit reporting bureaus use the information on your credit reports to give you a credit score. What contributes to each score depends on the scoring method the bureau uses, whether it’s VantageScore or FICO. Let’s take a closer look at each of the credit scoring bureaus and their score ranges.
Experian
Experian uses the FICO scoring model. The FICO credit score is the score most commonly used by lenders. Experian score ranges are as follows:
- Very poor: Below 580. If you have a very poor credit score, you’ll have trouble getting approvals for loans and credit cards. Only 16% of people have a score that falls into this range.
- Fair: 580-669. You might be able to find a loan or card if you have a fair credit score. However, you’ll pay more in interest than someone with a higher score. Just 17% of people have a fair FICO score.
- Good: 670-739. A good credit score holder is very unlikely to become seriously delinquent on his or her accounts. This gives him or her access to better interest rates and rewards. About 21% of people have a credit score that falls into the “good” range.
- Very good: 740-799. FICO considers your credit to be in very good shape when it’s in this range. About 25% of consumers fall into the “very good” category.
- Exceptional: 800-850. You’re in the top 21% of the entire country if you’re in the exceptional range. Borrowers with exceptional credit get access to the best interest rates and the most generous reward systems. The maximum FICO score — perfect credit — is 850.
TransUnion
TransUnion uses the VantageScore scoring model. However, unlike other bureaus, TransUnion uses a letter grading system to rank credit scores. Just like when you were in high school, an “F” is the worst grade and an “A” is the best. Here’s how different credit scores work under TransUnion’s ranking system:
- F: Between 300 and 600
- D: Between 601 and 657
- C: Between 658 and 719
- B: Between 720 and 780
- A: Between 781 and 850
Like other score providers, the maximum score you can get under the TransUnion model is 850. A credit score of 750 gives you a “B” grade.
Equifax
Equifax uses a modified version of the VantageScore credit scoring model. However, the Equifax score ranges slightly vary from TransUnion’s. Equifax’s scoring ranges are as follows:
- Poor: Below 560. Only about 12% of people have an Equifax score that falls into the “poor” range.
- Fair: 560-659. This Equifax range contains about 21% of consumers.
- Good: 660-724. About 18% of people see a good credit score on their Equifax report.
- Very good: 725-759. About 12% of consumers have a very good score under Equifax’s scoring model. Credit scores of 750 fall into this category.
- Excellent: 760-850. The most common score range for Equifax reports, 37% of people have an excellent Equifax score. The maximum credit score that you can have under the Equifax model is 850.
From 750 to 850: How to Increase Your Credit Score
A credit score of 750 is a great score under both models. However, if your goal is to enter the perfect credit club, you’ll need to boost your score by 100 points. Here are a few tips you can use to give your credit score the final push it needs.
Keep Your Utilization As Low As Possible
As a general rule, lenders like to see borrowers who have low credit utilization rates. Credit utilization refers to the amount of credit you use relative to your overall credit limit. However, if you want to become a member of the perfect credit club, you’ll need to keep your balances even lower. Keep a careful eye on your credit utilization and try to keep it under 10% for maximum score increases.
Avoid Closing Open Lines of Credit
If you’re working to improve your score, closing credit cards that you don’t use may seem like a really good idea. Unfortunately, closing any existing lines of credit you have open lowers your score because it increases your utilization percentage, so keep those lines of credit open.
Add a Personal Loan to The Mix
You do everything right: You pay all your bills on time, yet sometimes, you still don’t see your scores reach the 850 level. You may want to add a small personal loan to your credit mix if you’ve run into this frustrating roadblock. Personal loans can give your credit the final boost they need to get your score into the 800s. Seventy percent of MoneyLion users who took out a Credit Builder loan with Credit Builder Plus saw their score increase. Look for a loan with low interest rates and remember to make your payments on time to see your score rise.
Be Patient
If you’re on track with your spending and borrowing habits yet your score still isn’t rising, you may just need to wait. The age of your accounts plays a major factor in determining your credit score and sometimes you just need a little more time. Keep up the great habits and be patient — your score will eventually rise.
Using Credit Monitoring from MoneyLion
Credit monitoring tools from MoneyLion can help you reach perfect credit faster. MoneyLion’s fraud protection services work to constantly keep you and your money protected. Catching instances of fraud and identity theft early are both essential steps to improving your credit or maintaining great credit.
You can also view your credit score at any time or see your credit history. This helps you stay on track toward your goals. .
Your Journey to the Perfect Score
It’s important to remember that great credit doesn’t happen overnight. Consistent, healthy credit usage, good budgeting and careful spending are the keys to ratchet up your score. Stick to your goals and you’ll notice big improvements in less time than you think!
Are you ready to take the first step toward a healthier credit score? MoneyLion is here to help you enjoy the high credit lifestyle with a little less stress. Download the MoneyLion app from the Google Play or Apple App store today to get started.
