United States

Factors that influence your credit score in United States

Your credit score is affected by many things, including whether or not you pay on time and how much of your credit amount you use

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In US, several factors influence your credit score, including whether you pay your payments on time and the amount of time you've used credit. Understanding what factors influence credit scores allows you to design the most efficient method to grow or protect your credit.
Your credit typically determines whether or not you can qualify for a credit card or a car loan, and at what interest rate; whether or not you can qualify for a mortgage or rent the apartment you desire; and even how much you pay for car insurance and utility deposits.
The most important elements influencing credit scores:
The methodology of the two largest scoring organizations in the United States, FICO and VantageScore, differ slightly, although they agree on the two most essential variables. More than half of your credit score is made up of payment history and credit utilization, which is the percentage of your credit limits that you actually utilize. 
Here's a list of all the things that influence your scores:
Payment record
Your credit reports reveal your payment history, or whether you've paid bills and other commitments on time on a consistent basis. According to FICO, payment history accounts for 35% of your score. According to VantageScore, payment history accounts for 40% of their 3.0 scoring methodology.
Use of credit
Credit usage refers to the percentage of your credit limit that you use. The amount of available credit you use accounts for 30% of your FICO score, whereas VantageScore 3.0 accounts for 20%.
Other credit score factors you should be aware of
Once you've mastered on-time payments and minimal credit use, you may focus on other credit indicators. These have an impact on your scores as well, though not nearly as much:
The length of time you've had credit for: Maintain old accounts as long as feasible unless there is a compelling reason to close them, such as an annual charge on a credit card you no longer use.
Your credit mix, or the variety of credit you have: It's better to have a combination of installment loans and revolving credit accounts. Installment loans are those with a set number of equal payments, such as car loans or mortgages.
The amount of time it has been since you applied for new credit: Each application that results in a hard inquiry on your credit report may deduct a few points from your score.
Total balances and debt: It's ideal if you're making progress toward reducing your debt.
Credit scoring companies examine your credit reports to see how you rank on each of these parameters. They then use that data to calculate your scores. Checking your credit reports will allow you to see the same things they do.
Concentrate your credit-building efforts on making on-time payments and keeping balances low in comparison to credit limits, as these things have the most impact on your ratings.
 

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