If your bank or credit union provides you a credit score, you can use it to understand how creditors will see you. The credit score your bank shows may not be the same one a lender uses, but it can be a good starting point.
Many banks and credit unions provide credit scores to account holders and credit card customers. This is a useful benefit, but to make the most of it, it's important to understand the nature of the score you're seeing, and how it may relate to the scores lenders use to evaluate your creditworthiness.
Credit scores provided by banks include the following, all of which are calculated using credit report data sourced from one of the three national credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion or Equifax). The bureau that provided your credit data should be indicated along with the score.
While less common than they were a decade ago, certain credit scores may be calculated by a bank or another business (not FICO or VantageScore) that are proprietary or assign a unique scale range. Lenders do not use these scores when making credit decisions, but consumers can use them to track improvements in creditworthiness.
To learn more about credit reports and scores, check out the Experian Credit Course. This free, interactive course will take you through what you need to know about your credit.
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Yes, you can trust credit scores reported by your financial institution. They will accurately reflect your credit history as it appears on the credit report upon which the score is based. To reiterate, however, the credit score your bank provides for free may not be the same one a lender will use when considering your application for credit.
Note that it can take several weeks for lenders to report changes in your credit status to the credit bureaus. So if, for instance, you pay down a high credit card balance today, it might take a month or so for that to be reflected in your credit reports, and thus in credit scores derived from them.
For purposes of tracking overall credit standing, regularly checking your FICO ® Score or VantageScore will give you a good idea of your progress. When you're ready to apply for a loan or credit card, a more comprehensive approach may give you a better idea how lenders will likely view your application.
There's no way of knowing for certain which scoring system (or which version of it) a given lender will use, nor which credit bureau(s) it will use to source your credit history. Nevertheless, checking a generic credit score based on your credit report maintained at each of the three credit bureaus will give you a good idea where you stand.
While lenders of all kinds use generic credit scores in their lending decisions, some use specialized industry scores available from FICO.
Mortgage lenders issuing conforming loans eligible for sale to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are currently required by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to use "classic" FICO ® Scores:
Beginning in late 2024, FHFA has instructed mortgage lenders to begin phasing in the use of newer FICO ® Score 10T and VantageScore 4.0 when evaluating borrowers for conforming loans.
You can likely obtain free generic credit scores from all three credit bureaus by mixing and matching what's available from your financial institution with other free services.
Both FICO and VantageScore maintain lists of free score providers. For instance, Experian provides access to your Experian credit reports and the FICO ® Score 8 based upon your Experian credit score for free.
If you'd like to check your FICO Auto or Bankcard scores, consider signing up for an Experian CreditWorks℠ Premium membership.
No, you can't get your credit report from a bank. The credit scores financial institutions offer are based on the information in credit reports, but those credit reports exist separately and are maintained by the three national credit bureaus.
To be sure your scores accurately reflect your credit history, it's important to check your credit reports regularly for inaccuracies and signs of unauthorized activity that could signify identity theft or credit fraud. If you find anything you believe to be amiss on your credit report, you have the right to file a dispute with the relevant credit bureau to have it corrected.
Checking your credit reports won't affect your credit scores.
You can get credit reports from:
If you've been tracking your credit score through your financial institution without seeing improvement, you may need to adopt some new habits to increase your scores. Fortunately, actions that increase any given credit score will tend to bring improvement to all, since the same general factors contribute to all credit scores.
Steps to improving your credit scores can vary according to your credit history and current situation, but tried-and-true approaches include:
Checking credit scores through your bank can be a great way to track your progress at building your credit—or rebuilding it after a mishap or mistake that brought your scores down. By checking your free Experian credit report, you can help ensure the ongoing accuracy of your scores. With time and good credit habits, you can expect your score to show steady improvement.
Learn what it takes to achieve a good credit score. Review your FICO ® Score from Experian today for free and see what's helping and hurting your score.
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