What is a good credit score?
If you have a good credit score, you’ll find it easier to get accepted for credit at competitive interest rates. You don’t have a universal credit score, but the higher your credit score with each credit reference agency, the better.
5 min read
In a nutshell
- What counts as a ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ credit score varies between credit reference agencies
- Credit reference agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian) all use different credit scoring systems
- Lenders will also use their own private scoring system for each customer when they make an application for credit
- Reducing your debt, paying bills on time, and being on the electoral roll will improve your credit score
What is a good credit score?
Having a ‘good’ credit score is an important factor in being accepted for credit. But what is a good credit score, and who works it out?
Credit scoring can seem quite complicated, with both credit reference agencies and lenders having their own scoring systems. You can view your credit scores from credit reference agencies, but as lenders' credit scores are worked out based on their unique criteria and requirements, they're not publicly available.
But, overall, the concept is simpler than you might think: the higher your score, the easier it will be to borrow money at competitive interest rates.
Calculating your credit score
Perhaps confusingly, there's no such thing as a universal credit score.
There are three main credit reference agencies (CRAs) in the UK: TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian.
A CRA is an independent organisation that gathers and securely stores details about your credit history from lenders and public bodies.
CRAs collect information about you from public records and from lenders or other service providers. A number of factors can influence the credit scores they generate, including how much debt you currently have, and how accounts are managed.
Each CRA could hold different information about you, and they each have their own way of scoring. However, all the CRAs share similar views on the factors that constitute a ‘good’ credit score.
Credit reference agencies and credit score ranges
TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian all use slightly different information and different systems to calculate your credit score, meaning your score will vary.
You can see your Equifax credit report for free (for life) through our member-only platform, CredAbility. Plus, you can check it as many times as you like without leaving a footprint on your credit report.
Up until 2021, Equifax used a scale that went up to 700, but it now uses a scale that goes up to 1,000. This is similar to Experian, which scores from zero to 999. TransUnion scores go from zero to 710, and it also uses a rating system with numbers one to five.
The CRAs put scores into bands, from poor to excellent. The tables below show how the different CRAs band credit scores.
What is a good Experian credit score?
| Score | Band |
| 0-560 | Very poor |
| 561-720 | Poor |
| 721-880 | Fair |
| 881-960 | Good |
| 961-999 | Excellent |
With Experian, a good credit score out of 999 is a score above 881, with a score over 961 rated ‘excellent’.
What is a good Equifax credit score?
| Score | Band |
| 0-438 | Very poor |
| 439-530 | Poor |
| 531-670 | Good |
| 671-810 | Very good |
| 811-1000 | Excellent |
With Equifax, a ‘good’ credit score out of 1,000 is between 531 and 670, with 671 to 810 rated ‘very good’ and 811 and upwards ‘excellent’.
What is a good TransUnion credit score?
| Score | Band | Rating |
| 0-550 | Very poor | 1 |
| 551-565 | Poor | 2 |
| 566-603 | Fair | 3 |
| 604-627 | Good | 4 |
| 628-710 | Excellent | 5 |
With TransUnion, a good credit score out of 710 is between 604 and 627, with 628 and above rated as ‘excellent’.
What is a good credit score in the UK?
The different CRA banding systems make it tricky to answer questions such as ‘is 600 a good credit score?’ or ‘is 700 a good credit score?’ as what is considered a good credit score depends on which CRA you are using.
As an example, a score of 700 would be ‘excellent’ with TransUnion, ‘very good’ with Equifax, but ‘poor’ with Experian.
In general, the higher your score on each CRA scale, the better.
Credit scoring by lenders
When you apply for credit, the lender will usually check your credit file with just one CRA.
It will normally look at:
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your existing debts and whether you make repayments on time
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whether you pay your household bills (e.g. broadband, energy, and water) on time
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any previous county court judgements (CCJs), individual voluntary arrangements (IVA), or bankruptcy
If you are an existing customer of the lender, it will check how you have managed your other accounts.
It will then assess your application based on your credit report and on information in your application, such as your employment status and income. When the assessment is complete, it will decide whether to offer you credit and at what interest rate.
Do you need a good credit score to rent?
Landlords will normally check your credit score when you apply to rent a home.
They might do this directly with a CRA or via a letting agency.
There isn’t a specific credit score landlords will be looking for in a tenant, but you are likely to stand a better chance if you have a ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ score.
If you have CCJs against your name, this could put landlords off renting to you, especially if the CCJs are for unpaid rent owed to previous landlords.
What is a good credit score to buy a house?
There isn’t a set number that is universally considered a good credit score for a mortgage. This is partly because mortgage lenders use credit scoring systems that look at extra information in addition to that held by the CRAs.
For example, a mortgage lender will look at your:
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employment status
-
existing financial commitments
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income and outgoings
-
deposit size
-
loan-to-value (LTV)
However, in general, the higher your credit score, the better your chances are of securing a mortgage at a competitive interest rate.
If your credit score is rated ‘poor’ you may be able to get a sub-prime mortgage. This is a type of mortgage designed for borrowers with bad credit, and it will usually cost more than a mortgage deal offered to people with good or excellent credit.
How to get a good credit score
Don’t worry if your score is not rated ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ by any of the CRAs – there are lots of things you can do to improve it.
You can read about these in detail in our article, ‘Quick ways to improve your credit score’, but here are some tips to get you started.
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Pay household bills such as energy and water on time
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Have a pay-monthly mobile phone contract and pay the bill on time
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Keep up-to-date with debt payments
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Pay at least the minimum payment on your credit card each month
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Aim to stay under 30% of your total credit limit
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Close unused credit accounts
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Be on the electoral roll at your current address
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Check your credit report for mistakes
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Try to avoid taking out joint financial agreements with anyone with a poor credit score
If you check your credit score with all the CRAs, you may find you have a fair score from one and a good score from another. This might be because one has different or incorrect information about you. You can contact the relevant CRA to correct any errors on your credit report.
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