A good credit score is usually 670 or higher on the standard 300–850 scale
Most lenders use the FICO score, which ranges from 300 to 850. A score of 670 or above is generally considered good — it means you have a reasonable history of paying bills on time and managing debt. Below 670, you start to see higher interest rates, smaller loan amounts, or outright rejection. Above 750, you get the best rates most lenders offer.
The exact threshold varies by lender and loan type. A mortgage lender might want 620 to approve you, while a credit card issuer might want 700. Some lenders use alternative scores (like VantageScore, which also runs 300–850) or their own internal models. The 670 mark is the most common dividing line between "fair" and "good" in the industry.
Your score matters because it directly affects the cost of borrowing. A 50-point difference can mean hundreds of dollars more per year on a car loan or tens of thousands more over the life of a mortgage. It also affects whether you can rent an apartment, get a phone contract, or be hired for certain jobs.
Key Takeaways
- A FICO score of 670 or higher is generally considered good, though different lenders set their own thresholds.
- Scores below 620 are typically classified as poor or fair, and come with higher interest rates or loan denial.
- Scores above 750 usually may have access to you for the best rates available, though the difference between 750 and 800 is often minimal.
- Your score is built from payment history (35%), amounts owed (30%), length of credit history (15%), credit mix (10%), and new credit inquiries (10%).
How the score ranges break down
FICO publishes five broad categories, though lenders may use finer divisions:
| Score Range | Category | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| 300–579 | Poor | Most lenders will deny you. If approved, expect very high interest rates. |
| 580–669 | Fair | You may be approved, but rates will be noticeably higher than average. |
| 670–739 | Good | You may have access to for most loans at reasonable rates. This is the baseline for "good." |
| 740–799 | Very Good | You get better rates than average. Lenders see you as low-risk. |
| 800–850 | Excellent | You get the best rates available. The difference between 800 and 850 is usually negligible. |
The jump from fair (669) to good (670) is one point, but the lending impact is real. A mortgage lender might charge 0.5% more interest on a fair-score loan than a good-score loan — that is thousands of dollars over 30 years.
The jump from good to very good (740) is less dramatic in dollar terms, but it still matters. The jump from very good to excellent (800) is often invisible to the borrower — most lenders cap their best rate at 750 or 760.
What actually builds or damages your score
Your FICO score is calculated from five factors. Payment history is the heaviest — 35% of your score. A single late payment can drop your score 50 to 100 points, depending on how late it was and how good your history is before that. A payment 30 days late hurts less than one 90 days late.
The second factor is amounts owed — 30% of your score. This is not just your total debt; it is your credit utilization ratio, which is how much of your available credit you are using. If you have a $5,000 credit limit and carry a $4,500 balance, your utilization is 90%, which damages your score. Keeping it below 30% is ideal. Paying down balances helps more than opening new accounts.
Length of credit history (15%) rewards you for keeping old accounts open, even if you do not use them. A 10-year-old credit card helps your score more than a new one, so closing old accounts can hurt. New credit inquiries (10%) and credit mix — having both revolving credit (credit cards) and installment credit (car loans, mortgages) — make up the rest.
Missed payments, collections accounts, and bankruptcies stay on your report for seven to ten years, though their impact fades over time. A late payment from two years ago hurts less than one from two months ago.
Why different lenders see different scores
You may see three different scores when you check your credit — one from each of the three major bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion). These scores can differ by 50 points or more because each bureau has slightly different information about you. One might have a paid-off account that another has not updated yet.
Lenders also use different scoring models. FICO has multiple versions — FICO 8 is most common for credit cards and personal loans, but mortgage lenders often use FICO 2, 4, or 5. Auto lenders use different versions still. VantageScore, a competitor to FICO, weighs factors differently and may give you a different number.
The score you see on a free credit monitoring app is often a VantageScore, not a FICO score. It is useful for tracking trends, but it may not match the score a lender actually sees. When you apply for a loan, the lender pulls their own score from their chosen bureau and model.
How to move from fair to good
If your score is between 580 and 669, the fastest improvements come from paying down credit card balances and making sure no payments are late going forward. Paying a card from 90% utilization to 30% can add 20 to 50 points within a month or two, because utilization updates quickly.
Late payments are harder to fix because they stay on your report for seven years. But their impact weakens over time. A payment that was 30 days late two years ago hurts less than one from last month. If you have recent late payments, focus on perfect payment history going forward — that is the single most powerful factor.
Do not close old credit cards or take out new loans just to improve your score. Closing cards lowers your available credit and shortens your history. New loans trigger hard inquiries and add new accounts, which temporarily lower your score. The gains are not worth the cost.
If you have collections accounts or charge-offs, paying them does not remove them from your report, but it may help your score slightly and stops the debt from growing. Some lenders weight recent paid collections less harshly than unpaid ones.
Good score versus excellent score — does it matter?
Moving from good (670) to very good (740) takes time and discipline, but the financial payoff is real. On a $300,000 mortgage, the difference between a 670 score and a 740 score might be 0.5% to 1% in interest rate — that is $100 to $200 per month, or $36,000 to $72,000 over 30 years.
Moving from very good (740) to excellent (800) has almost no financial benefit. Most lenders cap their best rate at 750 or 760. You are not getting a better deal at 800 than at 750. The effort to push from 750 to 800 is not worth the return.
The practical target depends on what you are trying to do. For a mortgage, aim for 740 or higher. For credit cards and personal loans, 700 is usually enough. For auto loans, 650 may be sufficient, though rates will be higher. Once you hit the lender's threshold, further improvement has diminishing returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 700 a good credit score?
Yes. A 700 score is in the "good" range and qualifies you for most loans at reasonable rates. You will not get the absolute best rates — those start around 740 — but you are well above the threshold where lenders start charging penalties.
How long does it take to go from fair to good?
It depends on what is holding your score down. If it is high credit card balances, paying them down can add 20 to 50 points in one or two months. If it is recent late payments, improvement is slower — you need several months of on-time payments to show a trend. Most people move from fair to good in three to six months of disciplined payment.
Does checking my own credit score hurt it?
No. Checking your own score is a soft inquiry and does not affect your credit. Only hard inquiries — when a lender checks your credit because you applied for a loan — count toward the 10% new credit factor. You can check your score as often as you want without penalty.
Can I get a mortgage with a 650 score?
Some lenders will approve you with a 650 score, but rates will be higher and you may need a larger down payment. Most conventional mortgages want 620 or higher, but FHA loans (backed by the federal government) sometimes go as low as 580. The cost of borrowing at 650 versus 700 is significant over 30 years.
What is the difference between FICO and VantageScore?
Both range from 300 to 850, but they weight factors differently. FICO puts more emphasis on payment history; VantageScore gives more weight to recent credit behavior. Most lenders use FICO, so that is the score that matters most. VantageScore is useful for tracking your progress, but do not assume it matches what a lender sees.