Why Credit Scores Are Different

Yes, there are MANY different credit scores out there.  There are credit scores consumers can pull themselves through credit monitoring, mortgage scores, auto scores, and many more.

There are actually over 16 different credit "scorecards" that exist today. Each of these scorecards will reflect different credit scores. These scorecards are designed to help particular industries better gauge credit risk.

The mortgage industry for example is more concerned with a consumers past mortgage history than anything else. So they weight home loan history heavier into the total score calculation than other accounts.

So a consumer’s credit monitoring score might be 660. But then when they apply for a mortgage, their score might be much lower due to some past negative mortgage accounts on the report.  Their mortgage score might even be higher than their consumer score, if they have past positive mortgage accounts.

A credit score that a consumer pulls themselves will not be the same as their mortgage score.  Their mortgage score won’t be the same as their auto score that car dealers pull either, because the auto score weighs past auto history heavier into the score makeup versus consumer scores. 

These different credit scorecards are designed to help specific industries better determine risk.  Due to there being so many industries that offer credit, there are also just as many credit scores available. 

Plus, different scores are offered by different companies creating even more credit scores. FICO is the biggest provider of consumer credit scores. But now even the credit bureaus themselves are in the credit scoring game, providing their Vantage score.

A Vantage score has scores as high as 990, while a FICO score can only be as high as 850.  So even though a 700 FICO score reflects good consumer credit, a 700 Vantage score reflects below average personal credit.

One thing is for sure; credit scores WILL be different based on who pulls the score and where the score is pulled through.

Still good credit is good credit. And fundamentally any consumer who pays their bills on time and has a good long-standing credit history, including a lot of different accounts, will have a good credit score.