Credit Score has assumed a lot of importance in recent years, with a lot of us understanding the fact that good credit score is necessary for getting approval on any kind of credit like loan or credit cards.
Your credit score is assigned by the credit bureaus on the basis on information provided by your lenders regarding actions related to your credit cards and loans. Each action like application to a loan or card, to prompt payments on loans or credit card outstanding to the closure of the loan or cards, all of them affect your credit score.
Credit score is assigned in the range of 300-900 with higher credit score indicating a better level of creditworthiness. While we know that higher levels of score are better, do you know what the cut-off score for a credit score to be considered bad or good is?
As we have credit score spread over a wide range of numbers from 300-900, it is difficult to categorize scores just as good or bad. Therefore we have different ranges that are used to categorize credit scores.
Ranges of Credit Score
Credit Score of 800 and above - Excellent Score
Credit score of 800 and above is considered as an excellent score. Individuals with credit score in the range of 800-900 would have been highly responsible with their credit. They would have had hardly any history of late payment of EMIs or defaults on their credit.
Getting approvals on loans or credit cards should be very easy for these individuals. In addition, they would also be able to negotiate with the lenders and get loans on favorable terms like lower interest rates or lower down payments. Basically, any lender would love to lend to borrowers in this category of credit score.
Credit Score of 700-800 - Good Score
Credit score in the level of 700-800 is considered as good. These individuals have also been responsible with credit. Though generally, they have made all their credit card repayments on time, there might have been certain occasions where they might have missed or delayed certain payments on loans or credit cards. They are also likely to have an optimum credit utilization ratio and less number of hard inquiries.
Individuals with credit scores in this range can also get easy approvals on their applications for credit cards or loans and with low interest rates. However, these might not be as low as the interest rates offered to individuals in the Excellent Credit Score range.
With a little perseverance, the individuals with credit score in this range can easily move up to the excellent category.
Additional Readings: How can I achieve a credit score of 850?
Credit Score between 500-700- Average Score
If your credit score falls from 500 to 700, then you have an average credit score. A score in this range is not appreciated by the lenders and hence, you may have to struggle to get approvals on your credit card or loan application. People in this range may still be able to get loans provided they have a good banking relationship or are employed with a good company. But again, it depends on the discretion of the lender.
Loans may still be approved but at a much higher rate of interest. The loan amount or the tenure may also be cut down or a higher down payment may be demanded for the loan loan for individuals in this category.
To be able to get credit easily, individuals with average credit score will need to work on improving their scores. To improve your credit score, first start by not missing a single payment of EMI, avoiding overutilization of your credit card and avoiding future applications for loan till your credit score improves.
Credit Score below 500 - Poor Credit Score
A credit score below 500 is called a poor credit score. Individuals in this range of credit score would have missed several loan or credit card repayments and/or even defaulted on certain credit agreements to arrive at this level of a score.
Getting loans on a low credit score is almost impossible. But there are other options that an individual with a bad credit score can try for getting credit. Some of the options like a Gold Loan or Credit Card against Fixed Deposit will not only give access to credit but also help in building up the credit score.
The first focus of an individual with a bad credit score should be on ways to build up his/ her credit score. Improvement in credit score does not happen instantly. It could take anywhere between 6 months to a year or more depending on how low your credit score is. All that is required is consistency in being prompt and responsible towards credit.
With this information on credit score ranges, you might now be in a better position to understand the implications of your credit score and what kind of improvements are needed to bring it to an acceptable level.
No Credit History
Apart from the above ranges, there is another category of individuals who are new to credit or do not have any previous credit history. Lots of people are still averse to any kind of loans or might not have felt the need to apply for credit. In absence of previous credit, credit bureaus mark them as No History or NH.
The lenders have no information on which they could base their lending decision, hence find it difficult to approve loans or credit cards to individuals with no credit score. It is, in fact, a chicken and egg kind of situation, where without credit you cannot get a credit score and without credit score, you cannot get credit.
However, understanding that there are many individuals in this category, we have tied up with banks & financial institutions and have come up with solutions catering for individuals with no credit history. Just login on our website and get started.
Conclusion
The need for credit can up anytime and it is better to be on the positive side of creditworthiness when that comes up. So, if you find yourselves with a credit score of 700 and below, it is time to pull up your socks and act towards building a good credit score.