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Why Do the Credit Scores I Pull Look Different Than the Ones My Lender Pulls?



“Help! I’m really confused! I got all 3 of my credit scores online last week and they looked really good. Today I applied for a mortgage and the scores the lender pulled look totally different. All 3 scores are about 50 points lower than the scores I saw online. Thankfully, my scores were still high enough to get a mortgage loan, but why are the scores so much lower today?”

In the credit world there are few things which frustrate and upset consumers more than discovering the sometimes vast difference between consumer credit scores and the credit scores used by lenders. Popular TV commercials for credit monitoring websites often confuse consumers and lead them to believe that they have only one credit score. However, the truth is that there are actually hundreds of different types of credit scores. The idea that you have one "official" credit scores is a complete myth.

Consumer Scores Vs. Lender Scores

While there are hundreds of credit scores available, most of these scores can be boiled down into one of 2 categories - consumer scores or lender scores. (Insurance companies often use credit based insurance risk scores as well, but for the purpose of this article those scores will fall into the "lender" category as well.) Consumer scores are scores that are accessible to you individually. You can purchase these scores from the credit bureaus directly, from FICO directly, or from a host of consumer credit monitoring websites. Some websites will offer you free credit scores in exchange for signing up for a trial offer of their credit monitoring services. Other websites will offer you a free score from 1 of the 3 major credit bureaus (not all 3) in exchange for your email address and the right to advertise financial services to you. CLICK HERE if you would like to compare websites where you can access your 3 consumer credit scores.

Lender scores are almost always some version of a FICO score. There are some lenders which have begun using VantageScore credit scores (a score created by the credit bureaus themselves) in recent years, but FICO is still the most popular lender score in use today by a landslide. Both FICO and VantageScore have released multiple generations of their credit scoring software. Additionally, FICO scores come in many varieties (FICO Mortgage Score, FICO Auto Score, FICO Personal Finance Score, FICO Installment Loan Score, etc.) and each different FICO score variety typically has different versions in use as well. If today you were to pull a copy of your consumer credit scores, have a mortgage loan officer pull your credit scores, and have an auto lender pull your credit score then you have almost a 100% chance of getting a different set of numbers every time. Credit scores can vary pretty wildly depending upon which credit scoring model is being used to calculate them.

Focus On Healthy Credit

If you are feeling frustrated or overwhelmed as you try to keep track with all of the different possible credit scores, you are not alone. Remember the statement above revealing that you have hundreds of credit scores? It would be practically impossible for a consumer to keep track of each one of these scores individually. Instead of spending time and energy focusing on the numbers, it is much better to focus on the health of your credit as a whole.

The fact of the matter is that all credit scores are based upon the same data. Your credit scores are calculated from the information which is contained in your credit reports. (Don't forget, you can get a copy of all 3 of your credit reports, without scores, completely free once a year at If your credit reports show that you routinely make late payments on your accounts, your scores will suffer regardless of who pulls them or which credit scoring model is used to calculate them. If you have clean credit reports with no collections, no late payments, and low credit card balances then all of your many scores will likely be in great shape. You may have hundreds of scores, but you only have 3 credit reports. You may not be able to control your credit scores, but you can absolutely control your credit management habits.  



Expert Credit Advice:


Credit Report vs. Credit Score - What's the Difference?


Credit Report vs. Credit Score - What's the Difference?

Credit Reports versus Credit Scores

Let’s face it, for most people the world of credit can be a very confusing place. If you can’t explain the difference between a credit report and a credit score, you are not alone. People often use the terms “credit reports” and “credit scores” as if they were interchangeable. However, credit reports and credit scores are two totally different animals. Here is a crash course in credit terminology to help you make sense of this confusing topic and turn you into the super savvy consumer you always wanted to be.

Credit Reports

There is not merely one, but rather three major credit bureaus who compile data from lenders, credit card companies, collection agencies, public records, etc.  The credit bureaus are Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian. The data is compiled into credit files which are then used to generate credit reports (basically user friendly versions of the credit files themselves). In fact, the credit bureaus compile credit data about millions of consumers and sell credit reports to lenders and directly to consumers themselves.

If you have not checked your credit reports in a while, it is a good idea to do so right away. After all, it is ultimately your responsibility to monitor your credit reports for errors and for fraud. You can access a free copy of each of your credit reports (NOT your credit scores) each year at Credit reports do not exist to judge your credit management history, but rather to simply lay out the facts regarding how well you manage your debts.

Credit Scores

Contrary to popular belief, the credit bureaus themselves do not calculate your credit scores. Where a credit report simply lists a record of your credit management history, a credit score actually exists to evaluate and rate that data into an easy to understand number for lenders. A low number indicates that the consumer has a history of poor credit management. A high number indicates the opposite.

The original and most popular credit scoring model by a huge margin is FICO. In 1989 FICO partnered with Equifax to introduce the first credit bureau FICO risk score. The purpose of a FICO credit score is to predict risk – specifically the risk of the consumer going 90 days late on any account within the next 24 months. Today, FICO builds credit scoring software and installs it on the mainframe of each of the 3 major credit bureaus. The credit bureaus will use FICO’s software to calculate their own credit data and then sells the credit reports with credit scores to lenders. FICO receives a royalty from the credit bureaus for the use of the software.

FICO credit scores range from 300 to 850. If a consumer has a low credit score then the data in the consumer’s credit report indicates that there is a high risk involved with loaning money to that consumer. If a consumer has a high credit score then there is a low risk involved with loaning money to that consumer.

As mentioned above, consumers are currently not entitled via federal law to receive free copies of their credit scores annually. (Note: if you apply for a mortgage then mortgage lenders are required by law to show you all 3 of your credit scores that were pulled for the mortgage application.) Still, there are several places online where you can receive free educational credit scores (not the same scores as the ones used by lenders) or a free score from one of the bureaus individually. You can also view your credit scores, often initially for free, as a benefit of signing up for monthly credit monitoring services. Beware, many monitoring services will only all you to see your credit score from one and not all three of the credit bureaus. CLICK HERE to access a great comparison site where you can check out the benefits of several different credit monitoring services before deciding which option is right for you.


Michelle Black is an 12+ year credit expert with HOPE4USA, the credit blogger at, a recognized credit expert on talk shows and podcasts nationwide, a contributor to the Wealth Section of Fort Mill Magazine, and  a regularly featured speaker at seminars up and down the East Coast. She is an expert on improving credit scores, budgeting, and recovering from identity theft. You can connect with Michelle on the HOPE Facebook page by clicking here.