What is a good credit score in the UK?

There's no universal 'good' credit score in the UK because Experian, Equifax and TransUnion all use different scoring ranges. In general, the higher your score within each provider's scale, the more likely you are to be approved for borrowing and offered competitive interest rates. Here's what counts as a good score with each agency and how you can improve yours.

If your score is particularly bad, utility providers might start demanding deposits, you may struggle to get rental applications approved, and you may not be able to get a mobile phone contract. In other words, a world of hassle that you can do without!

Small things can make a big difference. An unpaid contract that you thought you’d cancelled. A single missed payment for a credit card or utility. These can dent your credit score without you knowing and may be the reason why the bank doesn’t want to take your calls.

How to check your credit score

There are a range of credit scoring companies - also known as 'credit reference agencies'. The banks are going to be looking at the big names, so it’s worth going to one you recognise. The three main credit reference agencies in the UK are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.

Your score may be slightly different across the various agencies because each of them draws information from different providers. However, they probably won’t draw very different conclusions about your general credit-worthiness.

Most of them are pretty user-friendly. They will show you an overall score, the balance of your various debts – mortgages, car loans, credit cards and so on – plus your current accounts. They’ll show you areas where you can improve and anything that’s potentially dragging your score down.

Most credit ratings are free to use, at least at the basic level. You can pay extra for certain added services to improve your score - sometimes called a 'credit boost' - but you shouldn't need to pay for a simple credit check from most of the larger credit reference agencies.

What is a good credit score?

So, how do you know if your credit score is 'good' or 'bad'? Confusingly, each of the different credit reference agencies has a different scoring system, which means your score from one can look very different from the next!

Each agency typically gives you a description of your credit score - e.g. 'good' or 'excellent' - as well as the number, which can be a helpful gauge of how well you're doing. Below is a summary of the scoring system at all of the three main credit reference agencies.

Equifax

Equifax uses a 5-tier system ranging from 'poor' to 'excellent', with a highest possible score of 1000. A 'good' credit score with Equifax is at least 531.

Experian

Experian also uses a 5-tier system, but this one ranges from 'very poor' to 'excellent', with a highest possible score of 999. A 'good' credit score with Experian needs to be at least 881.

Transunion

Finally, TransUnion also uses a 5-tier system that ranges from 'very poor' to 'excellent', but has a highest possible score of 710. A 'good' credit score with TransUnion needs to be at least 604.

Credit score by provider

In the table below, you can see the credit score systems across all three major providers. Bear in mind that Equifax has a slightly different system so they're not directly comparable.

Source: finder.com, correct as of 13/06/23

According to the above, 0 is technically the lowest score. Though this is generally unusual, it's not impossible. Data from Experian in 2022 revealed that there are actually over 5 million Brits who are 'credit invisible' - meaning they have little or no credit history at all - which equates to almost 10% of the UK population.

However, most people are well above this. In fact, a report published in October 2021 found that the UK's average Experian credit score was 797 - but this differs widely in different parts of the country. You can see the average credit score in different regions of the UK in this interactive map from Experian.

Bear in mind that it's quite normal for your score to fluctuate or fall slightly at numerous points in your life. This isn't necessarily a reason to panic, especially if it's only gone down a little bit. And even if your credit score is low or non-existent, there are lots of ways you can improve it or give it a boost if you're concerned.

How to improve your credit score

It's not the end of the world if your credit score is lower than you were expecting. Thankfully, there are lots of ways you can bring it back up again and prove to lenders that you're worthy of credit.

For example, if you’ve got an obvious howler on your credit score, tackle it! If you’ve missed a payment, such as utility bill, contact the company involved and pay it. If it’s disputed, fight to have it removed from your credit file while it’s being investigated. The key is to be proactive.

Simple steps to improve your credit score include registering on the electoral register, showing a history of consistent rental payments and limiting the number of credit applications you make. You can also raise your credit score by using specific ‘credit building’ credit cards, which are aimed at people trying to build up good credit or who need to replenish some of it if their score is too low.

Some credit reference agencies offer services which allow you to 'boost' your score by providing evidence of regular payments - such as council tax or Netflix subscription bills - to prove you're a dependable debtor.

How long does it take to improve your credit score?

Credit scores tend to recalibrate monthly, but it won’t improve immediately. In some cases, it can take years to improve your score. But don't let this put you off - after all, your credit score can make all the difference when buying a house or if you need to take out an emergency loan.

If you’re taking out important credit, such as a mortgage, you should check out your credit score a good while in advance so you can start the improvement process with plenty of time.

There will be certain bits and pieces that linger – County Court judgements, for example. However, these are removed from your credit report after a certain amount of time (though this can be as long as six years in the case of non-payment of bills!). Make sure that these are cleaned off your record when the time comes.

3 credit score must-dos

1. Check with more than one credit reference agency

The first step in improving your credit score is to check what you're starting out with. However, as we mentioned earlier, your score can vary from agency to agency. It can be helpful to check your credit score across all three of the main providers to understand how each one rates your overall credit worthiness and, in turn, if anything crops up that you could improve on. Remember that Experian, Equifax and TransUnion give you free access to your score, so it's well worth checking across all three.

2. Make sure all your information is correct

On rare occasions, there can be mistakes on your credit report that are dragging your score down. This can be anything from a simple typo to an incorrect or outdated address. But don't fret, you can report inaccuracies on your credit report and get them fixed. To do this, get in touch with the credit reference agency and ask them to correct the specified error. They legally have 28 days to respond, whether that be to fix it or to confirm that they're actively investigating. In most cases, successful corrections should appear on your credit report within six to eight weeks.

3. Improve your score

If you're certain that all your information on your credit report is correct but you'd still like to improve your score, there are lots of ways you can do this. Here are five simple ways to start:

Register on the electoral roll

This is one of the simplest and easiest ways to give your credit score a boost. Make sure you're registered on the electoral roll at your current address. This proves where you live and that you are who you say you are. You can register for the electoral roll even if you’re in shared accommodation or living at home and it should only take around 5 minutes. Get started on the gov.uk site here.

Always pay your bills on time

One of the biggest influences on your credit score is your repayment history - whether it’s for your mobile phone contract, energy bills or your credit card. Paying your bills back in full and, crucially, on time proves that you're reliable and capable of managing your debt. It may be helpful to set up a direct debit for any regular bills so you don't have to worry about forgetting them.

Don't move around too much

It seems like a relatively minor thing, but moving house a lot can have a negative impact on your credit score. This is because lenders feel more comfortable letting you borrow money if they know your circumstances are stable. Try to keep the same address for an extended period if you can and, if not, make sure that you update all your legal information as soon as possible to prevent errors from cropping up in your credit report.

Keep your credit utilisation ratio below 30%

Your credit utilisation ratio sounds a bit daunting but just refers to the amount of your credit you're actually using compared to your overall credit limit. Ideally, you want to keep this below 30% at all times. For example, if your credit limit (the maximum amount of credit you're able to borrow) is £1,000, you'd want to make sure you're using no more than £300 (30%) of this at any one time.

Reduce your existing debt

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, get on top of your existing debt to prove to potential lenders that you're responsible with your credit and can be relied on to pay it back. If you've got an outstanding loan or credit card bills to pay off, prioritise reducing or writing them off completely. Ideally you want to pay these off in full before applying for any new loans to keep your credit utilisation ratio low.