Understanding Your 644 Credit Score

644 falls within the “fair” credit score range. Scores that fall within the range of 580 and 699 are considered to be fair credit scores.

Borrowers with credit scores in the fair range have access to most basic lending products, usually with slightly higher rates, lower loan amounts, and possibly stricter terms.

Fair credit consumers can usually improve their scores by making timely payments, prioritizing debt repayment, and being mindful of their credit utilization.

The first step in making sure you can maintain and improve your credit is really understanding how credit reports work. A credit report is a comprehensive summary of your financial data compiled by the three major credit bureaus, Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.

Below is a quick breakdown of the data consumers can find on their credit reports:

Disclaimer: This table is a simplified overview and individual credit scores may be affected by additional factors not listed here.

In addition to understanding the inner workings of your credit report, it’s also important to make sure you are checking your recurring credit reports often. If your goal is to improve your credit, you may want to take a look at your reports every month to see how your behavior and habits are affecting your score in real time. You can pull a soft credit check as often as you like, or request a free credit report from one of the major credit reporting agencies.

If you do happen to have any late or missed payments in your credit history, you’ll want to pay those out first. The sooner you get rid of delinquent payments the sooner you’ll see your credit score start to improve!

Now that you understand the ins and outs of your credit report, you know just how important it is to make timely payments on all your financial obligations. Building a positive payment history is the most impactful thing you can do to improve your credit. By making all your due payments on time, you are not only protecting your credit, you’re also showing credit bureaus and potential future lenders that you are a reliable and responsible consumer.

Next, look at your spending habits and where your money is going. Do you tend to impulse shop and make purchases with your credit card often? If so, you may have a credit utilization rate on the higher side. Your credit utilization rate, or your credit utilization ratio, is a comparison of how much available credit you have compared to how much you are using. Most credit bureaus and financial experts suggest consumers keep their credit utilization at no higher than 30%.

Once you have a handle on your recurring payments and spending habits, take a look at your total amount of debt. This amount will include all your credit card and loan balances, as well as any other outstanding balances in your name.

Next, think about how you want to knock that debt out. You may benefit from using a debt repayment strategy, like the snowball or avalanche methods. Or, you may be able to change a few spending habits, like spending well under your available credit limit each month, to free up extra room in your income you can allocate towards debt repayment.