Credit bureau
A credit bureau is a company that collects and stores your credit data and sells it to lenders as a credit report. There are three main bureaus in the US — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — and they jointly developed the VantageScore model.
Why it matters
Lenders don't always report to all three bureaus, so your data can differ across them, which is one reason your score varies depending on which bureau and model a lender pulls.
Example
A card issuer might report your account to Experian and TransUnion but not Equifax — so a lender pulling your Equifax file could see a thinner history and a different score than one pulling Experian.
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Educational only — not financial advice. No guarantees.