You check your credit score in your bank's app. A free credit app shows a different number, and a car-loan offer mentions a third one. You haven't missed a payment or opened a new account. So which number is your real score?
You have many credit scores because each usually comes from one model, such as FICO Score 8 or VantageScore 3.0, reading one bureau's report, and each lender chooses its model.
Which of my scores will a lender use?
Each lender decides which score it uses. FICO and VantageScore, two companies, each build several scoring models, and FICO says FICO Score 8 is the version lenders use most. Most models read one bureau's report at a time, and Equifax, Experian and TransUnion may hold different data on you. That's why, the CFPB says, it's normal to see scores that are slightly different.
| Where you meet a score | Which model |
|---|---|
| Your card or bank app | Whichever model it names; ask if it doesn't |
| Experian.com (free) | FICO Score 8, from Experian data |
| Credit Karma | VantageScore 3.0, from Equifax and TransUnion |
| Card lenders | Often FICO Bankcard Scores, or FICO Score 8 or 9 |
| Car-loan lenders | Most often FICO Auto Scores |
| Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac | Classic FICO or VantageScore 4.0; the lender chooses |
| FHA mortgage | Classic FICO; from 2027, also VantageScore 4.0 or FICO 10T |
FICO's card and auto scores run from 250 to 900, not 300 to 850 like base FICO scores. Classic FICO means one older FICO version per bureau: FICO Score 2 (Experian), FICO Score 5 (Equifax) and FICO Score 4 (TransUnion). The Three Bureaus shows which of the three scores a mortgage uses. Since September 9, 2026, any lender approved by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac may use VantageScore 4.0 instead for loans it sells to them, with the same model for everyone on the loan. FICO 10T can't be used for these loans yet. For FHA loans, VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T join Classic FICO for case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2027.
Before you apply for a loan, ask the lender: "Which scoring model do you use?"
What does a FICO score weigh most?
FICO sorts the data in your credit report into five categories and publishes their weights: payment history 35%, amounts owed 30%, length of credit history 15%, new credit 10% and credit mix 10%. FICO says the importance of these categories may vary from one person to another, and that the exact impact of a single factor can't be measured without your whole report.
So in FICO's published weights, payment history and amounts owed together carry 65%: 35% + 30%. Opening new accounts counts in new credit, 10%, and FICO says opening several in a short time represents greater risk.
| Category | Weight |
|---|---|
| Payment history | 35% |
| Amounts owed | 30% |
| Length of credit history | 15% |
| New credit | 10% |
| Credit mix | 10% |
| Payment history and amounts owed, together | 65% |
FICO says the importance of these categories may vary from one person to another.
Source: myFICO, What's in your credit score? (updated October 2026).
VantageScore groups the data its own way, but it also ranks payment history first, as "extremely influential", and total credit usage second. With either model, start with two habits: pay every bill on time, and keep card balances under 10% of the limit on each card and overall. For score ranges, see what a good credit score is and how it's built.
Is the score in a free app fake?
Not if it comes from a FICO or VantageScore model, such as FICO Score 8 or VantageScore 3.0. Credit Karma's VantageScore 3.0 scores, for example, come directly from Equifax and TransUnion, and Experian says different credit scores aren't necessarily more or less accurate than one another. Some sources show an "educational" score instead of one a lender would use, the CFPB warns, so check the name. And whichever score you follow, Experian says the same actions can generally help all your scores.
What can I do today?
- If an app or a statement shows you a credit score: find the score's name, such as "FICO Score 8" or "VantageScore 3.0", and the bureau behind it. Write down the score, its name and the bureau, with today's date. From now on, compare only that same score.
- If you don't see a score anywhere: you may not have one yet. Ask your bank or credit union whether it shows customers a free credit score, and which model and bureau it uses.
Can you tell which scores to compare?
You want to know whether your credit score changed since last month. Which comparison shows that?
- A. Your bank app's score today against a free app's score last month
- B. The same score from the same bureau, today against last month ✅
- C. Any two scores, because every model weighs the same things
Why: two models or bureaus can give different numbers on the same day, so only the same score from the same bureau, compared over time, shows a real change.
Where do these facts come from?
- CFPB — Where can I get my credit scores? (last reviewed 2023-10-19) · Verified 2026-10-17
- myFICO (FICO) — FICO Score Types: Why Multiple Versions Matter for You (no date on page) · Verified 2026-10-17
- Experian — VantageScore vs. FICO: What's the Difference? (2026-08-10), Get Your Free Credit Score (no date on page) and What Is a Credit Utilization Rate? (2025-10-09) · Verified 2026-10-17
- Credit Karma — How to read and understand your credit scores (updated 2025-09-18) · Verified 2026-10-17
- FHFA — Credit Scores (last updated 2026-10-02) · Verified 2026-10-17
- HUD — FHA INFO 2026-24 and Mortgagee Letter 2026-11 (both 2026-10-08) · Verified 2026-10-17
- myFICO (FICO) — What's in your credit score? (updated October 2026) · Verified 2026-10-17
- VantageScore — How Credit Scores Work (no date on page) · Verified 2026-10-17