Is FICO (Fair Isaac) Score 9 Actually Good?

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• FICO Score 9 ranges from 300 to 850; the three‑digit number places you in one of five categories (Poor 300‑579, Fair 580‑669, Good 670‑739, Very Good 740‑799, Excellent 800‑850).
• Seeing '720' means you sit comfortably in the Good tier, while '815' lands you in the Excellent tier.
• Locate your exact figure by logging into a free credit‑monitoring site, checking your bank's score widget, or requesting a report from the official FICO Score 9 page.
• The numeric range itself never changes; only the underlying score shifts as new data is added to your file.
• Many apps color‑code the number: red below 580, orange 580‑669, yellow 670‑739, light‑green 740‑799, dark‑green 800‑850.

FICO Score 9 is good for you when it sits at 720 or higher, because most lenders treat that range as 'qualified' and begin to offer preferred interest rates. Below 720 you may still get approved, but rates and loan options typically shrink, especially for high‑ticket mortgages or auto financing.

• 720‑749 : solid score; qualifies for conventional mortgages, most auto loans, and many credit cards with decent APRs.
• 750‑799 : very good; opens the door to the lowest mortgage rates, premium credit cards, and flexible personal loan terms.
• 800‑850 : excellent; guarantees the best‑available rates and the most favorable borrowing conditions.
• Below 680 : considered subprime; lenders may require higher fees, larger down payments, or outright denial, depending on loan type.
• Lender adoption matters: not all banks use FICO 9 yet, so a 'good' score may translate differently if a lender still runs FICO 8.
• Medical collections paid after 2020 are excluded, so a 720+ score often reflects that relief.
• Rent, phone, and utility payments are not factored, so a strong payment history there won't boost the score but also won't hurt it.

FICO Score 9 improves on FICO 8 by ignoring paid medical collections, weighting unpaid medical debt less heavily, and optionally using 'trended' data to smooth credit‑use spikes; the numeric range stays 300‑850, so a 720 in FICO 8 still reads 720 in FICO 9, but lenders typically see a higher score when you have resolved medical bills (official FICO 9 model changes).

Compared with VantageScore 4.0, FICO Score 9 still puts the most weight on payment history and credit utilization, while VantageScore shifts more emphasis to recent behavior and depth of credit; VantageScore also incorporates rent, phone and utility data more aggressively, whereas FICO 9 only reflects those items when the lender reports them (VantageScore 4.0 methodology).

This means a borrower with on‑time rent payments may see a modest boost in VantageScore but little change in FICO Score 9, while both models treat unpaid medical collections differently - VantageScore generally penalizes them, FICO Score 9 softens the impact.

FICO Score 9 is used by a focused group of lenders - mainly large banks, some credit unions, and select mortgage and auto financiers that have upgraded to the newest model.

1. Big‑bank credit‑card and mortgage lines - Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase apply FICO Score 9 for many new credit‑card approvals and mortgage underwriting (see FICO Score 9 lender adoption list).
2. Credit unions - Navy Federal, PenFed and Alliant Credit Union switched to FICO 9 early to reward members with cleaner medical‑collection treatment.
3. Mortgage‑only lenders - Rocket Mortgage, loanDepot and Guaranteed Rate run FICO Score 9 on most conventional loan applications.
4. Auto‑finance companies - Ally Financial, Capital One Auto Finance and USAA Auto consistently reference FICO Score 9 when pricing new car loans.
5. Fintech personal‑loan platforms - SoFi and Upgrade have incorporated FICO Score 9 into their automated underwriting pipelines.

These institutions represent the primary segment of lenders that actually use FICO Score 9 today.

A FICO Score 9 in the 760‑820 range typically unlocks the lowest available rates from major lenders, so borrowers with that score see noticeably better terms than those with older models.

• 30‑year mortgage, $300,000 loan - borrower at 780 receives 6.125 % APR from a Fannie Mae‑approved bank; monthly payment $1,823. A 720 score would be charged about 6.75 % ($1,945).
• 5‑year auto loan, $25,000 - credit‑union member with 770 gets 4.2 % APR, $462 /mo; a 700 score sees 5.6 % ($462 → $483).
• Personal loan, $15,000, 3‑year term - online lender offers 9.9 % APR to a 765 score; same amount at 710 scores climbs to 13.5 % APR.
• Rewards credit card, $5,000 limit - issuer approves a 790 score for 0 % intro‑period and a 15 % after‑term APR; a 680 score often receives a 23 % APR and lower limit.

These snapshots show how a strong FICO Score 9 compresses the interest‑rate gap across loan types, translating into hundreds of dollars saved each month.

If a high score still doesn't produce the rate you expect, the next section explains scenarios where FICO 9 alone won't move the needle.

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• FICO Score 9 won't lower your rate when the lender either doesn't use the model, sets a cut‑off above your score, or weighs other risk factors more heavily. (See the loan‑example section for proof.)
• Many mortgage and auto lenders still use FICO 8 model or a custom underwriting engine, so a high Score 9 has no impact.
• If your Score 9 falls below the lender's minimum (often 720‑740 for prime rates), the offer will default to the next‑best tier regardless of the model's improvements.
• Non‑score items such as debt‑to‑income ratio, recent credit inquiries, or employment stability can override a good Score 9 in automated underwriting, as explained in Why FICO 9 may not matter.
• Regulatory products like FHA or VA loans cap rates by loan‑to‑value, not by Credit Score, so even an excellent Score 9 won't change the rate.

FICO Score 9 excludes medical collection accounts that are 180 days old or that have been paid in full, so they no longer drag down your numeric value. Unpaid medical debts younger than 180 days still appear, but they count in the 'new' portion of the score and carry less weight than traditional collections.

If a medical account ages past 180 days and enters collection, FICO 9 treats it as a low‑impact 'new' item; paying it off removes it from the report entirely. This contrasts with older models where any medical collection - paid or unpaid - remained on the file for seven years. For the official methodology see FICO Score 9 medical collection rules.

FICO Score 9 can include rental, phone, and utility payments, but only when those accounts are reported to Experian and the lender has opted for a model version that evaluates them.

If you pay rent through a reporting service such as Experian RentBureau, the on‑time history becomes a tradeline that FICO Score 9 treats like a small installment loan, improving the payment‑history factor.

Phone and utility bills appear via third‑party aggregators; FICO Score 9 adds them to the alternative‑data segment, yet many lenders still ignore that segment. The upcoming '5 immediate fixes if your FICO 9 is low' section explains how to add these positives yourself.

If your FICO Score 9 is lower than you'd like, you can boost it today with five concrete actions.

1. Pay down revolving balances so total utilization falls below 30 % and aim for under 10 % for the fastest lift. Utilization accounts for about 30 % of the score, so a small reduction can add dozens of points.
2. Set up automatic on‑time payments for every revolving and installment account. A single late payment can shave 50 points or more, while a perfect payment history adds steadily over time.
3. Add a positive tradeline - become an authorized user on a family member's well‑managed card or open a secured card and use it responsibly. Become an authorized user to improve credit often raises the score within a month.
4. Report rent, phone or utility payments through a FICO‑approved service. These on‑time data points are especially valuable for thin files and can lift the score instantly.
5. Contact lenders to remove recent paid collections; under FICO 9, paid collections no longer affect the score, but un‑paid ones still do. A goodwill request or quick error correction can clear them and give an immediate bump.

Dispute inaccurate items on your credit report to lift the drag on your FICO Score 9.

First, pull the most recent report from each of the three major bureaus - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion - through the free annual portal at AnnualCreditReport.com. Mark every entry that looks wrong: a balance that doesn't match your statement, a collection listed after you paid it, or a loan you never opened.

• Locate the error and copy the exact wording or account number.
• Gather proof: bank statements, paid‑in‑full letters, or settlement agreements.
• Submit the dispute within 30 days of spotting the mistake, using the bureau's online portal or a certified‑mail letter that includes the error description, supporting docs, and a request for correction.
• The bureau must investigate, usually in 30 days, and send you a written result.
• If the item is corrected, verify that the update appears on all three reports and that your FICO Score 9 reflects the change.
• If the bureau rejects the dispute, add a brief 'statement of dispute' to your file and consider escalating to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or contacting the creditor directly.

These steps quickly cleanse false negatives, letting the FICO Score 9 reflect your true credit behavior.

FICO Score 9 gives thin‑file borrowers and identity‑theft victims a higher chance of a usable number because it omits paid collections after 24 months and does not penalize a fraud alert or a Security Freeze on the credit report. Lenders that rely on FICO Score 9 therefore see fewer zero‑balance negatives, which can lift a score from the low‑300s into the 600‑range even when only a handful of accounts exist.

The model also treats identity‑theft flags as neutral, so a victim who quickly disputes fraudulent accounts will not see those items drag the score down. To maximize this benefit, keep the fraud alert active, file an Identity Theft Report, and regularly check the credit file for lingering erroneous entries. The next section shows how long it typically takes to rebuild after collections under FICO Score 9. Official FICO Score 9 details

FICO Score 9 begins to erase the hurt from a collection as soon as you either pay it off or it ages, so the rebuild clock starts the day you act; a paid collection drops to a neutral status within 30 days, and the score typically climbs 20‑30 points after six months of clean activity and another 40‑60 points after a year, putting most borrowers back into the 660‑720 range if they were previously mid‑600s, while an unpaid collection stays on the 300‑850 report for up to seven years but loses about half its weight after 24 months of on‑time payments, meaning the score usually recovers most of the loss by the two‑year mark and returns to pre‑collection levels by three years if no new negatives appear.

focusing on paying down the debt, confirming the account is marked 'paid' on your report, and maintaining flawless payment history is the fastest path; for exact model details see FICO Score 9 collections handling.