6 Best Ways to Increase Your FICO Credit Score In Under 21 Days 

You may have heard that there’s no magic wand or overnight fix. But there are several ways to increase your FICO credit score in under a month. For example, you can dispute any mistakes on your credit report. You could pay down your debt or increase your credit limit. You can also remove yourself from any negative authorized user accounts or even submit a goodwill letter if you have a missed payment on your credit report.

How Your FICO Credit Score Is Determined

A key step in learning how to improve your credit score is understanding how credit scores are determined. There are five factors that are taken into account in order to calculate your credit score. This includes your payment history, credit utilization, credit history, credit mix and new credit.

These are the five factors that impact your credit score:

• Payment history (35%) — It’s crucial to make on-time payments. So much so that this is the number one factor in the determination of your credit score. Ultimately, lenders want to know whether or not you will pay them back. And so they look to whether or not you pay other creditors back.
• Amounts owed (30%) — A.K.A your credit utilization ratio. This is how much money you owe compared to how much credit you have available to you.
• Credit history (15%) — Having a long credit history improves your creditworthiness. This is because it shows lenders that you have a track record of using credit.
• Credit mix (10%) — It’s beneficial to have different kinds of credit accounts (such as credit cards and installment loans). The reason is that this tells creditors that you pay all types of credit.
• New credit (10%) — Lenders want to know how frequently you apply for new loans and credit.

Learn more about FICO and how it calculates credit scores.

How To Increase Your Credit Score Fast

There are a number of different things you can do to help increase your credit score within a month. To start, review your credit report for errors and dispute the inaccuracies you find. From there, reduce any debt by paying down balances, if you can. Improve your credit utilization ratio by increasing your credit limit, remove yourself from any negative authorized-user accounts, and submit a goodwill letter to creditors if you have a missed payment on your credit report.

Here are the six best ways to increase your credit score in under a month:

1. Review Your Credit Report and Dispute Any Mistakes

A good first step to increasing your credit score quickly is to get a copy of your credit report. Then, review it for mistakes. It’s not necessarily common to find mistakes on your credit report, but they do happen. And when they do, they decrease your credit score.

Learn how to get a copy of your credit report for free with each of the three major credit bureaus:

• Experian
• Equifax
• TransUnion

In the instance where you find a mistake, you can file a dispute with the credit bureau (e.g., Experian, Equifax, TransUnion). If you win your dispute, the mistake will be removed from your credit report, which will increase your credit score.

2. If You Have Any Loans, Make a Large Payment

Debt-to-income ratio is one factor in how your credit score is determined. To improve your debt-to-income ratio, you need to either decrease your debt or increase your income. Of course, of the two options, it’s generally more realistic to decrease debt if you’re looking for a fast way to increase your credit score.

3. Pay Down Your Credit Card Balance

Another factor in determining your credit score is your credit utilization ratio. This measures how much credit you’re using (your credit card debt) compared to how much credit you have available to you (your credit limit). To improve your credit utilization ratio and increase your credit score, pay down your credit card statement balances.

4. Increase Your Credit Limit

If you aren’t able to pay down your credit card balance, another way to improve your credit utilization ratio is to increase your credit limit. You can do this by either requesting a credit limit increase with any credit cards you currently have. Or, you can apply for a new credit card or line of credit.

Keep in mind that applying for a new credit card involves a hard inquiry on your credit, which can drop your credit score by a few points. However, if you’re approved for the credit card, you will generally see your credit score increase as it increases your total credit limit. Of course, increasing your credit limit will not positively impact your credit utilization ratio and credit score if you charge more to your cards. Only do this if you are sure you will not use the higher limit.

5. Remove Yourself From Any Negative Authorized-User Records

Being an authorized user on a credit card account can positively help your credit. but it can also negatively impact your credit score. Negative authorized-user accounts are generally those that have a high debt utilization. This is because this debt and credit limit show as your debt and credit limit for credit reporting purposes.

On the other hand, being an authorized user on an account that has a high limit, but little to no debt will positively impact your credit. That said, it is worth evaluating any authorized user accounts to determine which are helping your credit score and which are hindering it.

6. Submit a Goodwill Letter

If you have a good credit history with only a minor issue, such as a single late payment, you can contact the issuer and request to have it forgiven and removed from your record. You can make your case over the phone or send an official “Goodwill Adjustment Letter”. This works best before the negative record appears on your credit report, but it’s still worth trying afterward.

Reasons To Increase Your Credit Score

Increasing your credit score is a highly beneficial endeavor. Not only can it help you more easily get approved for new loans and credit cards, but it can also help you get better interest rates. In return, a better credit score can save you thousands of dollars. It can also help you get better rates on insurance and even help increase your odds of getting a job (if it requires good credit).

Here are some of the leading reasons to improve your credit:

• Easier Access to Credit: Higher credit scores give you more opportunities for loans and other forms of credit, as lenders are more likely to view you as a safe investment.
• Lower Interest Rates: With a higher score come lower interest rates on mortgages, car loans, personal loans, or any other form of credit you may need.
• Better Insurance Deals: Many insurance companies use your credit score when calculating premiums; having a higher one can result in lower monthly payments.
• Improved Employment Chances: A good credit score could help increase the chances of being hired for positions that require financial responsibility and trustworthiness.
• Increased Financial Opportunities: Good credit can open doors to additional financing options such as business start-up funding or investments with larger returns down the line than what is available from traditional routes like banks or savings accounts

As you can see, there are so many reasons to improve your credit. It can help you get approved for loans in the future, get lower interest rates, and save a lot of money.

Bottom Line

Having good credit is a long-term game. It’s important to continue to practice good credit habits to maintain your positive history. In doing so, you can help improve your chances for credit and loan approvals in the future. It also helps increase your odds of getting a better interest rate upon approval, which can save you thousands of dollars.

It’s vital to keep your debt low, make every payment on time, and take the time to build a longstanding credit history. It’s also wise to monitor your credit to keep tabs on your credit and quickly identify any inaccuracies or even fraudulent activity and even set up a credit lock or credit freeze to ensure no one can access your credit without your knowledge.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)