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The Daily Insight Hub

How does a credit score affect an individual?

Author

Andrew Campbell

Updated on February 03, 2026

The higher your score, the more likely you are to get approved and receive a low rate. However, other factors, such as your income, outstanding debt and history with the creditor can also impact your rate. While many lenders often use specific FICO credit scores, other lenders may use one or several scores.

Do credit cards build credit history?

Credit cards help you build credit because credit card issuers typically report your account and activity to the national credit bureaus—Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. The bureaus then use this information to create your credit reports, which are the basis of your credit scores.

How does having a credit card impact your personal finances?

The impact of credit cards on your credit scores is high because it demonstrates your ability to manage and pay off debt to potential lenders and creditors. That’s why making payments on time is the biggest factor in most credit scores and makes up 35% of your FICO® Score☉ .

How do creditors determine a person’s credit history?

Lenders calculate your credit score using information in your credit report, like your history of repaying money you borrowed, the types of loans you’ve had, how long you have had a particular line of credit or loan, and how much total debt you owe.

Is a personal loan the same as a credit card?

Compare credit cards and loans Credit cards are a form of ‘revolving’ credit. This means you can borrow money up to your credit limit, repay some or all of the debt, and then borrow the money again. A personal loan is a more structured form of borrowing.

What are 2 things that hurt your credit score?

Here are 10 things you may not have known could hurt your credit score:

  • Just one late payment.
  • Not paying ALL of your bills on time.
  • Applying for more credit.
  • Canceling your zero-balance credit cards.
  • Transferring balances to a single card.
  • Co-signing credit applications.
  • Not having enough credit diversity.

How does a credit card affect your credit?

By understanding how small business and corporate credit cards can affect your credit, you can make the right decisions to protect your credit score. Experian Boost helps by giving you credit for the utility and mobile phone bills you’re already paying. Until now, those payments did not positively impact your score. What Is a Good Credit Score?

How does credit history affect your FICO score?

As a common example of how length of credit history characteristics directly affect other areas of your score, a consumer relatively new to credit with only a short credit history would be more likely to see the addition of a single late payment or maxed-out card do extensive score damage than would a consumer having a longer credit track record.

How does a small business credit card affect your credit score?

When you make your payments on time and carry very little debt, your small business credit card can add positive information to your credit history and improve your credit scores. But if you miss payments and accumulate a large amount of debt, then your small business credit card can have a negative impact on your credit history and scores.

What happens if you have a long credit history?

So, unfortunately, if your credit reports show that you’ve missed payments and have a high utilization ratio on a credit card, a long credit history may not be enough to make up for the less-than-ideal information on the reports.