A three-digit number summarizing how reliably you repay borrowed money.
A credit score, typically ranging from 300 to 850, predicts how likely you are to repay debt. Lenders use it to decide whether to approve loans and what interest rate to charge. The biggest drivers are payment history and credit utilization, followed by length of history, credit mix, and new applications.
A higher credit score can cut the interest rate on a mortgage by enough to save tens of thousands over the loan.