What is the Highest Credit Score?
Key takeaways
- In most cases, the highest credit score is 850, though a couple of FICO score models go up to 900.
- One person can have several credit scores, since FICO, VantageScore and others each have different scoring systems with different weightings.
- Getting a perfect credit score can take a long time and effort, but even having an almost-perfect score can get you access to the best rates and other perks.
A perfect credit score — usually 850 — is hard to get, but even coming close can unlock the best deals for loans and other credit.
Still, for those of us who wanted every possible gold star in elementary school, hitting that highest credit score can be done, so long as you pay down debts and get strategic with your accounts.
What is the highest credit score you can have?
The most-used credit scores come from FICO and VantageScore. Each company has a few different types of scores, but almost all of them top out at 850.
The main exceptions are the FICO Bankcard Scores and Auto Scores, which go up to 900, but they’re not as widely used as the FICO Score 8.
Why your credit score is necessary
Credit scores are a key part of how credit works. The three-digit figure lets lenders estimate how likely you are to pay them back on time. Based on this, the lender will decide whether to loan you money and how much to charge you. Having a great credit score can help you get everything from a loan or credit card to approval for renting your dream apartment.
FICO vs. VantageScore
FICO Score
The FICO Score (FICO stands for Fair Isaac Corporation, the score’s creator) is an extremely popular scoring model. FICO says its score is used by 90% of top lenders.
Although FICO has several different types of credit score, the most popular is FICO Score 8, followed by the similar Score 9. All three of the main U.S. credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and Transunion) use versions 8 and 9 the most, according to FICO.
Other than two exceptions, FICO scores range from 300 to 850, with different ratings from “poor” to “exceptional,” as shown in the table below.
- Only about 1.5% of Americans have a perfect FICO score.
- Almost 22% have an “exceptional” rating (800 or above).
- Almost half have at least a “very good” rating (740 or above).
| Credit score | Rating |
|---|---|
| 300-579 | Poor |
| 580-669 | Fair |
| 670-739 | Good |
| 740-799 | Very good |
| 800-850 | Exceptional |
VantageScore
VantageScore, the other commonly used credit score, was developed by the three credit bureaus as an alternative to FICO in 2006.
VantageScore says 8 out of 10 of the top U.S. banks use its scores, as well as thousands of consumer websites and fintech companies.
The most popular VantageScore types are the 3.0 and 4.0 models, which each result in their own credit scores.
Like with FICO, the main VantageScore models range from 300 to 850, with each falling into ratings from “subprime” up to “superprime” (excellent).
A “prime” VantageScore (661 and above) should be enough to get you approved by most lenders. It’s about the same as a “good” FICO Score.
| Credit score | Rating |
|---|---|
| 300-600 | Subprime |
| 601-660 | Near prime |
| 661-780 | Prime |
| 781-850 | Superprime/excellent |
What affects your credit score
Each credit score type and scoring model has its own formula, but they all more or less use the same factors:
- Payment history: Whether payments on your bills have been on time, late or delinquent is very important. How long it takes you to make up late payments can also have an impact.
- Credit utilization: This looks mostly at your revolving credit (like credit cards), and compares how much you owe versus your total credit limit. For example, if you have $2,000 in charges on a card with a $5,000 limit, then you have a 40% “credit utilization ratio.”
- Age and mix of accounts: Scoring models might also look at the average age of your credit accounts, as well as the ages of your oldest and newest accounts. They can also consider whether you have a good mix of different types of credit (loans, credit cards, etc.), which can also help your credit score.
- New/recent credit inquiries: Applying for a new line of credit can slightly lower your credit score each time a potential lender makes a new credit inquiry. Having a lot of newly opened accounts can also weigh on your score.
How to get the highest credit score
Achieving the highest credit score takes dedication. Here are three ways to start your journey to an 850 score:
Make payments on time
For both FICO scores and the most commonly used VantageScore models, your payment history is the biggest factor in deciding your score. So make sure you keep up with your bills in order to get the highest credit score.
Signing up for autopay is a great way to avoid missing payments. And the longer you go without missing a payment, the better.
Pay down debt
Repaying loans and credit cards lowers both your total amount of debt and your credit utilization ratio. And the lower you can get these two factors, the better.
For reference, amounts owed (which includes both total debt and your credit utilization ratio) make up 30% of a FICO score, 31% of a VantageScore 3.0 and 26% of a VantageScore 4.0.
Be strategic about opening and closing credit accounts
Avoiding taking out new credit, or at least limiting your credit inquiries (according to FICO, more than six inquiries on your credit report is too many), can also help you reach the highest credit score.
That said, this is a pretty small factor, and only some credit inquiries count. Also, if you shop around for a loan, and various lenders all make inquiries into your credit, this will only count as a single credit check so long as all the inquiries are within 14 to 45 days of each other.
At the same time, be careful about closing an old account, since it reduces the average age of your accounts and can hurt your credit mix, as well.
Benefits of having a perfect credit score
You don’t need a perfect score to access loans — a good score will usually do the trick. But having an 850 score (or something close) can give you access to the best interest rates, saving you a lot of money. Excellent credit can also help you save in other ways, like lowering your car insurance or getting you approved for rentals.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, but only for FICO Auto Scores and Bankcard Scores, which some creditors use. For the more popular scoring models (like the general FICO Score 8 and VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0 models), scores max out at 850. Either way, getting the highest credit score score is difficult and can take years to achieve.
According to a 2024 report from Experian, the average American has a 715 FICO credit score, which is squarely in the “good” category. VantageScore says their average score is 702, which has a rating of “prime.”
Only about 1.5% of Americans have a perfect 850 FICO score, and there’s no publicly available data about how many people have a perfect VantageScore. So while it’s difficult to achieve, getting the highest credit score isn’t impossible.