What Is the Average Credit Score in America? (2026 Data and Trends)

The average credit score in America was 713 as of September 2025, according to Experian data — a two-point drop from the prior year and the first annual decline since 2013. Most Americans (70%) still hold a score of 670 or higher, which lenders generally consider "good."

Why the National Average Matters — and Why You Might See a Different Number

Before getting into breakdowns, it helps to understand why you may have seen figures like 714 or even 720 on other sites. The number varies depending on the scoring model used, the time of year the data was pulled, and which credit bureau supplied the underlying data

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Experian publishes its average using FICO Score 8 — the version most widely used in U.S. lending decisions — pulled from September data each year. FICO's own Spring 2026 Credit Insights report places the figure at 714 for 2025, using slightly different timing and sampling.

Neither number is wrong. They are measuring the same thing with slightly different lenses.

What's often overlooked is the difference between FICO and VantageScore. If you check your score through a bank app, a personal finance platform, or a service like Credit Karma, there is a good chance you are looking at a VantageScore — not a FICO score.

The two models use similar inputs but weight them differently, which means your VantageScore and your FICO score can differ by 20 to 40 points in either direction. Neither is more "real" than the other, but lenders predominantly use FICO when making credit decisions.

FICO Score vs. VantageScore — Key Differences

Feature	FICO Score 8	VantageScore 3.0 / 4.0
Score range	300 – 850	300 – 850
Used in lending decisions	90%+ of U.S. lenders	Growing, but less common
Minimum credit history needed	6 months	1 month
Where you typically see it	Experian, myFICO, many banks	Credit Karma, Chase Credit Journey
Payment history weighting	35%	40%

In practice, most financial advisors suggest tracking your FICO score specifically if you are planning to apply for a mortgage or major loan in the near term.

What Is a Good Credit Score?

A score of 713 sits solidly in the "good" range under the FICO model — but only barely above the lower threshold. Here is how lenders read the full spectrum.

FICO Score Ranges

Score Range	Rating	Share of Americans (2025)
800 – 850	Exceptional	22.8%
740 – 799	Very Good	27.5%
670 – 739	Good	20.1%
580 – 669	Fair	14.9%
300 – 579	Poor	14.7%

Source: Experian, September 2025

The national average of 713 puts the typical American consumer in the lower half of the "good" tier. That qualifies most people for standard loan products, though not necessarily at the lowest advertised rates. Those typically go to borrowers in the 740 and above range.

What a 713 Score Typically Gets You

Loan Type	Minimum Score (Typical)	Rate Tier at 713
Conventional mortgage	620+	Mid-tier — not the best rate
FHA mortgage	580+	Eligible
Auto loan	600+	Approved, moderate rate
Rewards credit card	670+	Likely approved
Personal loan	610+	Approved, rate varies by lender

These are general thresholds. Individual lenders set their own standards, and other factors — income, debt-to-income ratio, employment — also influence decisions.

How the Average Credit Score Has Changed Over Time

The national average spent more than a decade climbing. From a post-recession low in the early 2010s, it rose steadily as consumers paid down debt, avoided delinquencies, and benefited from relatively stable employment. The 2025 dip is notable precisely because it broke that streak.

National Average FICO Score Trend

Year	Average FICO Score
2015	700
2017	701
2019	706
2020	711
2021	714
2022	714
2023	715
2024	715
2025	713

Sources: Experian annual data reports

Why Did the Average Drop in 2025?

The decline is not dramatic in absolute terms, but the direction shifted. Several factors contributed:

• Continued inflation on everyday necessities — shelter, transportation, groceries — reduced financial slack for many households

• The end of the SAVE student loan repayment plan meant interest began accruing again on millions of accounts, raising monthly obligations for borrowers who had adjusted their budgets around lower payments.

As reported by CNBC, interest on SAVE-enrolled loans began accruing from August 2025, leaving borrowers with a typical increase of around $219 per month in interest charges alone

• Rising unemployment — still historically low, but moving upward — pushed more consumers toward missed or late payments

• Record-high credit rejection rates for mortgages and auto loans reflect tighter lending standards that are themselves a response to rising perceived risk

What is interesting is that credit utilization — one of the biggest score factors — held steady at 29% nationally. The decline is not coming from people maxing out cards. It is coming from payment stress and account delinquencies at the margins.

What This Signals for 2026

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported at the end of 2025 that consumers expect a tougher job market and higher prices in 2026. Debt delinquency expectations reached their highest level since the start of the pandemic in early 2020.

That does not mean a collapse is coming — but it does suggest the current downward pressure on scores is unlikely to reverse quickly.

Average Credit Score by Age Group (2025)

Scores reliably rise with age. This is not a coincidence — it reflects the compounding effect of credit history length, debt payoff over time, and more diverse credit types accumulated across decades.

Generational Credit Score Breakdown

Generation	Age Range (2025)	2024 Average	2025 Average	Change
Generation Z	18 – 28	681	678	–3 points
Millennials	29 – 44	691	689	–2 points
Generation X	45 – 60	709	709	No change
Baby Boomers	61 – 79	746	747	+1 point
Silent Generation	80+	760	760	No change

Source: Experian, September 2025

Younger generations took the hardest hit in 2025. Gen Z and Millennials are more likely to carry student loan debt, have shorter credit histories, and have fewer assets to buffer against financial shocks. The ending of the SAVE repayment plan hit these groups disproportionately.

Baby Boomers, by contrast, often carry paid-off or low-balance mortgages, have fewer active financial obligations, and benefit from decades of built credit history. Their average score rose by one point — a small but notable contrast to the declines across younger cohorts.

Despite the drops, every generation still averages within the "good" or "very good" range under FICO standards — which means most borrowers across all age groups remain acceptable risks by conventional lending standards.

Average Credit Score by State (2025)

Geography plays a real role. The gap between the highest and lowest state averages is 64 points — a spread wide enough to meaningfully affect borrowing costs.

Highest Average Credit Scores by State

State	2025 Average FICO Score
Minnesota	741
Vermont	737
Wisconsin	737
New Hampshire	735
Washington	734

Lowest Average Credit Scores by State

State	2025 Average FICO Score
Mississippi	677
Louisiana	686
Alabama	689
Georgia	692
Texas	692

Source: Experian, September 2025

The pattern is consistent year over year: Upper Midwest and New England states cluster at the top; Southern states cluster at the bottom. The reasons behind this divide are not fully settled, but commonly cited factors include differences in median household income, rates of homeownership, access to financial education, and varying levels of medical debt — which has historically been more prevalent in states without Medicaid expansion.

No state saw its average credit score increase in 2025. Louisiana and Washington D.C. experienced the steepest drops at four points each. Illinois, Maine, and Vermont held steady.

How Credit Scores Are Distributed Across America

The overall average can be misleading if you look at it without the distribution underneath it.

Score Distribution: 2024 vs. 2025

FICO Score Range	2024	2025
Exceptional (800–850)	22.5%	22.8%
Very Good (740–799)	27.8%	27.5%
Good (670–739)	21.0%	20.1%
Fair (580–669)	15.5%	14.9%
Poor (300–579)	13.2%	14.7%

Source: Experian, September 2025

What this table shows is a subtle but telling shift: the share of consumers in the "exceptional" range hit an all-time high in 2025, while the share in the "poor" range also rose. The middle tiers — fair, good, and very good — shrank slightly.

This pattern reflects what economists have been calling a "K-shaped" economy. Higher-income households have continued to accumulate wealth and maintain strong financial habits, pushing more of them into the exceptional range.

Lower-income households, squeezed by inflation and stagnant wages, have slipped. The average score of 713 sits in the middle of this divergence — representative of neither extreme particularly well.

What Makes Up Your Credit Score?

Understanding the components helps make sense of why scores move the way they do.

FICO Score Factors and Weightings

Factor	Weight	What It Measures
Payment history	35%	On-time vs. late or missed payments
Amounts owed	30%	Credit utilization across accounts
Length of credit history	15%	Age of oldest, newest, and average accounts
Credit mix	10%	Variety of account types (cards, loans, mortgage)
New credit	10%	Recent applications and hard inquiries

Payment history carries the most weight by a significant margin. One missed payment can produce a meaningful score drop — sometimes 50 to 100 points for consumers with otherwise clean records.

Average Credit Utilization by Score Range (2025)

FICO Score Range	Average Utilization
Exceptional (800–850)	7%
Very Good (740–799)	15%
Good (670–739)	39%
Fair (580–669)	61%
Poor (300–579)	79%

Source: Experian, September 2025

The utilization pattern is striking. Consumers with exceptional scores use just 7% of their available credit on average. At 29% nationally, the average American is approaching the 30% threshold that credit scoring experts generally flag as the point where utilization starts pulling scores down noticeably.

Delinquency Rates by Debt Type (2023–2025)

Account Type	2023	2024	2025
Credit card	2.45%	2.40%	2.31%
Mortgage	1.88%	2.24%	2.45%
Auto loan	3.51%	3.68%	3.78%
Personal loan (unsecured)	3.89%	3.86%	3.76%

Source: Experian, September 2025. Long-term delinquency rate trends across loan types are also tracked by data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED).

Mortgage and auto loan delinquencies are rising — a meaningful signal given that these are typically higher-priority payments for households. Credit card delinquencies have actually declined slightly, which suggests consumers are prioritising secured debt even as overall financial pressure grows.

How to Improve Your Credit Score

The fundamentals here are not complicated. What makes them hard is consistency over time — not the actions themselves.

Pay on time, every time. Payment history is 35% of your score. One late payment reported at 30 days past due can drop a good score significantly. Setting up autopay for at least the minimum balance removes most of the risk.

Keep utilization below 30% — ideally below 10%. If your combined credit limit across cards is $10,000, try to carry no more than $1,000 to $3,000 in reported balances. The balance reported to the bureaus is typically your statement balance, not what you owe day-to-day.

Do not close old accounts. Length of credit history matters, and closing an old account shortens your average account age. If the card has no annual fee, leaving it open and occasionally using it makes more sense than closing it.

Limit hard inquiries. Applying for multiple credit products in a short window triggers multiple hard pulls, each of which can knock a few points off your score. Rate shopping for mortgages or auto loans within a 14 to 45-day window is typically treated as a single inquiry by FICO.

Check your credit report for errors. A significant share of credit reports contain errors that consumers are unaware of. You are entitled to a free report from each of the three major bureaus annually at AnnualCreditReport.com. Disputing inaccurate negative marks is one of the faster ways to improve a score.

Conclusion

The average credit score in America is 713 — technically "good," but under quiet pressure. Scores dropped in 2025 for the first time in over a decade, driven by economic strain rather than reckless borrowing. The fundamentals — pay on time, keep utilization low, build history — remain the same.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 713 a good credit score in America?

Yes. A score of 713 falls in the "good" range under FICO standards (670–739). It qualifies you for most standard loan products, though the lowest advertised rates typically go to borrowers above 740.

What is the average credit score for someone in their 30s?

Millennials (ages 29–44) averaged 689 in 2025, down two points from 2024. This reflects student debt pressure and shorter credit histories compared to older generations.

What credit score do you need to buy a house?

Most conventional mortgage lenders require a minimum of 620. FHA loans are available starting at 580. The best mortgage rates, however, typically go to borrowers with scores of 740 or higher.

Why does my credit score look different on different apps?

Different apps use different scoring models. Credit Karma uses VantageScore; many banks show FICO Score 8. The two models weight factors differently and can produce scores 20 to 40 points apart.

Is the average American credit score going up or down?

It went down in 2025 — for the first time since 2013. The average dropped two points to 713, driven by rising delinquencies, student loan payment resumption, and broader economic pressure.