Best Ways to Improve Your Credit Score

Reader Question: I have seen hundreds of articles online about improving my credit score, but I'm wondering what the fastest way is. What's the best way to improve a score quickly? Thanks in advance.

I'm glad to see you're being so proactive about this and doing the research needed. As I've always said, the best way to improve your credit is to focus on the factors that influence your score the most. As you can see from the chart below, there are five categories of data that affect your FICO credit score. You can also see which factors carry the most weight.



If you really want to improve your credit score quickly, the best way forward is what I refer to as the "three-pronged attack."

• For starters, you must pay all of your bills on time -- that means every single bill, but especially your credit accounts. This addresses the blue 35% area in the chart above.
• Secondly, you must reduce your credit card debt. This will improve your financial situation in many ways, but it will also boost your score by improving your utilization ratio. This addresses the red 30% area shown above.
• Third, you must get copies of your credit reports from all three reporting bureaus, and you must review them for errors. Correct any errors you find on your reports, as instructed in this section of the FTC's website.
  

This is by far the best way to improve your credit score quickly. That's why I recommend it over and over again to my readers. Of course, I can't predict how long it will take you to improve your score. This varies from one person to the next, because there are so many other factors at work. For example, a person with a recent bankruptcy on his credit will see slower improvements than a person without such blemishes. While I can't make any time frame predictions, I can assure you that this is the best way to improve your credit quickly.

I hope this answers your question, and I wish you well in your financial endeavors. Continue your research after leaving this website, make a plan for improving your score, and then stick to it. You need to be patient and persistent to get results, but you can do it. I've given you the best path to success -- now the rest is up to you.

Related Article:
How to Raise Your FICO Score Fast in 2009