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There are many flavors of FAKO, none nearly so bad as the Credit One FAKO. Mine recently took a hit due to an app spree this summer, but the Credit One number is absurd.
Fico 8 Transunion - 636
Fico 8 Experian - 618
Vantage 3 Transunion - 681
Vantage 3 Equifax - 684
Credit One "Credit Score *Powered by Experian*" - 563
I got so excited seeing most of your FAKOs lower than your FICOs. Then I ordered an account here and checked my own -- womp womp.
FICO: EQ 629, TU 544, EX 619
CreditKarma FAKO: EQ 637, TU 643
99 point difference on Transunion!!! Ugh
So I have worked very hard over the years to get my credit score up. I used MyFICO reports until I reached the excellent range, then used the FAKO scores provided by the credit cards to track/maintain my score.
Well in the past 7 years:
- I got married
- My husband and I bought and paid off 2 new cars (both put down about 50% on 3 year loans and paid off in half the time).
- Paid Credit Cards off in full every month
- Last month paid off the house (early).
So, when tracking scores this month, My AMEX FAKO went down 38 points from 2 months ago (down 3 points the first month, and 35 this month). I pulled the credit report (but not score) from the analog agency and saw no glaring issues to cause the dramatic drop, just the paid in full on the mortgage.
Also my Visa FAKO went down 4 points from previous.
Just discouraged....Here I am using credit responsibly and want to have good rates available when I need it, but have dropped dramatically for being responsible.
(PS I want to buy a new car in the next year, so this matters).
AMEX FAKO was 820, now 782 - ouch
Visa FAKO was 823, now 819
So after a couple of months of monitoring my credit with CK, I decided to sign up for the monthly MyFico service. Let's just say OUCH! The Fico 8 scores were about 40 points lower than the CK scores. Gonna be a long slow grind back up the emotional ladder. This is my last month on my Chp 13 so here's to freedom and 700+ in 24 months.
Fako Range 614 - 672
FICO Range 575 - 633
Applied for AmEx BCP - FICO Experian 754
Applied for a mortgage pre-approval with QL shortly after my AmEx with (not my smartest move) and the loan banker quickly read off all my three scores on the phone. I cannot recall the exact scores, but I remember specifically that TU was the lowest in the 600s - I think 688; the other two scores were in the 700s but pretty different - maybe 745 and 715.
FAKOs:
It was very surprising that most of the FAKO apps say they use TU data but my actual TU score was >50 points lower. I will update if my FAKO scores are drastically lower after my new BCE appears in my history, as this may be a potential explanation. Hope this helps!
@Anonymous wrote:I got so excited seeing most of your FAKOs lower than your FICOs. Then I ordered an account here and checked my own -- womp womp.
FICO: EQ 629, TU 544, EX 619
CreditKarma FAKO: EQ 637, TU 643
99 point difference on Transunion!!! Ugh
I was in the same boat last week, very surprised that my actual TU was much lower than expected!
Hey folks, just wanted to add my particular case to show what the differences could be. I'm going to specifically only speak about TU because that's the one that I have seen the biggest differences in between FICO and FAKO, as well as the one that I have monthly access to see both scores for.
So my FAKO I receive from Credit Karma each month. My FICO for TU I can see with my account with Discover. My Discover sent my invoice with my score on it updated on Sept. 4 2017 with a TU FICO of 635. I just openned up my CK app wich updated today (Sept. 21) and shows a TU score of 727.
That's darn near 100 pt difference.
I've always known that it could be different, so I use the CK app more as a path outline to keep track of general info, and I don't pay too much attention to the scores they provide. However, on the flip side, I have also seen the scores fall within a few points of each other. Recently I apped with Discover, and they stated my EQ score was 683 and CK showed it at 686.
So it goes to show, it can be right on, or way off. Who knows, maybe in a week when i get my Discover statement, it will show a completely different score all together, maybe somewhere in the middle. But this goes to show that it's definitely not a super reliable source of information if you're on the fence.
@Anonymous wrote:Hey folks, just wanted to add my particular case to show what the differences could be. I'm going to specifically only speak about TU because that's the one that I have seen the biggest differences in between FICO and FAKO, as well as the one that I have monthly access to see both scores for.
So my FAKO I receive from Credit Karma each month. My FICO for TU I can see with my account with Discover. My Discover sent my invoice with my score on it updated on Sept. 4 2017 with a TU FICO of 635. I just openned up my CK app wich updated today (Sept. 21) and shows a TU score of 727.
That's darn near 100 pt difference.
I've always known that it could be different, so I use the CK app more as a path outline to keep track of general info, and I don't pay too much attention to the scores they provide. However, on the flip side, I have also seen the scores fall within a few points of each other. Recently I apped with Discover, and they stated my EQ score was 683 and CK showed it at 686.
So it goes to show, it can be right on, or way off. Who knows, maybe in a week when i get my Discover statement, it will show a completely different score all together, maybe somewhere in the middle. But this goes to show that it's definitely not a super reliable source of information if you're on the fence.
Your TU score difference is indicitive of a profile with a derogatory on a TU file that is ignored in the VS3 model but not in Fico 8. One example might be a paid collection over $100. Also, VS3 always includes AU accounts but, Fico 8 excludes them depending on certain undisclosed criteria. So, if you are AU on a long established, high limit CC account having a low reported balance your VS3 score may benefit but not your Fico 8. The positive benefit of the AU account would be most pronounced if your individual accounts are young, low limit and highly utilized.
There are a number of other differences between VS3 and Fico 8 algorithms. The above are just a couple possibilities.