You can get a true Experian fico score for free

[MattH]

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@tvholic wrote:

You can convert a NextGen score ( "n" ) to a FICO range score using the formula:

850 - ((950 - n) / 1.454)

My Alliant score came out within two points of my most recent Experian FICO.

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Um, if it were always possible to convert MG scores to FICO Classic scores by such a simple linear conversion then NG scores could not have any substantive advantage over FICO Classic scores.  In your case this conversion apparently worked, but if it worked in every case then all the effort of developing and promoting the NG score model would have been pointless -- and I doubt the folks at Fair Isaac are given to spending such resources on pointless activity.

[tvholic]

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@MattH wrote:

Um, if it were always possible to convert MG scores to FICO Classic scores by such a simple linear conversion then NG scores could not have any substantive advantage over FICO Classic scores.

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The advantage is the algorithm they use, not the slightly larger range of results.  It's like converting a movie rating on a scale of 1-100 to a rating on a scale of 1-10.  You might lose a bit of precision, but really, it's not rocket science.

[haulingthescoreup]

But in fact, it's more than a difference of scale.

Factors in your credit history are weighted differently. So something that might account for 14% of your classic score might account for 22% of your NextGen score. This isn't accounted for by simply converting the numbers.

It's not like going from Celsius to Fahrenheit and back again.

[MattH]

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@tvholic wrote:

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@MattH wrote:

Um, if it were always possible to convert MG scores to FICO Classic scores by such a simple linear conversion then NG scores could not have any substantive advantage over FICO Classic scores.

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The advantage is the algorithm they use, not the slightly larger range of results.  It's like converting a movie rating on a scale of 1-100 to a rating on a scale of 1-10.  You might lose a bit of precision, but really, it's not rocket science.

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You seem to miss my point: precisely because the algorithm is different, it cannot be the case that a simple linear conversion will always yield an accurate approximation of the output from a different algorithm.  I don't care if the new algorithm is allegedly better from a lender's perspective if most lenders are still using the old algorithm, what I care about is knowing the score seen by the decision maker.  FICO NG does not tell me what score a lender using FICO Classic will see.

[MattH]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:
But in fact, it's more than a difference of scale.

Factors in your credit history are weighted differently. So something that might account for 14% of your classic score might account for 22% of your NextGen score. This isn't accounted for by simply converting the numbers.

It's not like going from Celsius to Fahrenheit and back again.

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YES, exactly, you seem to get it: since the algorithms are different there cannot exist a simple method of converting between them any more than it is possible to convert grades assigned by one Professor into grades assigned by a different Professor.  I spent much of my career in academia before switching to industry, so I took part in MANY discussions among faculty and teaching assistants about how to standardize grades for a multi-section course; NONE of those discussions ever had an entirely satisfactory outcome (in large part because each of us thought "my students are the best, and I am the toughest grader").

[tvholic]

I do understand all that, but scoring systems do change over time -- SAT, Stanford-Binet, etc. -- and it's reasonable to say that a score at the 85th percentile is a score at the 85th percentile.  Or as a better analogy, it's like saying that a FICO '08 score of 750 is functionally equivalent to a Classic FICO score of 750.  The algorithm is different, but there probably won't be a footnote in your credit file or your quarterly credit score bar graph mentioning that.

[Anonymous]

Fico makes this statement concerning their NextGen score: "we've calibrated the models to the same odds-to-score relationship observed with the classic risk scores"

I used the formula 850 - ((950 - n) / 1.454) and my NextGen score is 3 points away from my last known EX score which was a mortgage pull.

Message Edited by hobojon on 05-30-2009 06:27 PM

[Anonymous]

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@tvholic wrote:

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@MattH wrote:

Um, if it were always possible to convert MG scores to FICO Classic scores by such a simple linear conversion then NG scores could not have any substantive advantage over FICO Classic scores.

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The advantage is the algorithm they use, not the slightly larger range of results.  It's like converting a movie rating on a scale of 1-100 to a rating on a scale of 1-10.  You might lose a bit of precision, but really, it's not rocket science.

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If this formula is correct, then my Experian is pretty bad   My Alliant score shows 829.

850 - (950 -   n ) / 1.454 is: 

850 - (950 - 829) / 1.454   =   850 - 121 / 1.454   =    729 / 1.454   =   501

is my math wrong?  I know my FICO hasn't been in the 500's since 2005 and was 781 in February 2009 and should have gone up when my last baddie dropped end of February.

[Anonymous]

Just paste the fomula 850 - ((950 - n) / 1.454) into the Google search applet with n as your nextgen score.

850 - ((950 - 829) / 1.45400) = 766.781293

Message Edited by hobojon on 05-30-2009 06:40 PM

[tvholic]

I cannot emphasize enough how important the parentheses are.