Help me understand. Why so many different Fico Scores?

[Anonymous]

Below is my fico scores that I got from this site back in April. They are not current numbers. Hopefully current numbers are higher then these. I figured I’d check them again next month & then again every six months after that.

But why are there so many different scores? Which ones get used the most? Which ones should I be looking at for current lenders?

FICO score 8 Equifax = 605
FICO score 8 TransUnion = 609
FICO score 8 Experian = 624

FICO score 5 Equifax = 647
FICO score 4 TransUnion = 681
FICO score 2 Experian = 626

FICO auto score 8 Equifax = 611
FICO auto score 5 Equifax = 653
FICO auto score 8 TransUnion = 614
FICO auto score 4 TransUnion = 679
FICO auto score 8 Experian = 619
FICO auto score 2 Experian = 599

FICO Bankcard score 8 Equifax = 610
FICO Bankcard score 5 Equifax = 658
FICO Bankcard score 8 TransUnion = 623
FICO Bankcard score 4 TransUnion = 657
FICO Bankcard score 8 Experian = 629
FICO score 3 Experian = 666
FICO Bankcard score 2 Experian = 625

FICO Score 9 Equifax = 636
FICO Auto Score 9 Equifax = 648
FICO Bankcard score 9 Equifax = 648
FICO Score 9 TransUnion = 650
FICO Auto Score 9 TransUnion = 653
FICO Bankcard score 9 TransUnion = 648
FICO Score 9 Experian = 634
FICO Auto Score 9 Experian = 643
FICO Bankcard score 9 Experian = 634


The lien holder on my truck says that my fico auto score 3 is 658 (which isn’t listed above) as of 7/11/18.

[HeavenOhio]

FICO periodically comes up with new formulas that they feel are better than the old ones. Also, they offer specialized scores that are supposedly more useful for certain types of borrowing (i.e. auto, bankcard).

Except for mortgages, banks can choose whichever score they want to use. Rather than upgrading to a new score, they may feel that the score they use currently is just fine with them. Or they may not wish to update their software.

FICO 5, 4, and 2 are used for mortgages so all lenders are speaking the same language. Because mortgages are frequently sold, it's important that they're evaluated the same way.

I believe FICO 8 is the most commonly used score. But I wouldn't bank on it having majority status.

[jayjayhawaii]

FICO is in the business of making accurate predictions as to how much of a risk you are to lenders. A lot of research goes into what types of behavior might spell higher risk, and this changes over time. Every so often, this is adjusted in a newer FICO model. For instance, the new FICO 9 model places less weight on a paid medical collections account because research suggests that individuals with a paid medical collection are not statistically riskier than individuals without a medical collections account.

When FICO comes out with a new model, it will have a different number behind it and a slightly different method of calculating score.

Currently, FICO 8 is by far the most common model used by lenders, though some have switched over to the newer FICO 9 (most notably Penfed). Unless you're shopping for a mortgage, FICO 8 is the one you should pay most attention to.

-

I'm not sure if this is part of the question, but since there are three major credit bureaus, that's why you'll also have three different FICO scores for each model. The credit bureaus have nothing to do with how the score is calculated, they merely provide the data that goes into the calculation.

[Thomas_Thumb]

---

@Anonymous wrote:
But why are there so many different scores? Which ones get used the most? Which ones should I be looking at for current lenders?

The lien holder on my truck says that my fico auto score 3 is 658 (which isn’t listed above) as of 7/11/18.

---

Cool, nice to see the relatively unknown EX Auto score 3 (Fico 04) version actually being used by a creditor Here is a graph just for you.