Nice Scores! Congrats 
FICO 9 is often higher than FICO 8 because FICO 9:
- differentiates unpaid medical accounts in collections from unpaid non-medical accounts in collections (pretty much ignores unpaid medical collections).
- Ignores paid in full collection items.
- Factors in available rental history.
So when folks see a high FICO 9 score they tend to want to know the corresponding FICO 8 score to see if the high 9 is primarily due to the above.
In my case, my FICO 9 is much lower than my FICO 8 (at least for EQ - it's the only one I have access to), though I haven't really dug into the reason why.
@thornback wrote:Nice Scores! Congrats
FICO 9 is often higher than FICO 8 because FICO 9:
- differentiates unpaid medical accounts in collections from unpaid non-medical accounts in collections (pretty much ignores unpaid medical collections).
- Ignores paid in full collection items.
- Factors in available rental history.
So when folks see a high FICO 9 score they tend to want to know the corresponding FICO 8 score to see if the high 9 is primarily due to the above.
In my case, my FICO 9 is much lower than my FICO 8 (at least for EQ - it's the only one I have access to), though I haven't really dug into the reason why.
@Thank you @thornback for the detailed explanation!
@Anonymous wrote:
@Thomas_Thumb wrote:
If your file data is the same across all three CRAs, your three Classic Fico 9 scores are typically closer together than your three Fico 8 scores (assuming scores are sub 850). Why? Adjustments were made to severely limit customizing/tweaking by CRAs on the Classic Fico 9 scoring algorithm. These restrictions were not in place on Fico 8 and the earlier Fico 04 and Fico 98 models.
TT, assuming there are no factors at play (like collections) that are knowingly scored differently between FICO 8 and FICO 9, is there any consensus as to whether FICO 8 or FICO 9 scores are typically higher than the other all things being equal? I ask because I've never seen one of my FICO 9 scores and have no idea at all if I'd expect it to be lower or higher than my FICO 8's, or basically the same.
You raise a good question BBS. My EQ FICO 8 is current in my sig (819) and although there isn't a huge difference, F9 appears to look more favorably at my profile. I haven't looked at this issue with a microscope but I have wondered about it. Currently I have 3 revolving balances reporting small monthly statement balances along with a personal loan and a car loan. Revolving UTI maybe 2-4%? Maybe F8 is more sensitive to new accounts than F9? Maybe F9 looks more favorably at installment balances than F8? I don't have any negatives at all. I would like to see what TT thinks as well.
@Anonymous wrote:
@Thomas_Thumb wrote:
If your file data is the same across all three CRAs, your three Classic Fico 9 scores are typically closer together than your three Fico 8 scores (assuming scores are sub 850). Why? Adjustments were made to severely limit customizing/tweaking by CRAs on the Classic Fico 9 scoring algorithm. These restrictions were not in place on Fico 8 and the earlier Fico 04 and Fico 98 models.
TT, assuming there are no factors at play (like collections) that are knowingly scored differently between FICO 8 and FICO 9, is there any consensus as to whether FICO 8 or FICO 9 scores are typically higher than the other all things being equal? I ask because I've never seen one of my FICO 9 scores and have no idea at all if I'd expect it to be lower or higher than my FICO 8's, or basically the same.
There is a slight bias toward Fico 9 at the tails of the score distribution curve (i.s. below 500 and above 800). See below graph. Personally, I see higher Auto and BCE scores with Fico 8 than Fico 9. (see below trend graphs by CRA). No difference for me between Classic Fico 8 and Classic Fico 9 due to the 850 "buffer". That being said, Experian data indicates twice as many people will score 840 and above on Fico 9 compared to Fico 8.
Fico 9 did add a 13th scorecard to segment revolving debt. Those with high debt will be scored more harshly than on Fico 8. Those that practice AZEO may see a slight score boost on Fico 9. On average, thin files will score slightly lower on Fico 9 than on Fico 8 while thick files may see some lift. Except for special cases Fico 9 and Fico 8 scores should be within 20 points of each other for the same CRA data set.
Below is a cross tab table for score shifts from F8 to F9 based on TransUnion data. Whether or not Fico 9 score will shift higher or lower than Fico 8 score is highly dependent on profile. Typically scores will not be the same F8 to F9 but,
...
