A credit score is somebody else’s estimate of how likely a person is to repay. Different countries run different systems, different agencies produce different numbers, and lenders apply their own rules on top. Anything specific here would be wrong somewhere, so this stays general.
The parts that move it are broadly the same wherever such a system exists.
Payment history does most of the work. Paying on time, every time, over a long stretch counts for more than anything else on the list, and a single missed payment is usually visible for years.
How much of the available credit is in use comes next. Owing a small part of what is available reads better than owing nearly all of it, even when both are being paid on time.
Then the age of the accounts, and how often new ones are opened. Long, calm and unremarkable is the picture these systems reward.
These systems reward the dullest possible history: on time, for a long time.
Some things people expect to count do not. Income is usually not in the score itself, though a lender sees it separately. Checking your own record does not damage it in the systems that publish their rules.
A score is not a verdict on a person and it is not permanent. Everything on it ages, and the most recent year or two carries the most weight.
Because the rules differ so widely, the reliable move is to read what the agency where you live actually publishes, rather than advice written for somewhere else.
General information about how money works, not advice. What is right for you depends on your own situation, and a licensed professional can look at that with you.
Peeka carries this piece too, under Insights and Learn, with the examples in your own currency. Read it in the appGet the app
