Your credit score,
explained.
Understand your credit report, find free ways to check it
and learn what affects it.
Your credit report and your
credit score are different.
Providers use different
scoring scales.
A high score does not
guarantee acceptance.
What do you need help with?
A good place to start, wherever you are in your credit journey.
Check my credit report
Find free reports and what’s included
Understand my score
Make sense of numbers and bands
Build credit for the first time
Start with the practical basics
What affects my credit?
Payments, searches and more
Check credit utilisation
Understand how much you’re using
Errors on my report
Check the details and raise a dispute
Free credit reports, compared
Different services show information from different agencies.
No single report shows everything. Check which agency a service uses before signing up.
Check your credit utilisation
See how much of your available credit you’re using.
You’re using £500 of your £2,000 total credit limit.
Utilisation is only one factor. It does not determine your score or a lender’s decision.
A little knowledge goes a long way
Credit scores versus credit reports
Your report is the record; your score is a summary. Understand the difference before you check either.
Building credit for the first time
Practical first steps for a limited credit history, without borrowing more than you need.
Credit-score myths, checked
Checking your score, carrying debt and the “credit blacklist”: separate common myths from facts.
Let’s clear a few
things up.
Simple answers, without the jargon.
Does checking my own credit score affect it?
No. Checking your own score or report uses a soft search, which does not affect your credit score. Applying for credit can involve a hard search.
Why do I have different credit scores?
Agencies can hold different information and use different scoring models. Services use different scales too, so the numbers cannot be directly compared.
Do I need to pay to see my credit report?
No. You can access a free statutory report from each of the three main agencies. Several services also offer free scores and reports; paid extras are optional.
Will a high credit score guarantee acceptance?
No. Lenders make their own decisions and consider affordability, application details and other criteria, not just a consumer score.
Independent information. No shortcuts or score promises.
We explain how credit works using official sources. We don’t retrieve your report, offer credit or make lending decisions.