Credit Score Not Going Up? Here’s What Could Be Wrong

If your credit score isn’t optimal, there’s a high likelihood that you’ve missed payments, have a negative history or your credit isn’t diversified. Find out the specifics of what’s hurting your credit and what you can do to improve your credit score.

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Key Takeaways

• Five factors shape your credit score, with payment history carrying the most weight at 35%, followed by utilization at 30%, length of credit history at 15%, new credit at 10% and credit mix at 10%.

• Negative marks stick around for years — late payments and collections stay on your report up to seven years.

• To build your credit score fast, pay every bill on time, keep utilization below 30%, leave old accounts open and dispute any errors you spot on your credit report.

Summary generated by AI, verified by MoneyLion editors

What Is a Credit Score?

A credit score is a number ranging from 300 to 850 that marks your creditworthiness.

• The higher your score, the more likely you’ll be able to secure favorable loan terms.

• Banks use this number as a guide to how likely a consumer will pay back their loan or credit on time.

• Your score is determined by your credit history, including factors like payments, types of credit and your utilization.

What Factors Make Up a Credit Score

Credit scores are based on a mix of financial habits and account activity.

Factors That Could Be Impacting Your Credit Score

To increase your credit score, you should try to pinpoint what is negatively affecting it. It’s frustrating to see it go down and not know why. However, there are some causes and solutions that may be preventing your score from increasing.

• High utilization: You should try to pay down balances.

• Missed or late payments: Make your payments on time.

• Frequency of opening accounts: Try to limit hard inquiries on your accounts.

• Account age: Keep any of your old accounts open.

• Lack of diversification: Focus on a mix of credit — loans, mortgages and credit cards.

• Identity theft or fraud: Monitor your account regularly and report to the credit bureaus regarding errors.

Your Monthly Credit Utilization

One of the biggest culprits that negatively impacts a credit score is a borrower using too much of their available credit. Despite credit being accessible, lenders don’t want the borrower to be so reliant on credit to handle daily expenditures.

Credit sources and companies would like to see that borrowers are financially responsible in their spending habits. If you’re using too much available credit, you may come across as a risk.

A general rule of thumb is to use around 20% of your available credit balance.

• Ideal target: 10% to 20% utilization

• Acceptable: Below 30%

• Risky: Above 30%

To calculate your credit utilization rate, divide your balance by your total credit limit.

• Utilization = balance ÷ limit

Here’s a quick example: If your credit limit is $1,000 and your balance is $200, your credit utilization score is 20%.

Missed Payments and Negative Items

Payment history is one of the largest driving factors of your credit score. It accounts for 35% of your overall score. However, late payments begin to impact your score only after being overdue for more than 30 days.

It’s important to check if any medical bills, credit card balances or other accounts are overdue since late payments have such a large impact on your score.

• A late payment of over 30 days or an account in collections can remain on your credit report for up to seven years.

• A foreclosure can also be on your credit report for up to seven years.

• A Chapter 13 bankruptcy is on your credit report for seven years.

• A Chapter 7 bankruptcy is on your credit report for 10 years.

Frequency of Opening Accounts

When applying for a new credit card account, an inquiry will appear on your credit report. It can be seen as potential new debt and could cause your credit score to somewhat decrease.

What’s considered a frequent request?

• Having more than two applications in a month

• Having multiple inquiries during the course of the year

Every hard inquiry generally causes your credit score to drop 10 to 20 points. This inquiry will stay on your credit report for two years.

However, this slight decrease is resolved once the borrower shows they are making payments on time and keeping their balance low.

Your Account’s Age

To have excellent credit, you’ll need to establish a long credit history of good standing. Credit scoring models look into the following:

• The borrower’s average age of accounts

• The age of the borrower’s oldest account

• When their newest account was opened

Overall, account age contributes to 15% of your overall credit score.

Lack of Diversification

Credit mix contributes to 10% of your credit score. This type of diversification can include two main contributors:

• Installment accounts: Consisting of auto loans, mortgages or student loans

• Revolving accounts: Consisting of types of credit cards and home equity credit

Utilizing these different types of credit improves your credit mix. Even if these accounts eventually get closed, it shows a history of credit diversification that positively impacts your credit report.

However, if you’re only utilizing a revolving account, this could be preventing your score from increasing.

Identity Theft or Fraud

Here’s what you should do if you suspect identity theft or fraud:

• Review your credit report.

• Dispute the charges with the credit bureaus if identity theft or fraud is suspected.

• Place a fraud alert or credit freeze with the credit bureau to prevent other accounts from being opened.

• Report theft to IdentityTheft.gov.

• Continue to monitor your accounts.

• Contact the individual companies and lenders, alerting them to the fraud.

How To Improve Your Credit Score

You can improve your credit score by taking a simple, but strategic approach:

• Make timely payments.

• Lower your utilization rate.

• Do not close old accounts.

• Dispute any errors.

• Check your credit reports regularly.

• Pay down existing balances.

Final Takeaways

• Your credit score can be low if you miss payments, your utilization is too high, there’s negative history on your credit report and you don’t have an appropriate diversification of credit.

• Your credit score is weighed based on five factors, including payment history, utilization, account age, credit mix and the number of hard inquiries on your credit.

• Payment history is the largest factor when it comes to your credit score.

• You can get a higher credit score by paying down balances, lowering your utilization percentage and keeping old accounts open.

Key Terms

• Credit score: A three-digit number that predicts how likely you are to repay debt on time, based on information in your credit reports.

• Credit utilization ratio: The percentage of your available revolving credit you’re using. Lower utilization can help your credit score, especially when you stay below 30%.

• Payment history: Your record of paying bills on time or late. It’s the biggest factor in your FICO score and can strongly affect your credit.

• Hard inquiry: A review of your credit report after you apply for new credit. Too many hard inquiries in a short time can lower your score.

• Credit mix: The different types of credit accounts you have, like credit cards and loans. A varied mix can help your credit score.

Summary generated by AI, verified by MoneyLion editors

FAQs

What will make my credit score go up faster?

Your credit score will increase if you make timely payments, have a good credit diversification mix, ask for a credit limit increase and get current on any late accounts.

Why is my credit score staying the same?

Your negative items are recent, you’re already in a good place with your credit or your balances haven’t changed much.

Is a 0% utilization bad?

It’s not an optimal utilization. You want a range from 1% to 10% to show that you're an active user of credit.

Mercer Pipa contributed to the reporting for this article.

Sources

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 2023. "What is a credit score?"

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 2025. "What is a credit inquiry?"

• myFICO. "What Does Credit Mix Mean?"

• myFICO. "What is Payment History?"