Why Is My Experian Score Lower Than Credit Karma?

Experian and Credit Karma use different scoring models. So, it’s common for your Experian credit score to be different than your Credit Karma score.

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Experian’s Credit Score vs. Credit Karma’s Credit Score

If you’re trying to figure out why your Experian credit score is lower than your Credit Karma score, there could be a few reasons. Maybe you have more debt on your Experian report because you have a longer credit history. Or, perhaps you have more recent late payments on your Experian report. Let’s take a closer look at the two scores and see what might be causing the discrepancy.

What’s the difference?

There are a few key things to keep in mind when understanding the difference between Experian’s credit score vs. Credit Karma’s credit score.

First, it’s important to understand that there are multiple factors that can influence your credit score. So, while one credit score provider may give you a higher score than another, it doesn’t necessarily mean that one is more accurate than the other.

Second, it’s also important to understand that Experian and Credit Karma use different scoring models. So, even if both providers have similar information about you, they may still come up with different scores for you because they’re using different methods to calculate your score.

Third, it’s worth noting that Experian and Credit Karma also use different scoring ranges. Experian’s credit scores range from 850 to 990, while Credit Karma’s credit scores range from 300 to 850. So, even if you have the same exact score from both providers, it may look like a different percentage of the total possible score depending on which provider you’re looking at.

Overall, the best way to compare your Experian credit score vs. your Credit Karma credit score is to look at the underlying factors that each provider uses to calculate your score. This way, you can get a better understanding of why your two scores might be different and what steps you can take to improve your overall credit situation.

How to improve your Experian credit score

There are a number of reasons why your Experian credit score could be lower than your Credit Karma score.It could be because Experian uses a different credit scoring model, or it could be because you have more debt on your Experian report. Whatever the reason, here are some tips on how you can improve your Experian credit score.

Check for and correct errors on your credit report

A low Experian credit score could be the result of something as simple as an error on your credit report. You can check your credit report for free once a year from each of the major credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. If you find an error, you can file a dispute with the credit bureau to have it removed.

Make all your payments on time

Payment history is the biggest factor in your Experian credit score—accounting for 35% of your score. So, it should come as no surprise that making all your payments on time is one of the best things you can do to improve your Experian credit score.

Your payment history includes not just credit card and loan payments, but also utility bills, rent, and even cell phone payments. So, if you have a habit of paying your bills late, now is the time to break that habit. Set up automatic payments for your recurring bills, and make sure you have enough money in your account to cover any variable expenses like gas or groceries.

One thing to keep in mind is that missed payments can stay on your credit report for up to seven years, so it may take a while for your Experian credit score to recover from any past missteps. But, with consistent on-time payments going forward, you can rest assured that your Experian credit score will gradually improve over time.

Keep your credit card balances low

One factor that affects your Experian credit score is your credit utilization rate, which is the amount of credit you’re using compared with the amount of credit you have available. In general, it’s best to keep your credit card balances below 30% of your credit limits. So, if you have a credit limit of $1,000, you should keep your balance below $300.

Paying your balances in full each month can also help improve your Experian credit score. When you pay off your balance in full, it shows that you’re using credit responsibly and that you’re not overextending yourself financially.

If you have a high balance on one or more of your credit cards, you may want to consider transferring the balance to a low-interest rate card. This can help reduce the amount of interest you’re paying on the balance and free up more money each month to pay down the principal.

Use a mix of credit products

While you might think that using just one type of credit product will help improve your Experian credit score, using a mix of products can actually be more beneficial. This is because lenders want to see that you can manage different types of credit responsibly. So, if you have the opportunity to take out a mortgage, auto loan, and personal loan, do so. Just make sure you manage all of your accounts responsibly and make your payments on time.

How to improve your Credit Karma credit score

Experian and Credit Karma use different models to calculate your credit score. So, it’s not surprising that your score may be different on each site. However, there are a few things you can do to improve your Credit Karma credit score. In this article, we’ll cover some of the best ways to improve your Credit Karma credit score.

Check for and correct errors on your credit report

One of the best ways to improve your credit score is to check your credit report for errors and correct them. You can get a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — once every 12 months at AnnualCreditReport.com.

Look for errors such as:

Inaccurate personal information: Check that your name, address, Social Security number and date of birth are correct.
Incorrect accounts: Check that all of your accounts are reported accurately, including loans, credit cards and lines of credit.
Incorrect account information: Check that the balances, payment history and credit limits on your accounts are reported accurately.
Duplicate accounts: Check for duplicates of your accounts.
Inquiries: Check for inquiries from lenders that you didn’t initiate.

If you find any errors on your credit report, you can file a dispute with the credit bureau to have the error corrected.

Make all your payments on time

One of the single most important factors in your credit score is your payment history. Every time you make a late payment, it has a negative impact on your score. To improve your score, it’s important to make all your payments on time, every time. You can set up automatic payments for your bills to make sure you never miss a due date.

Keep your credit card balances low

One of the biggest factors in your credit score is your credit utilization ratio, which is the amount of debt you have compared to your credit limit. If you have a lot of debt and a low credit limit, your ratio will be high and that will hurt your score. So one of the best ways to improve your Credit Karma score is to keep your credit card balances low. You should aim for a utilization ratio of 30% or less.

Use a mix of credit products

Credit Karma and other similar service providers show you a credit score that is calculated using the information in your Experian credit report. However, because each credit bureau has slightly different information in their reports, your score from Experian may be different than your score from Credit Karma.

There are a few things you can do to help improve your score with both Credit Karma and Experian:

1. Use a mix of credit products: A key factor in your credit score is your “credit mix,” or the variety of types of credit products you have (such as mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, etc.). By having a mix of different types of credit products, you’re showing lenders that you’re a responsible borrower who can manage different types of debt.

2. Make sure your payments are on time: This may seem like an obvious one, but it’s still one of the most important factors in your credit score. So if you’re behind on any payments, make catching up a priority.

3. Keep your balances low: Another important factor in your credit score is your “credit utilization ratio,” which is the amount of debt you’re carrying divided by the amount of available credit you have. So if you have a lot of high-limit credit cards but don’t use them often, that’s actually helping your utilization ratio (and therefore, your score). But if you’re using most or all of the available credit on one or more cards, that could hurt your score. So it’s generally best to keep your balances low, even if you have a lot of available credit.