My FICO score is a different number than the credit score shown by my bank. There is also incorrect information on my credit report – how do I get it removed?

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March 23rd, 2010 - Posted by Tasha

The following is an actual user-submitted question:

Q: My FICO score is a different number than the credit score shown by my bank.   There is also incorrect information on my credit report – how do I get it removed?

A: Your credit score is based on information found in your credit report and is used as an indication of your credit history.   It's created by means of a complicated formula that takes your credit history and turns it into a number that's usually between 300 and 850. The higher your credit score, the more appealing you are to lenders.  This formula can be different for each entity (bank, credit bureau, etc) that chooses to calculate a credit score for you, as they all use their own (secret) methodology.  It's one reason why the credit score created by your bank can differ from a credit score you get elsewhere.  However, the "gold standard" for credit scores is universally recognized as FICO, created by the Fair Issac Corporation.

Another reason your credit score may differ is that everyone has 3 different credit reports, one with each of the credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion).  Because some businesses only report your credit issues/changes to 1 or 2 of the bureaus, your credit report will likely vary between the 3 bureaus.  This variation would result in different credit scores.  As new data is added to your credit report your credit score will change.  This means that your credit score can be a moving target, and if you get your score from the different bureaus at different times you're likely to see different scores.

If you see incorrect information on your credit report, you'll have to contact the specific credit bureau that has the wrong information.  If all 3 credit bureaus show inaccurate data, you will need to contact them all separately.  Each credit bureau has their own credit report dispute process.  This may sound unwieldy, but you can usually do this online, and we've provided links below.

Equifax
Experian
TransUnion

The easiest way to stay on top on any changes or updates made to your credit history is to subscribe to a credit report monitoring service.  This way you won't be caught by surprise when/if changes or errors occur.