Using Credit Cards to Boost Your Credit Score

You can improve your credit score by using credit cards properly. FGC/Shutterstock

A low credit score will hurt you when you try to get any kind of credit. Although you may not be refused new credit, you may not get the best interest rates. You also will not be given large amounts of credit or longer repayment periods to pay back the debt.

Fair or even bad credit scores can be improved.  It will take time, but any effort you put toward improving your credit score will be worth it if you ever plan to borrow money or get a credit card with a low-interest rate.

The Fastest Way to Raise Your Credit Score

The largest companies that determine your credit score (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) use similar methods to calculate the score. The two biggest factors that affect your credit score are paying at least the minimum amount of your bills on time (35 percent of your credit score) and how much debt you have compared to your available credit (30 percent). This latter number is always given as a percentage.