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Experian Boost – Everything You Need To Know

- Feb 27, 2022 credit, Credit Scores4 comments

Experian recently announced a new program that will help consumers who don’t have any credit scores. The program is called Experian Boost. Until now, utility bills and phone bill payments were not counted into the scoring models. This was affecting a lot of consumers who do not have any credit cards or other trade lines. This is where Experian Boost comes into the picture. 

How does Experian Boost work?

Consumers are able to voluntarily provide Experian with access to their bank accounts. Experian will scan your bank accounts for information regarding on-time payments for cell phone and utility bills. (I don’t know how they know if the bill was paid on time or if it was a late payment.) The information is then added to your Experian credit report. Experian claims that only positive information will be added, meaning only the on-time payments will be added and not any late payments.

Consumers are able to choose which positive information should be added or be removed at any time.

Once the information is added, the scoring models are able to use this information to calculate a credit score. 

Which scoring models does Experian Boost work with?

The only scoring models, as of now, which will include such information are the Fico 08, Fico 09, Vantage 03, and Vantage 04 scoring models.

Does Experian Boost really help?

Experian is only one of the three credit bureaus. Experian Boost will only provide a credit score for loans using the Experian credit report only. Also, it will only be used when the Fico 08 credit scoring model is used. There are many credit card issuers which only pull an Experian credit report and use the Fico 08 scoring model. (You can filter results on our Ultimate Credit Card Finder to only show you the cards that pull Experian). But unfortunately, when it comes to mortgage applications or any other significant loan, most of the time, credit issuers will want to pull all three credit reports. Therefore, Experian Boost will not help much in these situations.

Conclusion

Experian Boost may be beneficial for some. I still would recommend a consumer to try his best by rather trying to build traditional credit. 

Are you new to credit? Check out our full PDF guide on how to build credit from scratch. You can download it for free here

Frequently asked questions
What is Experian Boost?
With Experian Boost you can get your utility bills on your Experian credit report to help you build credit
What are the pros and cons of using Experian Boost?
It can help you jump-start your credit but is definitely not a recommended way to build credit in the long term. If you are before applying for a mortgage then discuss with your mortgage broker the potential debt/income consequences

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Sam Sam has nearly a decade's worth of experience educating his many readers on everything credit. Sam spends his days checking out credit cards for a full report, from the minute benefit details to the shebang of welcome bonuses. Plus studying the ins and outs of building proper credit. It’s his favorite pastime and he loves sharing it with others.

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4 Comments

  1. It has one bad thing that it comes up that you have an expanse every month and if you want to take a mortgage or lease it will used as a monthly charge and will effect if you don’t have enough income

    Reply
    • That is a great point! Thanks Jacob. But, please note with Experian Boost you can choose which items you want to add and which items you do not want to add

      Reply
      • And also, you can always disconnect your account so it won’t show on your account.

        So it’s up to you (or your mortgage broker) to decide if you want your score to drop a bit or to have this expense reported.

        Reply
  2. My experience with Boost is moderate;
    I did it for myself and went up 7 points. Did it for my wife, up 20 points.
    I recommended for 2 friends and both of them didn’t got any points up.
    Bottom line it really depends on the type of bills you’re paying etc.

    Another problem with their boost is, that my (chase) account gets disconnected from Experian every few weeks and they threaten me that my score will drope if I’m not reconnecting it. (might be it’s Chase’s security measures)

    Reply

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