- Payment history and utilisation are 65% of your score and both move within 90 days.
- Pay cards down before the statement closes; get utilisation under 30%, then 10%.
- Dispute errors now: disputes resolve in 30 days.
- Add one reported installment account; do not open several.
What moves a score, in order of weight
FICO weighs five things: payment history (35%), amounts owed and utilisation (30%), length of history (15%), credit mix (10%) and new credit (10%). Ninety days is not enough to change length of history, but it is plenty to move the first two, which together are two-thirds of the score.
| Factor | Weight | Movable in 90 days? |
|---|---|---|
| Payment history | 35% | Yes — three on-time months, and removing errors |
| Utilisation | 30% | Yes — the fastest lever; updates monthly |
| Length of history | 15% | No — only time helps |
| Credit mix | 10% | Partly — adding an installment loan |
| New credit | 10% | Yes — by not applying for anything |
Action 1: Get card utilisation under 30%, then under 10%
Utilisation is the share of your credit limits you are using, per card and overall. It has no memory: the score uses whatever balance the card reported this month. Pay a balance down before the statement closes and the improvement shows within 30–45 days.
- Find each card's statement closing date and pay before it, not after.
- Prioritise the card closest to its limit; a maxed card hurts more than a spread-out balance.
- Ask for a credit-limit increase (soft-check ones exist); higher limits lower utilisation instantly.
- Do not close cards; that removes limit and raises utilisation.
Action 2: Dispute errors and clear small collections
About one in five credit reports contains an error. Pull all three reports free at annualcreditreport.com and look for accounts that are not yours, late payments you made on time, and collections already paid. Disputes must be resolved within 30 days, so a dispute filed in week one can lift the score by week six.
Medical collections under $500 no longer appear, and paid collections are removed by all three bureaus. If an unpaid collection is under $500, paying it deletes it. For larger ones, ask for "pay for delete" in writing before paying.
Action 3: Add a reported installment account
If your file is thin or card-only, one small installment loan reported to all three bureaus improves credit mix and starts a fresh on-time streak. A credit-builder loan does this without giving you cash; a small installment loan does it while covering a real cost. Either way, set autopay and never miss.
What not to do: open several new accounts. Each hard inquiry and new account trims points and lowers the average age of your file.
A 90-day calendar
- Week 1: pull reports, file disputes, list card closing dates, set autopay on everything.
- Weeks 2–4: pay the highest-utilisation card down before it closes; request limit increases.
- Weeks 5–8: disputes resolve; second month of lowered balances reports; open one reported installment account if the file is thin.
- Weeks 9–12: third on-time month posts; recheck utilisation on every card under 30%, ideally 10%.
- myFICO, "What's in my FICO score"
- CFPB, "Disputing errors on your credit reports"
- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion joint policy on medical collections (2022–2023)
