Saw my credit score jump 48 points in 3 months after one change

I always thought paying everything on time was enough. Then I noticed my utilization was sitting at 72% across two cards. Dropped it to under 30% by requesting a limit increase on my Chase card, and my score went from 612 to 660 between June and September. Has anyone else seen this big a jump just from utilization changes?

3 comments

3 Comments

spencer_owens581mo ago

72% utilization across two cards" - man that reminded me of my buddy Mike. He was sitting at like 80% on his only card and thought that was fine since he paid the minimum every month. His score was stuck in the low 600s for like three years. Then his girlfriend sat him down and told him to just pay it down to like 20%. He did it over a couple months and his score shot up 55 points almost overnight. He texted me a screenshot and I didn't believe it at first. It's crazy how the system works, like they think you're suddenly responsible just because you're not maxing out your plastic.

diana5121mo ago

72% utilization across two cards" - okay, congrats on basically running a credit card ponzi scheme for yourself. I did the exact same thing. Mine was at 68% on my Capital One card because I kept forgetting my "emergency fund" was actually just my credit limit. Got a limit increase to drop it to 25% and my score went up 50 points in two months. It's like the credit bureaus think I suddenly learned how to adult. Seriously though, it's wild how much of a difference that one number makes. I thought paying off the full balance each month was the magic trick, but nope, they care more about how much of your rope you're hanging from.

quinna891mo ago

And that's exactly what I saw happen to a buddy of mine, @diana512. He had one card maxed out at like 90% because he thought carrying a balance helped his credit. It took him a year to figure out that was dead wrong. When he finally paid it down under 30%, his score jumped 60 points in like six weeks. The main thing he said was that the system just wants to see you're not borrowing everything you can get your hands on. It feels backwards, but you're right about the rope analogy. Once you get that number lower, everything else seems to fall into place.