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Experian Boost, UltraFICO and eCredable try to expand what counts toward your credit score calculation by adding nontraditional information — like rental and utility payments — to your credit profile.
Your payments are reported to the credit bureaus, which builds your payment history — the most important credit scoring factor. These services are voluntary, and you must opt in to have this data shared with one or more of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
The goal is to help people who are just starting out, have a thin credit file or who are rebuilding credit to increase their chances of approval for more traditional credit products like credit cards and loans.
Here’s a quick look at each service:
- Experian Boost is quick and free, but it's limited to certain bills and only reports to one credit bureau —Experian.
- UltraFICO is a free tool that leverages your bank account data at the time of a loan application to give lenders more context, but it’s not widely adopted and requires the sharing of more personal information. It only reports to Experian.
- ECredable is broader in the kinds of bills it can add, but it comes with a monthly fee. It only reports to TransUnion.
Here’s a more detailed breakdown of the three companies, what they offer and how much they cost:
Experian Boost: Quick wins, but only with Experian
Using Boost lets your streaming, phone and utility payments "count" toward your Experian credit score. Renters can also sign up to have eligible rent payments reported to the credit bureau. It's free to use, and you can remove Boost at any time.
Eligible payments include:
- Phone, internet and cable services.
- Rent.
- Utilities such as water and gas.
- Insurance, such as home, life and auto (excludes health insurance).
- Video streaming services such as Hulu and Disney+.
Boost scans your bank transactions for the payments, and reports only positive payments — however, bills must be in your name to qualify. Eligible payments are only added to your Experian credit report.
Cost: Free.
Downsides: Rent payments made with cash, money order, personal check or using an app like Zelle, Venmo or PayPal aren't eligible. And, since Boost only reports to Experian, you might not get the credit boost you were hoping for. Lenders will see the effects of Boost only if they view your Experian credit report or pull those most commonly used credit scores using Experian data.
UltraFICO: Prove creditworthiness with your bank balance
UltraFICO is a special type of credit score that’s meant to enhance your existing FICO score. It looks at your regular bank accounts — like checking or savings — in addition to your Experian credit report. Unlike Experian Boost and eCredable, it does not impact your credit reports.
UltraFICO checks things like:
- How much money you usually keep in your account.
- How long your bank account has been open.
- How recently and how often you use your account.
- Whether your account balance stays positive.
This extra info can help people with lower credit scores (in the high 500s or low 600s) look better to lenders.
To use it, you sign up on FICO’s website and connect your bank accounts. Then, when you apply for credit, lenders that use UltraFICO might offer to pull this version of your score if your regular credit score isn’t high enough. There’s only one hard credit check in the process.
Cost: Free.
Downsides: The impact to your score can be limited because it doesn’t raise your VantageScore. UltraFICO scores are not widely used, which means it will only help you if lenders request it. Because it requires you to link your bank account, people with data privacy concerns might be hesitant to sign up.
ECredable: Build credit with everyday bills — at a cost
ECredable adds payment data from some monthly bills to your TransUnion credit report. The payment history can go back as far as 24 months.
Customers using the company’s basic service, eCredable Lift, can link their rent, utility accounts — such gas, power, water and garbage — and phone service. Users must provide login information for each. Then, eCredable pulls payment data directly from the utility providers.
Cost: $9.95 per month; $14.95 per month for the upgraded LiftLocker service, which includes budget and credit tracking, credit simulator, product matching and insights from TransUnion.
Downsides: This is the only service that costs you money. You can link up to eight eligible accounts, but not all utilities work with eCredable — so be sure to check the company’s homepage to search if your specific utility companies are covered.
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Other ways to build credit
Boost, UltraFICO and eCredable are limited in their influence because they only report to one credit bureau. You can do other things to strengthen your credit, and the effect of these steps can extend to all three credit bureaus:
- Become an authorized user on someone else’s credit card. When someone with an established credit line adds you as an authorized user, you benefit from their good credit habits. Make sure the card reports authorized-user status to the credit bureaus.
- Apply for a secured credit card. This starter card is backed by a deposit that also serves as your credit limit. It’s best to put a small, recurring charge on it and set up autopay. The small charge means you’re not using too much of your credit line, which can hurt your score. The automatic payment guards against a late or forgotten payment, which also can damage your score.
- Consider a credit-builder loan. Credit unions typically offer this type of loan, which builds your credit and savings at the same time. It requires a monthly payment that’s held in a separate savings account until you pay off the loan.
- Use a rent-reporting service. Some companies offer to have your rent payments reported to the credit bureaus, allowing you to build your credit file.
Building credit takes time and patience, and it pays to track your progress. NerdWallet offers a free VantageScore 3.0 credit score as well as a free credit report from TransUnion.
