9 Tips to Increase Your Score

Education | July 03, 2026

Your Credit Score Isn’t Stuck: 9 Tips to Increase Your Score

Key Takeaways:

Paying bills on time and keeping credit utilization low can have the biggest impact on your credit score.
Regularly checking your credit score can help you track progress and catch errors without hurting your score.
Small actions like paying down balances and limiting new credit inquiries can help strengthen your credit over time.

While an impressive 83% of Americans say they’re prioritizing maintaining or improving their credit score this year, a recent FICO study shows a knowledge gap about what consumers think impacts their credit score.

For instance, nearly three-quarters of consumers believe that carrying small balances on credit cards positively affects their score. That’s a misconception that could lead you to pay more interest and underutilize your credit. Meanwhile, one in five consumers mistakenly believe that checking their score will lower it.

Don’t let misconceptions and outdated advice get in the way of steps that can help. Instead, follow these nine tips to help improve your credit score over time.

1. Check your credit score regularly

The good news is that checking your credit score won’t negatively impact it. What’s more, by regularly checking your credit score and report, you can catch errors, make plans for improvement, and see your progress in real time. Our Credit Score tool lets you see your score right away and offers tips to help improve it.

You can also go to annualcreditreport.com to access free credit reports from the three credit reporting companies: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Stagger your requests across agencies so you can view a new one every few months. If you spot an error, report it to the credit bureau that listed it so your score isn’t affected by incorrect information.

2. Automate your monthly payments

Payment history accounts for 35% of your overall credit score. That's why it's important to pay your credit card minimum payments, installment loan payments and other monthly obligations on time. You can use digital banking tools, such as Bill Pay, to automate your payments and ensure they arrive on time. An account sent to collections can stay on your credit report for up to seven years. Prioritize on-time payments, and if you’ve been late in the past, you can rebuild your score with consistent, automated payments.

3. Keep your credit utilization below 10%

Your credit utilization ratio accounts for 30% of your credit score. It’s the sum of the balances you carry on all your revolving credit accounts, expressed as a percentage of the total available credit. In a simple example, if you have a $3,000 balance on a credit card with a $10,000 limit, your utilization ratio is 30%. While experts recommend keeping your credit utilization below 30%, lowering it to 10% or less can boost your credit score.

4. Leave older credit accounts open

Some people assume that closing old credit cards will improve their credit score. While it’s a good idea if you’re trying to reduce the temptation to spend, keeping them open can actually benefit your score more. The unused available credit can help reduce your overall utilization ratio. The credit reporting companies also consider the average age of accounts when creating your score, so having an older, unused account can work to your advantage.

5. Ask credit issuers to increase your limit

In a similar strategy, you can ask your current credit card companies to increase the limit on your account. While you still want to focus on paying down your balances, boosting the amount of credit available can help enhance your credit score. However, keep in mind that this strategy only works if the available credit remains unused.

6. Use rent reporting services

In the past, landlords usually haven't reported rent payments to credit bureaus. However, for many borrowers, especially those in the early stages of their financial lives, rent and utilities account for a significant share of their payment history. Check out services such as Experian Boost, which connects to your bank account and scans for recurring monthly payments to add to your credit report — so your score better reflects your rental payment history.

7. Become an authorized user

If you’re a younger borrower or have a shorter credit history, consider asking a relative or trusted friend with excellent credit to add you to their older credit accounts. In doing so, you’ll instantly increase the average age of your own credit accounts and decrease your credit utilization, both of which can help increase your credit score. However, you need to be sure that the person you choose has healthy financial habits; if they run up their balances or miss minimum payments, that can affect your score as well.

8. Pay down balances

Prioritize paying down your credit card balances as fast as possible. You can make more than one payment per month, if that's possible, and you can pay far more than the minimum balance. By paying down your debt, you’ll not only avoid paying the high interest associated with credit cards, but you’ll also improve your credit utilization ratio, which can increase your credit score.

9. Limit new credit inquiries

New credit applications result in a hard inquiry to your credit report, which can temporarily diminish your credit score. Try to only apply for credit when you truly need it. If you’re seeking an installment loan, try to make inquiries to lenders in a short time period. The credit bureaus won’t ding your credit score for rate shopping, as long as the hard inquiries are within the same time span and for the same loan type.

When it comes to your credit score, knowledge is power. Use these tips to steadily build your credit score and improve your financial well-being in the process. Enroll in Northwest’s free credit monitoring tool, Credit Score, in online and mobile banking to keep track of your credit.