485 Credit Score: Good Or Bad? And What Can I Get With A 485 Credit Score?

A 485 credit score is significantly below the average in the U.S. According to FICO, this score falls within the "Poor" range, which is from 300 to 579. With a 485 credit score, lenders likely won't accept your loan application, and if they do, you'll probably have to pay much higher interest rates or extra fees as a result. However, as you will see below, you still have options.

Is there a way to increase your score to avoid these extra fees and higher rates? While it's not an overnight process, there are several steps you can take to improve your credit score and rise above a "Poor" rating. Keep reading to learn what goes into a credit score, what a 485 score means for your financing options, and how you can increase your score over time.

What affects your credit score?

Before we get into what this credit score means for you and your finances, let's take a brief look at what credit scores actually are. Your credit score is broken into a few different categories, each of which contributes to the total score.

• Payment history. Your payment history has the biggest effect on your credit score and is exactly what it says: a history of your bill and credit payments. This tracks the number of on-time payments you make, whether on loans or credit card accounts.
• Amounts owed. This refers to how much available credit you have compared to how much credit you owe. You can also think of this as your credit utilization ratio, which should ideally be kept below 30%. For instance, if you've reached the credit limit on numerous credit cards, this will likely lower your score.
• Length of credit history. How long you keep a credit account open matters, even if you don't actively use that credit line. This factor considers the age of your oldest and newest credit accounts as well as the average age of all your accounts together.
• Credit mix. While it may sound counterproductive to have multiple credit accounts, a mix of different accounts is actually a good thing. Having a couple of credit cards, an auto loan, and a mortgage shows lenders that you can manage several types of credit responsibly.
• New credit. "New" credit specifically looks at how many credit accounts you opened recently and the number of credit inquiries made into your account. Each time you apply for a new loan or line of credit, the lender will make an inquiry into your credit history to review your score and payment history.

What does it mean to have a 485 credit score?

A 485 credit score is significantly below the average credit score. Though a small percentage of Americans have credit scores below 579, Experian found that these borrowers were significantly more likely to become "seriously delinquent," or more than 90 days late on a bill or debt payment. With this in mind, it makes sense that lenders would be hesitant to offer financing to an applicant with a 485 credit score.

Credit score range	% of consumers	Delinquency rate
300-579	16%	61%
580-669	17%	28%
670-739	21%	8%
740-799	25%	2%
800-850	21%	1%

How you reached this score isn't quite as clear. Maybe you made several late payments in the past in addition to reaching your credit limit on multiple lines of credit and having your car repossessed. If you recently had to declare bankruptcy, this could also drop your credit score substantially.

How does this score compare to others?

Unfortunately, as we mentioned above, a 485 credit score isn't great. You'll likely have a difficult time getting an auto loan or unsecured credit card, and you won't have access to a high credit limit on a secured credit card either. And as you can see from the data below, the average credit score is only increasing with time.

The table below links to in-depth articles for all credit scores.

Credit score	Scale
300	Poor
301	Poor
302	Poor
303	Poor
304	Poor
305	Poor
306	Poor
307	Poor
308	Poor
309	Poor
310	Poor
311	Poor
312	Poor
313	Poor
314	Poor
315	Poor
316	Poor
317	Poor
318	Poor
319	Poor
320	Poor
321	Poor
322	Poor
323	Poor
324	Poor
325	Poor
326	Poor
327	Poor
328	Poor
329	Poor
330	Poor
331	Poor
332	Poor
333	Poor
334	Poor
335	Poor
336	Poor
337	Poor
338	Poor
339	Poor
340	Poor
341	Poor
342	Poor
343	Poor
344	Poor
345	Poor
346	Poor
347	Poor
348	Poor
349	Poor
350	Poor
351	Poor
352	Poor
353	Poor
354	Poor
355	Poor
356	Poor
357	Poor
358	Poor
359	Poor
360	Poor
361	Poor
362	Poor
363	Poor
364	Poor
365	Poor
366	Poor
367	Poor
368	Poor
369	Poor
370	Poor
371	Poor
372	Poor
373	Poor
374	Poor
375	Poor
376	Poor
377	Poor
378	Poor
379	Poor
380	Poor
381	Poor
382	Poor
383	Poor
384	Poor
385	Poor
386	Poor
387	Poor
388	Poor
389	Poor
390	Poor
391	Poor
392	Poor
393	Poor
394	Poor
395	Poor
396	Poor
397	Poor
398	Poor
399	Poor
400	Poor
401	Poor
402	Poor
403	Poor
404	Poor
405	Poor
406	Poor
407	Poor
408	Poor
409	Poor
410	Poor
411	Poor
412	Poor
413	Poor
414	Poor
415	Poor
416	Poor
417	Poor
418	Poor
419	Poor
420	Poor
421	Poor
422	Poor
423	Poor
424	Poor
425	Poor
426	Poor
427	Poor
428	Poor
429	Poor
430	Poor
431	Poor
432	Poor
433	Poor
434	Poor
435	Poor
436	Poor
437	Poor
438	Poor
439	Poor
440	Poor
441	Poor
442	Poor
443	Poor
444	Poor
445	Poor
446	Poor
447	Poor
448	Poor
449	Poor
450	Poor
451	Poor
452	Poor
453	Poor
454	Poor
455	Poor
456	Poor
457	Poor
458	Poor
459	Poor
460	Poor
461	Poor
462	Poor
463	Poor
464	Poor
465	Poor
466	Poor
467	Poor
468	Poor
469	Poor
470	Poor
471	Poor
472	Poor
473	Poor
474	Poor
475	Poor
476	Poor
477	Poor
478	Poor
479	Poor
480	Poor
481	Poor
482	Poor
483	Poor
484	Poor
485	Poor
486	Poor
487	Poor
488	Poor
489	Poor
490	Poor
491	Poor
492	Poor
493	Poor
494	Poor
495	Poor
496	Poor
497	Poor
498	Poor
499	Poor
500	Poor
501	Poor
502	Poor
503	Poor
504	Poor
505	Poor
506	Poor
507	Poor
508	Poor
509	Poor
510	Poor
511	Poor
512	Poor
513	Poor
514	Poor
515	Poor
516	Poor
517	Poor
518	Poor
519	Poor
520	Poor
521	Poor
522	Poor
523	Poor
524	Poor
525	Poor
526	Poor
527	Poor
528	Poor
529	Poor
530	Poor
531	Poor
532	Poor
533	Poor
534	Poor
535	Poor
536	Poor
537	Poor
538	Poor
539	Poor
540	Poor
541	Poor
542	Poor
543	Poor
544	Poor
545	Poor
546	Poor
547	Poor
548	Poor
549	Poor
550	Poor
551	Poor
552	Poor
553	Poor
554	Poor
555	Poor
556	Poor
557	Poor
558	Poor
559	Poor
560	Poor
561	Poor
562	Poor
563	Poor
564	Poor
565	Poor
566	Poor
567	Poor
568	Poor
569	Poor
570	Poor
571	Poor
572	Poor
573	Poor
574	Poor
575	Poor
576	Poor
577	Poor
578	Poor
579	Poor
580	Fair
581	Fair
582	Fair
583	Fair
584	Fair
585	Fair
586	Fair
587	Fair
588	Fair
589	Fair
590	Fair
591	Fair
592	Fair
593	Fair
594	Fair
595	Fair
596	Fair
597	Fair
598	Fair
599	Fair
600	Fair
601	Fair
602	Fair
603	Fair
604	Fair
605	Fair
606	Fair
607	Fair
608	Fair
609	Fair
610	Fair
611	Fair
612	Fair
613	Fair
614	Fair
615	Fair
616	Fair
617	Fair
618	Fair
619	Fair
620	Fair
621	Fair
622	Fair
623	Fair
624	Fair
625	Fair
626	Fair
627	Fair
628	Fair
629	Fair
630	Fair
631	Fair
632	Fair
633	Fair
634	Fair
635	Fair
636	Fair
637	Fair
638	Fair
639	Fair
640	Fair
641	Fair
642	Fair
643	Fair
644	Fair
645	Fair
646	Fair
647	Fair
648	Fair
649	Fair
650	Fair
651	Fair
652	Fair
653	Fair
654	Fair
655	Fair
656	Fair
657	Fair
658	Fair
659	Fair
660	Fair
661	Fair
662	Fair
663	Fair
664	Fair
665	Fair
666	Fair
667	Fair
668	Fair
669	Fair
670	Good
671	Good
672	Good
673	Good
674	Good
675	Good
676	Good
677	Good
678	Good
679	Good
680	Good
681	Good
682	Good
683	Good
684	Good
685	Good
686	Good
687	Good
688	Good
689	Good
690	Good
691	Good
692	Good
693	Good
694	Good
695	Good
696	Good
697	Good
698	Good
699	Good
700	Good
701	Good
702	Good
703	Good
704	Good
705	Good
706	Good
707	Good
708	Good
709	Good
710	Good
711	Good
712	Good
713	Good
714	Good
715	Good
716	Good
717	Good
718	Good
719	Good
720	Good
721	Good
722	Good
723	Good
724	Good
725	Good
726	Good
727	Good
728	Good
729	Good
730	Good
731	Good
732	Good
733	Good
734	Good
735	Good
736	Good
737	Good
738	Good
739	Good
740	Very Good
741	Very Good
742	Very Good
743	Very Good
744	Very Good
745	Very Good
746	Very Good
747	Very Good
748	Very Good
749	Very Good
750	Very Good
751	Very Good
752	Very Good
753	Very Good
754	Very Good
755	Very Good
756	Very Good
757	Very Good
758	Very Good
759	Very Good
760	Very Good
761	Very Good
762	Very Good
763	Very Good
764	Very Good
765	Very Good
766	Very Good
767	Very Good
768	Very Good
769	Very Good
770	Very Good
771	Very Good
772	Very Good
773	Very Good
774	Very Good
775	Very Good
776	Very Good
777	Very Good
778	Very Good
779	Very Good
780	Very Good
781	Very Good
782	Very Good
783	Very Good
784	Very Good
785	Very Good
786	Very Good
787	Very Good
788	Very Good
789	Very Good
790	Very Good
791	Very Good
792	Very Good
793	Very Good
794	Very Good
795	Very Good
796	Very Good
797	Very Good
798	Very Good
799	Very Good
800	Excellent
801	Excellent
802	Excellent
803	Excellent
804	Excellent
805	Excellent
806	Excellent
807	Excellent
808	Excellent
809	Excellent
810	Excellent
811	Excellent
812	Excellent
813	Excellent
814	Excellent
815	Excellent
816	Excellent
817	Excellent
818	Excellent
819	Excellent
820	Excellent
821	Excellent
822	Excellent
823	Excellent
824	Excellent
825	Excellent
826	Excellent
827	Excellent
828	Excellent
829	Excellent
830	Excellent
831	Excellent
832	Excellent
833	Excellent
834	Excellent
835	Excellent
836	Excellent
837	Excellent
838	Excellent
839	Excellent
840	Excellent
841	Excellent
842	Excellent
843	Excellent
844	Excellent
845	Excellent
846	Excellent
847	Excellent
848	Excellent
849	Excellent
850	Excellent

What does a 485 credit score get you?

Even though a 485 credit score is considered "Poor," you'll still have some financing options available to you, as you can see below.

Type of credit	Qualify?
Secured credit card	Yes
Unsecured credit card	Maybe
Best rewards credit card	No
0% APR credit card	No
Personal loan	Yes
Apartment rent	Maybe
Home loan	Yes (VA and FHA)
Auto loan	No

As you can see, your best bet when applying for loans or credit lines with a 485 credit score will be secured lines of credit. These could be secured credit cards — where you must provide a security deposit — or secured personal loans, which are secured by an asset. With secured loans or credit lines, the lender has funds or an asset that can then be sold to cover your overdue payment, which reduces the lender's risk.

Popular credit cards for a 485 credit score

Most of the best credit cards to apply for with a 485 credit score are secured cards, such as the Capital One Platinum secured credit card. Not only does this card not have an annual fee, but it also has one of the lowest security deposits among secured cards.

However, the above card isn't the only one available to applicants with low credit scores. Take a look at the credit cards below, each of which accepts a 485 credit score, and compare which option is the best for you.

What are the best personal loan options for someone with a 485 credit score?

Just as with credit cards, the most popular personal loans for consumers with scores around 485 will mostly be secured personal loans. While these aren't the only personal loans available, they'll probably offer applicants with low credit scores the best loan terms.

Auto loans with a 485 credit score

Unfortunately, very few auto loans were provided to consumers with credit scores below 540. Instead of applying for a car loan and receiving poor terms, you may be better off saving up and improving your credit score before applying for auto loans. As you can see from the table below, a higher credit score can save you hundreds of dollars over the life of the loan.

Credit score	APR	Monthly payment	Total interest paid
720 - 850	6.511%	$237	$1,386
690 - 719	7.744%	$243	$1,661
660 - 689	9.573%	$252	$2,076
620 - 659	10.739%	$257	$2,345
590 - 619	15.055%	$279	$3,372
500 - 589	16.484%	$286	$3,723
*Rates above for a $10,000 48-month used auto loan.

That being said, the auto loan lenders below have previously accepted applicants with a 485 credit score.

Mortgages and home loans with a 485 credit score

Consumers with credit scores below 620 typically make up a small percentage of successful mortgage applicants. This means mortgage lenders may refuse to work with applicants that have credit scores around 485.

By creating a savings plan and improving your credit score first, you may receive better financing down the line. For example, if you get your credit score to 580, you'll qualify for a lower down payment requirement through the Federal Housing Administration (from a 10% to a 3.5% down payment). Just as a higher score saves you money in auto loan interest rates, improving your credit score can save you even more money on a mortgage.

Credit score	APR	Monthly payment	Total interest paid
760 - 850	6.129%	$304	$59,416
700 - 759	6.351%	$311	$62,014
680 - 699	6.528%	$317	$64,104
660 - 679	6.742%	$324	$66,652
640 - 659	7.172%	$338	$71,841
620 - 639	7.718%	$357	$78,556
*Rates above for a $50,000 30-year fixed rate mortgage.

However, there are still mortgage lenders who will accept applicants with a 485 credit score. For instance, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does not have minimum credit score requirements, so you may receive home financing through a VA loan.

Student loans with a 485 credit score

Fortunately, student loans are some of the easiest loans to receive with a credit score of 485. Since most students are still building credit at this time, it makes sense that student loans would have less strict credit requirements. In fact, federal student loans generally don't have credit requirements at all.

However, private student loan lenders usually have more stringent requirements and typically won't accept an applicant with a 485 credit score. Because of this, your chances will be much better if you have a cosigner.

How to improve a 485 credit score

With all of this in mind, there is a silver lining. If you have bad credit, it is easier and faster to improve your score substantially because of the way credit score algorithms are set up.

Catch up on past-due payments

We know it's easier said than done, but repaying your old bills and debts can help improve your credit score. This is especially true when it comes to the most recent versions of FICO and VantageScore credit scores. Newer credit scoring models ignore collections that have a zero balance. So, if you pay or settle a collection and it's updated to reflect the zero balance on your credit reports, your FICO^® 9 and VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0 scores may improve. However, scores generated by older models that do not ignore zero-balance accounts will not improve.

However, it can be tricky to know how to best tackle your debts when you first start out. Luckily, you have a few options available to you:

• Do it yourself. This is the most obvious plan. Using a calendar, day planner, or money management tool, start budgeting and tracking your payments regularly. It won't be easy, but by creating a solid repayment strategy you can chip away at your debts and lower your credit utilization ratio. You should also consider which debt repayment strategy is right for you before starting.
• Apply for a debt consolidation loan. If you have multiple debts to pay off, consolidating your debts into one payment can make repayment easier to track and manage. While you may have to search for a secured loan with a 485 credit score, consolidating your debts can help debt payments feel more manageable.
• Consult a debt settlement company. If your debts seem too large to tackle, talking to a debt settlement company may help you reduce your debts to something more doable. While they won't pay your debts for you, a debt settlement company can help reduce the amount you owe to a particular creditor.

Review your credit reports for errors

Sometimes, a poor credit score isn't your fault. Though we'd all like to believe mistakes won't be made when it comes to our credit, there's always a chance you could have an error on your credit report. It could be the result of fraud, where your information was stolen and used to open a credit line or loan, or a simple mistake by the major credit bureaus.

Regardless of what happened, make sure to regularly review your credit report for any errors. If you don't have the time to monitor your credit score yourself, consider hiring a credit repair company instead. Their job is to review your credit history and report any false information on your behalf, which could end up improving your score.

Be patient after a foreclosure or repossession

After a foreclosure or repossession, you may feel like you need to work quickly to better your credit score. The reality is that a foreclosure or repossession typically happens after multiple missed payments and attempts to collect those payments. Because of those attempts, a foreclosure won't be the only bad mark on your credit report. And once a repossession is part of your credit history, you'll likely see your score drop significantly, often 100 or more points.

What does this mean for you? Patience. Instead of scrambling to repay every debt you have and anxiously monitoring your score, understand that repairing poor credit doesn't happen overnight. It may take several months or years to return your credit score to its previous glory. On top of that, repossession may stay on your credit report for up to seven years.

That doesn't mean stop trying, but rather be patient and take small steps towards your debt repayment goal. If you're not sure where to start, read this guide. You can also reach out to a certified financial planner or a credit counseling company. They can help you budget and create a debt repayment strategy that works with your finances.

Open a secured credit card account

One way to show your creditworthiness is through a secured credit card. To use a secured credit card, you first have to pay a security deposit, which the card issuer holds onto. If you ever miss a card payment, the card issuer uses the security deposit towards your balance.

This can be a great way to improve your credit score and manage credit card debt more effectively. Take a look at some of the secured credit cards below and compare card features to find the best one for your spending habits.

FAQs

What is the difference between FICO credit scores, VantageScore, and PLUS?

FICO and VantageScore are the two most popular credit scoring models in the United States. They are both used by lenders to assess your creditworthiness, and they both have a range of 300 to 850, with higher scores indicating better credit.

Here are some of the key differences between FICO and VantageScore:

• FICO scores are more widely used by lenders. About 90% of lenders use FICO scores, while only about 60% use VantageScore. FICO scores are more complex than VantageScore. FICO scores use a variety of factors to calculate your score, including your payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history, and recent inquiries. VantageScore uses a simpler model that focuses on your payment history and credit utilization.
• Also, VantageScore scores are more forgiving of recent inquiries. VantageScore counts multiple inquiries, even for different types of loans, within a 14-day period as a single inquiry. FICO scores only dedupe multiple inquiries from student loan, auto loan, and mortgage applications.
• PLUS is a newer credit scoring model that is still gaining traction. It is designed to be more transparent than FICO and VantageScore, and it uses a variety of factors to calculate your score, including your payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history, and credit mix.

Here is a table that summarizes the key differences between FICO, VantageScore, and PLUS:

Feature	FICO	VantageScore	PLUS
Range	300 to 850	300 to 850	250 to 900
Popularity	Most widely used	Less widely used	Newer model
Complexity	More complex	Simpler model	More transparent
Inquiries	Multiple inquiries within a 14-day period count as a single inquiry	Multiple inquiries within a 14-day period count as multiple inquiries	Multiple inquiries within a 14-day period count as a single inquiry
Factors used	Payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history, and recent inquiries	Payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history	Payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history, and credit mix

Can you get approved with a 485 credit score?

There's a chance you could be approved for a credit card or loan with a 485 credit score. However, you may be subject to higher interest rates or poor loan terms with this score. Instead, try applying for a secured credit card or secured personal loan.

How can I raise my credit score from 485 to 700?

While you can raise your score from 485 to 700, keep in mind that this will take some time to do so. You can help increase your score by making timely payments, regularly reviewing your credit reports, and effectively using a secured credit card.

What credit score do you start with?

There technically isn't a "starting" credit score, at least not one that everyone starts with. If you haven't ever applied for a loan or credit card, you won't have a credit score at all. Once you apply for your first loan or card, the three major credit bureaus will begin building a credit file based on how you manage your account.

What is the lowest credit score?

Technically, the lowest credit score possible is 300, but you'll only have this score if you manage your finances extremely poorly.