What Is the Average Credit Score by State, and What Does It Mean for Your Report?.

The average U.S. FICO Score is about 713, per Experian’s September 2025 data. State averages run from 677 in Mississippi to 741 in Minnesota.

A state average describes a population. Your credit report describes you, and each of the three bureaus keeps its own file on you. Your state’s number can tell you how you compare, but only your reports show what you can change.

Upper Midwest and New England states post the highest average credit scores

Upper Midwest and New England states generally have higher average FICO Scores, and Minnesota leads the country at 741, per Experian’s September 2025 data. The South sits at the other end, with Mississippi lowest at 677. Experian is the source for every state figure here.

Is the average U.S. credit score of 713 a good score?

Yes. A 713 falls in the Good band, which runs from 670 to 739 on the FICO scale. The other bands are Exceptional at 800 to 850, Very Good at 740 to 799, Fair at 580 to 669 and Poor at 300 to 579.

A state at 741 averages into Very Good. A state at 677 averages just above the bottom of Good. Your own score can sit in any band, whatever your state’s average says.

Does your state’s average credit score decide your own score?

No. FICO publishes the five categories behind a FICO Score: payment history at 35%, amounts owed at 30%, length of credit history at 15%, new credit at 10% and credit mix at 10% (FICO). Where you live is not one of them.

FICO also states that those weights describe the general population and vary with an individual credit profile. A state average is a summary of many files like yours. It does not feed into yours.

How do you check your credit reports for errors that drag down your score?

Pull your report from all three bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, because each bureau keeps its own file and they can differ. Then read each one for accounts you do not recognise, wrong balances or late marks, and items that look too old to be reported. An error you find is the one part of your score you can act on directly.

The differences between bureaus are real. In CreditRefresh’s analysis of paying-member data, 56.6% of analyzed members had a gap above 20 points between their highest and lowest bureau scores, with a median gap of 23.5 points. The gap measures how far scores differ across bureaus. It does not say any score is wrong, or which bureau was higher.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau publishes these steps for ordering your free reports (CFPB, How do I get a free copy of my credit reports?):

1. Go to AnnualCreditReport.com (online), or call (877) 322-8228 (phone), or download and complete the Annual Credit Report Request form and mail it to: P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281 (mail).
2. When you visit AnnualCreditReport.com, you can choose to view from one, two, or all three credit reporting companies.
3. If needed, you can also ask whether your credit report is available in your preferred language.

The CFPB also warns about lookalike sites. Some will only provide a free report if you buy other products or services, and others give you a free report and then bill you for services you have to cancel. The report authorized by law comes from AnnualCreditReport.com or (877) 322-8228.

How long does a credit bureau have to investigate your dispute?

Under the FCRA, a bureau generally has 30 days from receiving a dispute to investigate it. You dispute in writing with the bureau reporting the item, and an item it cannot verify must come off the report. The bureaus decide the outcome, and it depends on what the furnisher and your file show.

The statute requires a reasonable reinvestigation, after which the bureau records the item’s current status or deletes it, counted from receipt of your dispute (U.S. Government Publishing Office, 2024). The period can be extended by up to 15 additional days if you send relevant information during the 30 days. That extension does not apply if the information is found inaccurate or incomplete, or the bureau determines it cannot be verified.

The CFPB publishes these steps for filing (CFPB, How do I dispute an error on my credit report?):

1. Gather supporting documents and identify each error on your credit report, including the account number for any account you are disputing.
2. Write a dispute letter including: your complete name, address, and telephone number; your credit report confirmation number, if available; each error you want fixed, including the account number; a clear explanation of why you are disputing the information; a request that the information be removed or corrected; a copy of the portion of your credit report containing the disputed items, with those items circled or highlighted; and copies (not originals) of documents supporting your position.
3. Optionally send the letter by certified mail and ask for a return receipt, so you have a record that it was received.
4. Submit the dispute to the credit reporting company (Equifax, Experian, and/or TransUnion) online, by mail, or by phone, using the contact method listed for that company.
5. Keep copies of your dispute letter and the documents you sent with it.
6. The credit reporting company must investigate your dispute, forward the dispute and all relevant information you provided to the company that provided the information about you, and report the results back to you.
7. To dispute the information with the furnisher (the company that provided it to the credit reporting company), send the dispute in writing using certified mail to the address on your consumer report or to an address the furnisher specifies for credit reporting disputes.
8. The furnisher generally must investigate and respond within 30 days of receiving the dispute. If it finds the information wrong or unverifiable, it must update or remove it and notify all the credit reporting companies.

State credit score averages are FICO scores, so VantageScore can read differently

The state averages here are FICO Scores from Experian’s September 2025 data, not VantageScore. Different scoring models can produce different averages, so a free app showing a VantageScore may not match the FICO number lenders pull.

When you compare yourself to your state, compare the same kind of score. A VantageScore from a free app set against a FICO state average tells you little about where you stand.

Which credit-dispute tool fits a report with errors, and at what price?

Each option’s price, bureau reach and Trustpilot score are set side by side below, with what each one buys. Weigh what you pay each month against how many of the three bureaus the tool reaches and who drafts, signs and mails the letters.

Every price is that company’s own published rate, as its own site states it. Trustpilot scores and review counts as published.

If you have paid for a dispute service before and got nothing, the reviews below will sound familiar. Nat left a 2-star Trustpilot review of Dispute Beast on September 6, 2026: “Dispute Beast did Nothing for me but took my payments. There’s an extra fee for each letter the system sends on your behalf.”

Fees are the other complaint. A 1-star Trustpilot review of Lexington Law from Jennifer C., dated March 20, 2024, reads: “Their policy read they would initially charge $14.95 but $99 was withdrawn from my account.”

How CreditRefresh drafts dispute letters for errors on all three credit reports

You cannot move your state’s average, but you can fix the errors on your own report. CreditRefresh works on the credit reports, not the scores: it pulls all three, scans every line item for errors and FCRA violations, and disputes what should not be there. It reads each report, flags items that look inaccurate, incomplete, unverifiable or too old to be reported, and drafts a ready-to-send FCRA dispute letter for each one.

Setup is three steps with nothing to learn. You subscribe to Refresh Monitoring, the three bureau reports connect through the monitoring partner (credit data is supplied by the third party Array), and the AI scans and drafts. The scan and first batch of letters are ready in minutes, with no onboarding call.

Nothing leaves your account until you have reviewed and signed it. A letter reaches a bureau only when you mail it or place a RushMail order, so the AI does not dispute on your behalf.

CreditRefresh is included at no additional cost with Refresh Monitoring, a $49.99-a-month credit-monitoring subscription, and the price is flat. There is no setup fee, no per-dispute charge and no contract, and you can cancel anytime. An active Refresh Monitoring subscription is required; the dispute tool is not sold on its own. You mail each round yourself or, for a small per-letter fee, through our affiliated mailing partner RushMail, a separate optional order and the only optional cost.

Members who work the full twelve-month program and see none of their three bureau scores rise above the starting point can claim back every Refresh Monitoring payment under our 100% money-back guarantee. It is a refund promise and never a score promise, and the conditions are on the guarantee page. CreditRefresh is not a law firm, its letters are not legal advice, and no score, removal or timeline is promised. The bureaus decide dispute outcomes.

FAQ

What is the average credit score in Texas?

Texas averages 692 on the FICO scale, which is 21 points below the national average of 713. That puts the state average in the Good band, a little below the national figure.

What credit score counts as Very Good or Exceptional?

On the FICO scale, 740 to 799 is Very Good and 800 to 850 is Exceptional. Good runs from 670 to 739, so a score of 740 is the first step into Very Good.

How often can you get a free credit report?

Federal law requires each nationwide credit bureau to give you a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months on request. All three have also permanently extended a program that lets you check the report from each once a week for free at AnnualCreditReport.com (Federal Trade Commission, 2026). Phone and mail orders are processed and mailed within 15 days, and you should be ready to give your name, address, Social Security number and date of birth.

Can you dispute a credit report error for free?

Yes. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (1970) gives every consumer the right to a free report from each bureau, to dispute inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information, and to have unverifiable items corrected or deleted.

How long can negative items stay on your credit report?

Most negative items, including accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss, may be reported for seven years (Fair Credit Reporting Act, Section 605, 15 U.S.C. 1681c). The statute caps cases under title 11 at ten years from the date of entry of the order for relief or the date of adjudication, which covers a Chapter 13 filing as well as a Chapter 7. The seven-year treatment of a completed Chapter 13 is the bureaus’ own voluntary practice and not a statutory deadline. After those windows the item is obsolete and may be disputed on that basis.

Who mails the dispute letters CreditRefresh drafts?

You do, or RushMail does if you choose it. You review and sign each letter first, then print and mail it yourself or have RushMail send it for a small per-letter fee.

Can you cancel CreditRefresh anytime?

Yes. CreditRefresh comes with Refresh Monitoring at $49.99 a month, with no setup fee and no contract. You can cancel whenever you want, with no lock-in.

Does checking your own credit report lower your score?

No. The CFPB says: “No, requesting your credit report does not hurt your credit score.” (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 2024). myFICO adds a condition for FICO Scores: you order the report directly from the credit reporting agency or through an organization authorized to provide credit reports to consumers.

CreditRefresh reads all three of your credit reports, flags items that look inaccurate, incomplete, unverifiable or too old to be reported, and drafts an FCRA dispute letter for each one that you review, sign and send. Backed by a 100% money-back guarantee.

Check all three of your credit reports for errors →