What Is Experian Boost^®?

Quick Answer

Experian Boost^® is a free feature that could improve your credit scores by adding household bill payments to your Experian credit file. Eligible payments may include utility, cable, internet, streaming, insurance and online rent payments.

Experian Boost^®^ø^®^ø is a first-of-its-kind feature that could help consumers instantly improve their FICO^® Score^☉ ^Θ by giving them credit for eligible on-time utility, phone and certain rent, insurance and streaming service payments. Experian Boost is good for people with little to no credit history as well as established borrowers looking to increase their credit scores. Here's what you need to know.

What Is Experian Boost?

Experian Boost is a free feature that lets you add your on-time payment history of certain household bills to your Experian credit file to help you build credit. Eligible payments may include:

Phone bills (mobile and landline)
Utility bills (gas, water, electricity, solar)
Insurance (excluding health insurance)
Residential rent (if paid online)
Internet, cable and satellite providers
Streaming services

These payments can be reliable indicators of responsible financial management and creditworthiness, but, because they are not considered debt payments, they are not traditionally reported to the consumer credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax). Adding these payments to your Experian credit file allows them to contribute to your FICO^® Scores based on Experian credit data.

Learn more: What Affects Your Credit Scores?

How Does Experian Boost Work?

Experian Boost works by giving you credit for the payments you're already making. Normally, utility, phone, insurance, streaming and rent payments do not factor into your credit scores. When you connect your accounts to Experian Boost, however, Experian uses your connected accounts to find on-time qualifying payments for these monthly bills.

Once you verify the information and agree to add it to your Experian credit file, you may instantly receive an updated FICO^® Score. The process takes about five minutes, and any change to your FICO^® Score will happen immediately.

By adding these records to your Experian credit file, Experian Boost helps you build positive payment history. Payment history is the most important factor in calculating your credit scores, so adding records of on-time payments could be very valuable. Keep in mind, Experian Boost only considers positive payment history on these accounts, so late payments will not lower your credit scores.

Tip: The length of your credit history also plays a role in your credit scores. Adding more accounts to your Experian credit file with Experian Boost helps you build credit history by showing more evidence of active accounts and on-time payments.

Learn more: How to Improve Your Credit Score Fast

Who Can Benefit From Experian Boost?

The majority of people who use Experian Boost increase their FICO^® Score instantly. Anyone can sign up for an Experian membership to use Experian Boost, but consumers with little to no credit and those with very poor to fair credit scores tend to benefit the most.

Most people get an instant increase in their FICO^® Score with Experian Boost. Experian Boost can help improve your FICO^® Score 3, 8, 9 and 10, as well as your VantageScore^® 3 and 4.

As mentioned, certain payments had never before factored into your credit scores. Experian Boost was the first product to change that, potentially boosting your credit scores immediately if qualified on-time payments are found in your bank and credit card accounts.

Learn more: What Is a Thin Credit File?

How Much Does Experian Boost Cost?

Experian Boost is completely free. Once you sign up for a free or paid Experian membership, you can enroll in Experian Boost. There is no additional charge to connect your bank and credit card accounts, and if you choose to disconnect your account, you can keep your Experian basic membership.

If you regularly pay a utility, telecom, rent, streaming or insurance (excluding health insurance) bill using your bank account or credit card, consider using Experian Boost to get credit for your past on-time payments and possibly raise your credit scores. You can always get your FICO^® Score for free from Experian to stay on top of your credit and see how you may be able to improve your scores.

How to Sign Up for Experian Boost

Signing up for Experian Boost is easy and typically takes just a few minutes.

To sign up for Experian Boost, you'll first need a free or paid Experian account. Along with access to Experian Boost, the free subscription provides access to your Experian credit report, FICO^® Score and other services that can help you maintain good credit health.
On the dashboard, select Credit, then click on Experian Boost.
On the Experian Boost landing page, connect the checking or credit card account(s) you use to pay the bills you want added to your credit file. Use the encrypted form to enter the usernames and passwords you use to log in to those accounts' online dashboards.
Experian Boost will identify eligible accounts it recognizes from the accounts' automatic payments and retrieve up to two years' worth of payment history for each.
Experian Boost will prompt you to confirm the eligible accounts you want added to your Experian credit report. As each approved account is added, Experian Boost will indicate the number of points your credit score has changed as a result.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Experian Boost Safe?

Yes, Experian Boost is safe. Protecting customer data is Experian's top priority. Experian Boost uses multiple layers of security technology, including bank-level SSL security encryption, to safeguard your personal information when you connect your accounts and add your bills.

How Do You Use Experian Boost?

To use Experian Boost, you choose which bills to add, and you can change that at any time. Up to two years of payment history for each bill is added to your Experian credit file. If certain lenders or other legally authorized parties (such as an auto insurance company) request a FICO^® Score based on your Experian credit file, it will reflect Experian Boost data.

Experian Boost only considers on-time payments. Late payments are ignored, and therefore cannot hurt your FICO^® Score.

How Can a Good Credit Score Help You?

There are many benefits to having a good credit score, but some of the most important ways a good credit score could help you include:

Improved likelihood of approval on loan and credit card applications
Access to a wider array of offers for loans and credit cards, including options with higher borrowing limits, better perks or rewards, and lower interest rates and fees
Greater rental options among landlords and property managers that use credit scores in their tenant-screening processes
Lower car insurance costs in states where car insurance providers use credit scores to help set premiums
Lower security deposit requirements on home rentals and leased equipment such as wireless routers, cable boxes and satellite dishes

What Is the Difference Between UltraFICO^® and Experian Boost?

Both Experian Boost and UltraFICO^® give consumers more control of their credit scores by including extra data points not previously used to calculate scores. This could, in turn, allow consumers to qualify for financial products or get better interest rates and terms.

Both features are free to use, but there are some differences to know.

With the UltraFICO^® Score, you can leverage your good banking behavior to enhance your FICO^® Score. If you have a low FICO^® Score or no score at all, then you have a chance to get an UltraFICO^® Score based on the banking data you share. The UltraFICO^® Score is based on activity from your checking, savings and/or money market accounts that shows your responsible financial management. That information includes how much money you have in your account(s), how long you've had those accounts and how much you use them. And while this information doesn't appear on your credit report, it can be used to help improve your FICO^® Scores.

Experian Boost, on the other hand, allows you to add eligible, on-time bill payments to your Experian credit file. This gives you the opportunity to improve your credit profile, and can lead to instant FICO^® Score improvements if you've been paying your bills on time.

The Bottom Line

Experian Boost is a free feature that lets you get credit for responsible household bill payments by adding them to your Experian credit file for use in calculating your FICO^® Score. Using Experian Boost is quick and easy and may yield an increase in your FICO^® Score 8 based on Experian credit data.

How Good Is Your Credit Score?

300 credit score 301 credit score 302 credit score 303 credit score 304 credit score 305 credit score 306 credit score 307 credit score 308 credit score 309 credit score 310 credit score 311 credit score 312 credit score 313 credit score 314 credit score 315 credit score 316 credit score 317 credit score 318 credit score 319 credit score 320 credit score 321 credit score 322 credit score 323 credit score 324 credit score 325 credit score 326 credit score 327 credit score 328 credit score 329 credit score 330 credit score 331 credit score 332 credit score 333 credit score 334 credit score 335 credit score 336 credit score 337 credit score 338 credit score 339 credit score 340 credit score 341 credit score 342 credit score 343 credit score 344 credit score 345 credit score 346 credit score 347 credit score 348 credit score 349 credit score 350 credit score 351 credit score 352 credit score 353 credit score 354 credit score 355 credit score 356 credit score 357 credit score 358 credit score 359 credit score 360 credit score 361 credit score 362 credit score 363 credit score 364 credit score 365 credit score 366 credit score 367 credit score 368 credit score 369 credit score 370 credit score 371 credit score 372 credit score 373 credit score 374 credit score 375 credit score 376 credit score 377 credit score 378 credit score 379 credit score 380 credit score 381 credit score 382 credit score 383 credit score 384 credit score 385 credit score 386 credit score 387 credit score 388 credit score 389 credit score 390 credit score 391 credit score 392 credit score 393 credit score 394 credit score 395 credit score 396 credit score 397 credit score 398 credit score 399 credit score 400 credit score 401 credit score 402 credit score 403 credit score 404 credit score 405 credit score 406 credit score 407 credit score 408 credit score 409 credit score 410 credit score 411 credit score 412 credit score 413 credit score 414 credit score 415 credit score 416 credit score 417 credit score 418 credit score 419 credit score 420 credit score 421 credit score 422 credit score 423 credit score 424 credit score 425 credit score 426 credit score 427 credit score 428 credit score 429 credit score 430 credit score 431 credit score 432 credit score 433 credit score 434 credit score 435 credit score 436 credit score 437 credit score 438 credit score 439 credit score 440 credit score 441 credit score 442 credit score 443 credit score 444 credit score 445 credit score 446 credit score 447 credit score 448 credit score 449 credit score 450 credit score 451 credit score 452 credit score 453 credit score 454 credit score 455 credit score 456 credit score 457 credit score 458 credit score 459 credit score 460 credit score 461 credit score 462 credit score 463 credit score 464 credit score 465 credit score 466 credit score 467 credit score 468 credit score 469 credit score 470 credit score 471 credit score 472 credit score 473 credit score 474 credit score 475 credit score 476 credit score 477 credit score 478 credit score 479 credit score 480 credit score 481 credit score 482 credit score 483 credit score 484 credit score 485 credit score 486 credit score 487 credit score 488 credit score 489 credit score 490 credit score 491 credit score 492 credit score 493 credit score 494 credit score 495 credit score 496 credit score 497 credit score 498 credit score 499 credit score 500 credit score 501 credit score 502 credit score 503 credit score 504 credit score 505 credit score 506 credit score 507 credit score 508 credit score 509 credit score 510 credit score 511 credit score 512 credit score 513 credit score 514 credit score 515 credit score 516 credit score 517 credit score 518 credit score 519 credit score 520 credit score 521 credit score 522 credit score 523 credit score 524 credit score 525 credit score 526 credit score 527 credit score 528 credit score 529 credit score 530 credit score 531 credit score 532 credit score 533 credit score 534 credit score 535 credit score 536 credit score 537 credit score 538 credit score 539 credit score 540 credit score 541 credit score 542 credit score 543 credit score 544 credit score 545 credit score 546 credit score 547 credit score 548 credit score 549 credit score 550 credit score 551 credit score 552 credit score 553 credit score 554 credit score 555 credit score 556 credit score 557 credit score 558 credit score 559 credit score 560 credit score 561 credit score 562 credit score 563 credit score 564 credit score 565 credit score 566 credit score 567 credit score 568 credit score 569 credit score 570 credit score 571 credit score 572 credit score 573 credit score 574 credit score 575 credit score 576 credit score 577 credit score 578 credit score 579 credit score

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What Is Experian Boost^®?

In this article:

What Is Experian Boost?

How Does Experian Boost Work?

Who Can Benefit From Experian Boost?

How Much Does Experian Boost Cost?

How to Sign Up for Experian Boost

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Experian Boost Safe?

How Do You Use Experian Boost?

How Can a Good Credit Score Help You?

What Is the Difference Between UltraFICO^® and Experian Boost?

The Bottom Line

Instantly raise your FICO^® Score for free

How Good Is Your Credit Score?

Resources

Latest Research

Latest Reviews

Instantly raise your FICO^® Score^☉ for free^ø

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In this article:

What Is Experian Boost?

How Does Experian Boost Work?

Who Can Benefit From Experian Boost?

How Much Does Experian Boost Cost?

How to Sign Up for Experian Boost

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Experian Boost Safe?

How Do You Use Experian Boost?

How Can a Good Credit Score Help You?

What Is the Difference Between UltraFICO® and Experian Boost?

The Bottom Line

Instantly raise your FICO® Score for free

How Good Is Your Credit Score?

Resources

Latest Research

Latest Reviews

What Is the Difference Between UltraFICO^® and Experian Boost?

Instantly raise your FICO^® Score for free