Does Opening a Bank Account Affect Your Credit?

Quick Answer

Bank accounts help you manage money but typically don’t build credit because they aren’t reported to credit bureaus. However, your bank account can indirectly affect your credit. Here’s what you need to know.

woman checking her bank account in the company of her dog

Do Bank Accounts Help You Build Credit?

For the most part, no, bank accounts generally don't help you build credit. That's because deposit accounts aren't typically reported to the credit bureaus.

Deposit accounts include:

These accounts are designed to perform transactions such as depositing and saving money, paying bills and making purchases. Because deposit accounts don't involve borrowing money, they generally aren't part of your credit history.

Accounts that involve borrowing money are typically reported to credit bureaus. These accounts may include:

Credit cards
Student loans
Mortgages
Personal loans
Home equity loans
Home equity lines of credit
Auto, RV and motorcycle loans
Cellphone financing loans

Having a bank account may help you qualify for loans in other ways. For example, reviewing your bank statement can make it easier for lenders to verify your income and cash flow when considering your loan application. But if a bank account helps you get approved for credit, that's different from the account itself building your credit.

Some financial services companies are trying to bridge this gap with bank accounts that can help build credit from your everyday banking activities. For example, the Experian Smart Money^™ Digital Checking Account & Debit Card can help you build credit without debt by linking to Experian Boost^®^ø^®^ø, which gives you credit for eligible bill payments after three months of payments. See terms at experian.com/legal.

Learn more: Accounts That Help Build Credit and Accounts That Don't

When Can Bank Accounts Affect Your Ability to Get New Credit?

Bank accounts usually don't affect your credit scores directly, but they can affect your ability to qualify for credit in some situations.

Mortgage Lenders May Review Your Bank Statements

As part of the approval process, mortgage lenders typically review your bank statements for signs of financial stability, such as:

Consistent deposits showing stable income
Sufficient cash reserves
Fewer signs of financial stress

Solid finances can help you qualify for a mortgage, even though your bank account isn't part of your credit report.

Some Alternative Credit Scoring Models Use Banking Data

Some lenders use credit-scoring models that consider banking behavior, such as the UltraFICO^® Score^Θ. The UltraFICO^® Score combines information from your traditional FICO^® Score^☉ with bank account data that demonstrates responsible money management. For example, it considers:

How long your accounts have been open
Frequency and recency of transactions
History of positive account balances
How consistently your accounts have cash on hand

This type of scoring model hasn't been widely adopted, but if your lender uses it, your banking activity could play a larger role in lending decisions.

Negative Bank Account Activity Can Hurt Your Credit Score Indirectly

Managing your bank accounts poorly can indirectly damage your credit. For example:

Unpaid bank fees, such as overdraft fees, could be sold to a collection agency, which appears on your credit report and negatively affects your credit score.
If an automatic credit card or loan payment bounces because there isn't enough money in your account, you could miss a payment. If the missed payment is 30 days late or more, it could lower your credit score.

So while ordinary bank activity isn't usually reported to credit bureaus, problems tied to your bank account can create credit issues later.

How to Build Credit

Although your bank account generally isn't part of your credit history, there are plenty of ways to build good credit, whether you are recovering from a setback or starting from scratch.

Use a Credit Card

Both secured and unsecured credit cards are common tools for building credit because they are generally reported to the credit bureaus. A secured credit card requires a refundable security deposit, which can make it easier to qualify if you have poor credit or a limited credit history. An unsecured credit card doesn't require a deposit.

No matter which type of card you use, the same positive habits can benefit your credit:

Pay your bill on time every month. Payment history is the single biggest factor in your credit score.
Use only a small portion of your credit limit. Ideally, aim to keep your credit utilization rate under 10%.

Reminder: Although many debit cards look like credit cards and can be used in the same places, debit cards and credit cards are not the same thing. Debit cards pull money directly from your bank account, so debit card activity is generally not reported to the credit bureaus.

Learn more: Best Secured Credit Cards

Become an Authorized User

Becoming an authorized user on someone else's credit card can help you build credit if the card issuer reports authorized user activity to the three consumer credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax). As an authorized user, you can make purchases with the card, but the primary cardholder is responsible for making the payments.

Your credit score will benefit most from an authorized-user account if the primary cardholder has a long history of managing the card responsibly. However, because you aren't responsible for making the payments, some lenders may place less weight on authorized-user accounts when evaluating your application for credit in your own name.

Learn more: Will Being an Authorized User Help My Credit?

Consider an Installment Loan

Installment loans can also help you build credit because they are generally reported to the credit bureaus and show how you manage fixed monthly payments over time. Examples include:

Student loans
Cellphone financing loans
Credit-builder loans
Auto loans
Mortgages

If you're trying to establish or rebuild your credit, getting installment loans may be difficult. A credit-builder loan designed to improve your credit can help. With a credit-builder loan, you pay into a savings account each month and receive the balance when the loan is paid off. Making timely payments on the loan can benefit your credit score as long as the lender reports to all three credit bureaus.

Get Credit for Monthly Bills

Experian Boost could help you build credit by adding eligible monthly bill payments, such as insurance, utilities, rent and streaming services, to your Experian credit report. Your FICO^® Score could see an immediate boost once your on-time payments are added to your report.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Opening a Checking Account Affect Credit Scores?

Opening a checking account usually won't affect your credit because banks generally don't report checking accounts to credit bureaus. However, unpaid fees and overdrafts could cause your checking account to go to collections, which can hurt your credit.

Does Opening a Savings Account Affect Credit Scores?

Opening a savings account doesn't impact your credit score since savings accounts typically are not included in credit reports. If your savings account is eventually sent to collections due to unpaid bank fees, however, your credit score could suffer.

Does Closing a Bank Account Hurt Your Credit?

Closing a bank account doesn't directly hurt your credit because deposit accounts aren't reported to credit bureaus. However, closing an account with a negative balance could hurt your credit score if the account is sent to collections.

Your credit could also suffer if you fail to move any automatic loan or credit card payments to the new bank account and miss a payment by 30 days or more.

The Bottom Line

Although bank accounts generally won't build credit, your bank account can help you manage your day-to-day finances to support good financial habits that can benefit your credit score. For instance, setting up automatic bill payments from your checking account can help prevent late payments that can damage your credit. Automating transfers into your savings account can painlessly build an emergency fund to handle unexpected expenses.

As you take steps to build or improve your credit, you can track your progress for free with Experian's credit monitoring service. You'll have access to your FICO^® Score and get alerts of important changes to your credit usage that could signal fraud. It's an easy way to stay on top of your financial health.

How Good Is Your Credit Score?

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Does Opening a Bank Account Affect Your Credit?

In this article:

Do Bank Accounts Help You Build Credit?

When Can Bank Accounts Affect Your Ability to Get New Credit?

Mortgage Lenders May Review Your Bank Statements

Some Alternative Credit Scoring Models Use Banking Data

Negative Bank Account Activity Can Hurt Your Credit Score Indirectly

How to Build Credit

Use a Credit Card

Become an Authorized User

Consider an Installment Loan

Get Credit for Monthly Bills

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Opening a Checking Account Affect Credit Scores?

Does Opening a Savings Account Affect Credit Scores?

Does Closing a Bank Account Hurt Your Credit?

The Bottom Line

Instantly raise your FICO^® Score for free

How Good Is Your Credit Score?

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In this article:

Do Bank Accounts Help You Build Credit?

When Can Bank Accounts Affect Your Ability to Get New Credit?

Mortgage Lenders May Review Your Bank Statements

Some Alternative Credit Scoring Models Use Banking Data

Negative Bank Account Activity Can Hurt Your Credit Score Indirectly

How to Build Credit

Use a Credit Card

Become an Authorized User

Consider an Installment Loan

Get Credit for Monthly Bills

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Opening a Checking Account Affect Credit Scores?

Does Opening a Savings Account Affect Credit Scores?

Does Closing a Bank Account Hurt Your Credit?

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