Credit Score Ranges Chart: FICO & VantageScore Bands

Credit score ranges: FICO and VantageScore, side by side

On the defaults — a 720 credit score, a $25,000.00 loan, and a 5-year term — the FICO band is Good (670–739), the VantageScore band is Good (661–780), the tier is Prime, the average used-car APR is 8.81%, the monthly payment is $516.66, and the total interest is $5,999.60 over 60 payments. Lenders price the TIER, not the exact score — a 619 and a 638 usually get the same rate, while a 600 and a 601 may not, because the boundary sits between them.

Five things about the model are worth stating plainly. First, your score is looked up in two different band systems — FICO and VantageScore 4.0 — and the two can disagree: a 740 is Very Good on FICO but only Good on VantageScore. Second, the tier comes from the VantageScore score — 720 sits in Prime (661–780) at an 8.81% average used-car APR. Third, the monthly payment is loan × r × (1 + r)^n ÷ ((1 + r)^n − 1), with r = APR ÷ 1200 and n = term × 12 — $25,000.00 at 8.81% over 60 months is $516.66. Fourth, the total interest is the rounded monthly payment times n minus the loan — $516.66 × 60 − $25,000.00 = $5,999.60 — computed from the ROUNDED payment so the numbers add up. And fifth, one tier can be worth thousands — moving from 640 to 661 saves $64.14 a month, $3,848.40 over five years on a $25,000.00 loan; all listed in Accuracy & limitations.

Table 1 — FICO Score bands

Table 2 — VantageScore 4.0 bands

Table 3 — Average used-car APR by credit tier (Experian, Q2 2026)

Source: Experian, State of the Automotive Finance Market, Q2 2026 (VantageScore 4.0) — https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/used-car-loan-rates/. The APRs are national AVERAGES for used-car loans, not offers. A 300 score pays $685.08 a month against $486.70 at 850 — $198.38 a month more, $11,902.80 more interest over five years on the same $25,000.00 loan.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: credit score 720, loan $25,000.00, term 5 years.

Line 1 — the FICO band. A 720 score sits in FICO Good (670–739).

Line 2 — the VantageScore band. A 720 score sits in VantageScore Good (661–780).

Line 3 — the tier and APR. Both bands sit in the Prime tier, whose average used-car APR is 8.81%.

Line 4 — the monthly payment. With r = 8.81 ÷ 1200 = 0.00734167 and n = 60, the payment is $25,000.00 × 0.00734167 × 1.00734167^60 ÷ (1.00734167^60 − 1) = $516.66.

Line 5 — the total interest. The total interest is $516.66 × 60 − $25,000.00 = $5,999.60.

Every branch, checked

Score 580: Score 580: FICO Fair, VantageScore Poor, Subprime tier, APR 19.10%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $649.89/month, total interest $13,993.40 (60 payments) — A 580 score is Fair on FICO but Poor on VantageScore — Subprime at 19.10%, paying $649.89 a month.

Score 640: Score 640: FICO Fair, VantageScore Fair, Near prime tier, APR 13.93%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $580.80/month, total interest $9,848.00 (60 payments) — A 640 score is Fair on both systems — Near prime at 13.93%, paying $580.80 a month.

Score 670: Score 670: FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $516.66/month, total interest $5,999.60 (60 payments) — A 670 score is Good on both systems — Prime at 8.81%, paying $516.66 a month, the same as 720.

Score 740: Score 740: FICO Very Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $516.66/month, total interest $5,999.60 (60 payments) — A 740 score is Very Good on FICO but only Good on VantageScore — still Prime at 8.81%, paying $516.66 a month.

Score 800: Score 800: FICO Exceptional, VantageScore Excellent, Super prime tier, APR 6.29%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $486.70/month, total interest $4,202.00 (60 payments) — An 800 score is Exceptional on FICO and Excellent on VantageScore — Super prime at 6.29%, paying $486.70 a month.

Score 850: Score 850: FICO Exceptional, VantageScore Excellent, Super prime tier, APR 6.29%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $486.70/month, total interest $4,202.00 (60 payments) — An 850 score is Exceptional on FICO and Excellent on VantageScore — Super prime at 6.29%, paying $486.70 a month, the same as 800.

Score 300: Score 300: FICO Poor, VantageScore Very Poor, Deep subprime tier, APR 21.62%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $685.08/month, total interest $16,104.80 (60 payments) — A 300 score is Poor on FICO and Very Poor on VantageScore — Deep subprime at 21.62%, paying $685.08 a month.

The reverses, worked backwards

Points from 720 to the next FICO band up: 20 points (740 − 720); at 740 the FICO band is Very Good, the VantageScore band is Good, the APR is 8.81%, the payment is $516.66, and the total interest is $5,999.60 — the band changes but the APR tier does not (740 is still Prime until 781). The star is POINTS.

Points from 720 to the top FICO band: 80 points (800 − 720); at 800 the FICO band is Exceptional, the VantageScore band is Excellent, the APR is 6.29%, the payment is $486.70, and the total interest is $4,202.00. The star is POINTS.

Loan amount for a monthly payment of exactly $500.00 (8.81%, 5 years): $24,194.02 — the exact loan amount is 24194.0201. At the displayed $24,194.02 the payment is $500.00 and the total interest is $5,805.98. $24,194.03 is the smallest cent amount whose unrounded payment reaches $500.00 (unrounded at displayed $499.999998; at $24,194.03 the unrounded payment is $500.000205, which also rounds to $500.00). The star is DOLLARS.

Longest whole-year term keeping total interest at or under $5,000.00 (8.81%, $25,000.00): 4 years — at 4 years the payment is $619.87 and the total interest is $4,753.76 (48 payments); at 5 years the total interest is $5,999.60 — over the $5,000.00 line. The star is YEARS.

APR where the monthly payment is exactly $600.00 ($25,000.00, 5 years): 15.40% — the exact APR is 15.3992%. At the displayed 15.40% the payment is $600.01 and the total interest is $11,000.60 — $0.01 over the $600.00 target (unrounded $600.0103); at 15.39% the payment is $599.88 (unrounded $599.8784) — $0.12 short. 15.40% is the first 0.01pp step that reaches the target. The star is PERCENT.

Points from 640 to the Prime tier: 21 points (661 − 640); at 661 the FICO band is Fair, the VantageScore band is Good, the APR is 8.81%, the payment is $516.66, and the total interest is $5,999.60 — against 640’s $580.80 and $9,848.00: 21 points saves $64.14 a month, $3,848.40 over five years. The star is POINTS.

What the defaults assume

The defaults are a 720 credit score, a $25,000.00 loan, and a 5-year term — FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%, payment $516.66, total interest $5,999.60. With a 580 score, Score 580: FICO Fair, VantageScore Poor, Subprime tier, APR 19.10%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $649.89/month, total interest $13,993.40 (60 payments) — A 580 score is Fair on FICO but Poor on VantageScore — Subprime at 19.10%, paying $649.89 a month. With a 640 score, Score 640: FICO Fair, VantageScore Fair, Near prime tier, APR 13.93%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $580.80/month, total interest $9,848.00 (60 payments) — A 640 score is Fair on both systems — Near prime at 13.93%, paying $580.80 a month. With a 670 score, Score 670: FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $516.66/month, total interest $5,999.60 (60 payments) — A 670 score is Good on both systems — Prime at 8.81%, paying $516.66 a month, the same as 720. With a 740 score, Score 740: FICO Very Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $516.66/month, total interest $5,999.60 (60 payments) — A 740 score is Very Good on FICO but only Good on VantageScore — still Prime at 8.81%, paying $516.66 a month. With an 800 score, Score 800: FICO Exceptional, VantageScore Excellent, Super prime tier, APR 6.29%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $486.70/month, total interest $4,202.00 (60 payments) — An 800 score is Exceptional on FICO and Excellent on VantageScore — Super prime at 6.29%, paying $486.70 a month. With an 850 score, Score 850: FICO Exceptional, VantageScore Excellent, Super prime tier, APR 6.29%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $486.70/month, total interest $4,202.00 (60 payments) — An 850 score is Exceptional on FICO and Excellent on VantageScore — Super prime at 6.29%, paying $486.70 a month, the same as 800. With a 300 score, Score 300: FICO Poor, VantageScore Very Poor, Deep subprime tier, APR 21.62%; $25,000.00 over 5 years: $685.08/month, total interest $16,104.80 (60 payments) — A 300 score is Poor on FICO and Very Poor on VantageScore — Deep subprime at 21.62%, paying $685.08 a month. With a 299 score, the calculator shows an error — enter a credit score between 300 and 850 — not a band. With an 851 score, the calculator shows an error — enter a credit score between 300 and 850 — not a band. With a $0.00 loan, Score 720: FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $0.00 over 5 years: $0.00/month, total interest $0.00 (60 payments) — no loan, no interest. With a 1-year term, Score 720: FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $25,000.00 over 1 years: $2,184.08/month, total interest $1,208.96 (12 payments) — the payment jumps to $2,184.08. With a $100,000.00 loan, Score 720: FICO Good, VantageScore Good, Prime tier, APR 8.81%; $100,000.00 over 5 years: $2,066.63/month, total interest $23,997.80 (60 payments) — the payment is $2,066.63 and the interest is $23,997.80.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The buyer checking their score before the dealership: they learn a 720 is Good on both systems, Prime at 8.81%, paying $516.66 a month — and they check the 20-point reverse to see that 740 changes the band but not the rate.
• The buyer one tier down: they learn a 640 pays $580.80 a month at 13.93% — and they check the 21-point reverse to see that 661 saves $64.14 a month.
• The buyer sizing the loan: they learn $24,194.02 keeps the payment at exactly $500.00 — and they check the 4-year reverse to see the longest term that keeps total interest under $5,000.00.
• The buyer at the bottom of the scale: they learn a 300 score pays $685.08 a month at 21.62% — $198.38 a month more than an 850 — and they check the 15.40% reverse to see the APR where the payment hits exactly $600.00.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is first-principles: the FICO band is looked up from Table 1, the VantageScore band from Table 2, the tier and average used-car APR from Table 3 (Experian, State of the Automotive Finance Market, Q2 2026, VantageScore 4.0), the monthly payment is loan × r × (1 + r)^n ÷ ((1 + r)^n − 1) with r = APR ÷ 1200 and n = term × 12, and the total interest is the monthly payment times n minus the loan, computed from the ROUNDED monthly payment so the numbers on the page add up. What the model cannot do is quote YOUR rate: the APRs are national AVERAGES for used-car loans, not offers — your actual rate depends on income, down payment, lender and term; lenders price the TIER, not the exact score, so a 619 and a 638 usually get the same rate while a 600 and a 601 may not; your FICO and VantageScore can sit in different bands — a 740 is Very Good on FICO but only Good on VantageScore; the tables assume a used-car loan, and new-car and personal-loan rates differ; and a score below 300 or above 850 is not a real score — the calculator shows an error, not a band. Use it to find your band, your tier, and what that tier costs on your loan — then check a lender’s actual offer before you sign.

Frequently asked questions