Average Credit Score in Canada: What It Is, How You Compare, and What to Do Next

The average credit score in Canada was 760 as of November 2024, according to FICO — down two points from 762 in 2023. That puts the typical Canadian borrower in the "very good" range on a scale of 300 to 900. If your score is near 760, you're in reasonable shape. If it's lower, that's worth understanding — not panicking about.

What Is the Average Credit Score in Canada Right Now?

760. That's the figure FICO reported in November 2024, based on data from Canada's two major credit bureaus — Equifax and TransUnion.

According to Wikipedia's overview of credit scores, a credit score is a numerical expression derived from a person's credit file, used by lenders to evaluate the risk of lending — and in Canada, that scale runs from 300 to 900.

You may have also seen a different number: 672, which is what Borrowell reported in a 2022 survey of two million of its members. Both figures are real. They just measure different things, using different models and different populations. More on that below.

For now, the short answer: if a lender pulls your credit file in Canada, they are most likely looking at a FICO Score — and the national average on that model is 760.

Source	Year	Average Score	Notes
FICO	November 2024	760	Based on bureau data; used by most lenders
FICO	2023	762	Two-point decline year over year
FICO	2020	753	Pre-pandemic baseline
Borrowell	2022	672	Based on opt-in member data; consumer-facing model

Understanding Canada's Credit Score Range (300–900)

Canada's credit score scale runs from 300 to 900. Higher is better. But what does each band actually mean when you walk into a bank or apply for a mortgage?

Credit Score Ranges — Equifax vs. TransUnion

The two major bureaus don't use identical ranges, which is part of why the same person can see different scores on different platforms.

Equifax Range	TransUnion Range	Rating	What It Means in Practice
300–559	300–692	Poor	Approval is difficult; expect high rates if approved
560–659	693–742	Fair	Some products available, but likely at higher rates
660–724	743–789	Good	Considered a reliable borrower by most lenders
725–759	790–832	Very Good	Strong approval odds and more competitive rates
760–900	833+	Excellent	Best rates and terms; widest product access

Where Does 760 Actually Sit?

Right at the bottom of the "excellent" band on the Equifax model — and solidly in the "very good" range on TransUnion. In practice, a score of 760 means most lenders will view you as low-risk. You won't necessarily get the absolute lowest rate on every product, but you won't be turned away either.

Worth noting: a score above 660 is generally considered acceptable by most Canadian lenders. You don't need to hit 900 — that's rare, and chasing a perfect score isn't a useful financial goal.

Credit Score vs. Credit Report — What's the Difference?

These two things are often confused, and the confusion is understandable.

Your credit report is the full file — a detailed record of your accounts, payment history, balances, and any negative marks like missed payments or collections. Your credit score is a three-digit number calculated from that report.

Think of the report as the raw data and the score as the summary. You can access your credit report for free at least once a year from both Equifax and TransUnion under Canadian law. The score, depending on the bureau and the platform, may or may not come with it for free.

Checking one without the other gives you an incomplete picture. A score of 720 means very little if your report contains an error that hasn't yet dragged it lower.

Why Do Different Platforms Show Different Credit Scores?

This is one of the most common points of confusion — and a fair one.

FICO Score vs. Bureau Scores Explained

There is no single universal credit score in Canada. Equifax and TransUnion each maintain their own scoring models. On top of that, FICO — a separate company — produces its own scores using data from those bureaus.

FICO Score 10 is the model most widely used by Canadian lenders today. Around 90% of top Canadian lenders and credit unions use FICO Scores when making lending decisions. The score you see on your bank's app or through Borrowell is typically a bureau-generated consumer score — not the FICO Score 10 your lender will actually pull.

This is not a flaw in the system. It's just the reality of how credit scoring works: multiple models, multiple purposes.

FICO 760 vs. Borrowell 672 — Why the Gap Exists

The 88-point gap between these two averages is not a contradiction. It comes down to three things:

• Different populations: FICO's data draws from a broad base of Canadians with active credit files. Borrowell's survey covered its own opt-in members — a group that may skew toward people actively seeking to monitor or improve their credit.
• Different scoring models: Each model weighs the same underlying factors slightly differently.
• Different data vintage: The figures are from different years.

When you apply for a mortgage or car loan, the score that matters is almost certainly a FICO Score. That's the one worth tracking.

How Has the Average Credit Score in Canada Changed Over Time?

Year-by-Year FICO Score Trend (2020–2024)

Year	Average FICO Score	Context
2020	753	Pre-pandemic and early pandemic baseline
2021	761	Pandemic-era stimulus boosted scores broadly
2022	762	Scores stabilised at pandemic high
2023	762	Held steady despite rising interest rates
2024	760	Two-point decline; financial pressures building

The pandemic-era jump from 753 to 761 is worth understanding. Government stimulus payments, reduced discretionary spending, and lender payment deferrals all combined to push scores up. That wasn't a structural improvement in credit health — it was a temporary buffer.

What Is Behind the Recent Decline?

The two-point drop to 760 in 2024 is modest in isolation. The underlying trends are more telling.

• Canadians who were 90+ days past due on credit obligations increased by 9.6% year over year
• Credit card balances rose 4.9% compared to 2023 — and are 14.4% above the pandemic low point
• Auto loan delinquencies increased 12.5% year over year; real estate loan delinquencies rose 14.2%
• Personal insolvencies hit a four-year high in Q2 2024, up 12.4% from the same quarter in 2023
• Around 290,000 mortgages renewed at significantly higher rates in the first half of 2023 alone — with an estimated 2.2 million more expected to reset through 2024 and 2025

The average score hasn't collapsed, but the stress beneath it is real and measurable.

Average Credit Score in Canada by Age Group

Why Age and Credit Score Are Connected

Credit scores reflect history. The longer you've been borrowing and repaying responsibly, the more data there is to assess. That's why older Canadians tend to score higher — not because they're better with money by default, but because they've had more time to build a track record.

Score Averages by Age Group

Source: Equifax Canada, 2018. Most recent publicly available age-segmented data. Directional patterns are broadly consistent with current trends.

Age Group	Average Credit Score
18–25	692
26–35	697
36–45	710
46–65	718
65+	750

A 24-year-old with a score of 690 is not doing poorly — they're doing about as well as expected given limited credit history. The more relevant question at that age is whether the habits being built now will compound into a stronger score over the next decade.

Average Credit Score in Canada by Province and City

Source: Borrowell, 2022 member survey data.

Province	Average Score	Major City	City Average Score
British Columbia	694	Vancouver	705
Ontario	686	Toronto	696
Quebec	678	Montreal	687
Alberta	658	Calgary	667
Nova Scotia	664	—	—
Manitoba	661	—	—
Saskatchewan	658	—	—
New Brunswick	649	—	—

Why Do Scores Differ by Region?

No single factor explains regional differences cleanly. Cost of living, local employment conditions, average household debt levels, and housing costs all likely play a role. Alberta and Saskatchewan, for instance, have economies more exposed to commodity cycles — which can affect household financial stability when those cycles turn.

It's worth being cautious about reading too much into provincial comparisons. They're useful context, not a measure of financial character.

What Your Credit Score Means for Your Financial Life

Mortgages — What Score Do You Actually Need?

For an insured mortgage (where your down payment is less than 20%), most lenders in Canada require a minimum credit score of 600 to 640, depending on the lender and insurer. For a conventional mortgage, the threshold is typically around 680, though many lenders prefer higher.

In practice, the score doesn't just determine approval — it determines the rate. A borrower at 760 will generally be offered a meaningfully better rate than one at 660, even if both are technically approved.

Credit Cards, Personal Loans, and Lines of Credit

Most standard credit cards are accessible with scores above 650. Premium reward cards typically require 700 or above. Personal loans and lines of credit follow similar patterns — approval is possible at lower scores, but the cost of borrowing increases as the score drops.

Rentals, Utilities, and Phone Plans

Credit scores aren't just for borrowing. Landlords regularly check credit as part of rental applications. Some utility providers and mobile carriers also use credit data to determine whether a deposit is required. A score above 660 generally avoids these friction points.

Building Credit as a Newcomer to Canada

Credit history doesn't travel across borders. Someone who arrives in Canada with a strong credit history in their home country starts with effectively no Canadian credit file — which creates real friction when applying for rentals, phone plans, or credit cards.

The most practical starting points are:

• A secured credit card (where you deposit collateral as the credit limit)
• A credit-builder loan offered by some credit unions
• Some banks offer newcomer credit programs that allow cards without a Canadian credit history
• Ensuring that any rent payments are reported to a bureau where possible (some platforms facilitate this)

Building from zero is slower, but it's entirely achievable within 12 to 24 months with consistent on-time payments.

What Factors Determine Your Credit Score in Canada

As noted by Wikipedia's credit history reference, the FICO scoring system is the standard in Canada and other global markets, with five categories carrying fixed percentage weights.

Factor	Weight	What It Measures	Common Mistake
Payment history	35%	Whether you pay on time	Missing even one payment can cause a noticeable drop
Amounts owed	30%	Credit utilisation ratio	Carrying balances above 30% of your limit signals risk
Length of credit history	15%	How long accounts have been open	Closing your oldest card shortens your history
New credit	10%	Recent credit applications	Applying for multiple products in a short window triggers multiple hard checks
Credit mix	10%	Variety of credit types	Having only one type of credit limits this factor

Payment history and utilisation together account for 65% of your score. Everything else is secondary.

Common Credit Score Myths in Canada

Myth	Reality
Checking your own score lowers it	No — self-checks are soft inquiries with no impact
Carrying a small balance helps your score	No — paying in full is equal to or better than carrying a balance
Closing old cards improves your score	Usually the opposite — it shortens credit history and reduces available credit
A high income means a high credit score	Income is not a factor in credit scoring at all
The score on your bank app is what lenders see	Likely not — most lenders use FICO Score 10, which isn't the consumer-facing score

How Long Negative Marks Stay on Your Credit Report in Canada

Event	Equifax (Typical)	TransUnion (Typical)
Late or missed payment	6 years	6 years
Collection account	6 years from last activity	6 years from last activity
Consumer proposal	3 years after completion	3 years after completion
Bankruptcy (first)	6 years after discharge	6 years after discharge
Bankruptcy (second+)	14 years after discharge	14 years after discharge
Hard inquiry	3 years	6 years

These timelines aren't permanent sentences. A missed payment from five years ago carries far less weight than one from last month — even if both technically appear on the report.

How to Check Your Credit Score in Canada for Free

Free options:

• Equifax Canada — free access when you create an online account
• TransUnion Canada — free for Quebec residents; paid elsewhere
• Bank apps — several major banks include credit scores in their mobile banking tools
• Borrowell and ClearScore — free access to Equifax-based scores after sign-up

Paid monitoring: Both bureaus offer subscription services that include more frequent updates, alerts for changes to your report, and identity theft monitoring. These are worth considering if you're actively rebuilding credit or have experienced fraud.

How often should you check? At minimum, once a year — which is your legal right under Canadian law. More frequently if you're preparing to apply for a mortgage, recovering from identity theft, or working to raise a low score.

How to Improve Your Credit Score in Canada

Action	Why It Matters	Practical Tip
Pay on time, every time	Payment history is 35% of your score	Set up pre-authorized minimum payments so you never accidentally miss one
Keep utilisation below 30%	High balances signal financial strain	If your limit is $5,000, try not to carry more than $1,500
Avoid multiple applications at once	Each hard check temporarily dips your score	Space out credit applications by at least 3–6 months
Keep older accounts open	Longer history supports a stronger score	Don't close your oldest card even if you rarely use it
Check your report for errors	Errors are more common than people expect	Dispute inaccuracies directly with the bureau

In practice, borrowers who focus purely on payment history and utilisation see the most improvement. The other three factors matter, but they're slower to move.

Conclusion

The average credit score in Canada sits at 760 — a solid benchmark, but not a ceiling. Whether you're above or below it, what matters most is the direction of travel: consistent payments, controlled utilisation, and regular checks on your report. Small habits, held over time, move the number.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is considered a good credit score in Canada?

A score of 660 or above is generally considered good by most Canadian lenders. Scores above 760 are considered excellent and typically unlock the best rates and product terms.

Why is my credit score different on different platforms?

Different platforms use different scoring models. Most lenders use FICO Score 10, while consumer apps like Borrowell show bureau-generated scores. Neither is wrong — they just serve different purposes.

What credit score do I need for a mortgage in Canada?

For an insured mortgage, most lenders require a minimum of 600–640. For a conventional mortgage (20%+ down payment), lenders typically prefer 680 or higher.

Does checking my own credit score lower it?

No. Checking your own score is a soft inquiry and has no effect on your credit score. Only hard inquiries — from lenders when you apply for credit — can temporarily lower it.

How long does it take to improve a credit score in Canada?

It depends on what's lowering it. Consistent on-time payments and reduced utilisation can show improvement within 3–6 months. Recovering from bankruptcy or collections takes considerably longer.