A credit score is a three-digit number between 300 and 900 that a credit bureau — TransUnion CIBIL, Experian, Equifax or CRIF High Mark — computes from your loan and card history to predict how likely you are to repay. Lenders read it first: 750 and above is priced at their best rate, below 650 usually means an unsecured application is declined.
All four Indian bureaus score on the same five inputs; the bureaus do not publish exact weights, but lenders' own guides put payment history — whether every EMI and card bill was paid by the due date — at roughly a third. Credit utilisation, the share of your card limits in use on the statement date, carries almost as much. The length of your history, the mix of secured and unsecured credit, and the number of recent applications make up the rest.
Since 1 July 2026 lenders report to the bureaus weekly — fortnightly through 2025, monthly before that — so a payment or a closure shows within days. Under RBI rules every bureau must give you one free full credit report a year, and must alert you by SMS or email when a lender pulls your report or reports a default.
For a proprietorship the lender reads the owner's personal score. A company or LLP with loans in its own name also carries a commercial report and a CIBIL Rank (CMR) from 1 to 10.
Reviewed to the law in force in FY 2026-27. General information, not advice — confirm the position for your facts before acting.
