Title: Which Bills Affect Your Credit Score? | The Simple Dollar
Headings: Which Bills Affect Your Credit Score?
Which Bills Affect Your Credit Score?
Bills That Generally Don’t Impact Your Credit Scores
Bills That Can Impact Your Credit Scores
Beware the Exception to the Rule
John Ulzheimer

Content: November 13, 2019
Making an effort to keep your bills paid on time is always a good idea, and for a variety of reasons. Whenever you make your payments late or become past due on a financial obligation, it can trigger some pretty unpleasant consequences. Sometimes that might include damage to your credit reports and scores, but not always. If disaster strikes and you find yourself in a situation where you have more bills than money to pay them, you may be facing some tough choices about which financial obligations to take care of first and which ones to let slide while you try to dig yourself out of the hole. If you’re worried about the impact of a missed payment on your credit, you should know that not every account is necessarily going to have an immediate impact on your credit scores. In order for an account to impact your credit scores, it first has to show up on your credit reports. If an account isn’t reported to the credit bureaus, then it can’t impact your scores in any way. The reason is simple: Credit scoring models are designed only to consider the information that’s present on your credit reports. Bills That Generally Don’t Impact Your Credit Scores
Utilities (e.g., gas, water, or electric service)
Cable, satellite, or internet service
Insurance premiums (e.g., auto, homeowners, health, and life insurance)
Childcare
Medical bills
Rent
Mobile phone service
Gym membership dues
The accounts listed above are generally not reported to the three credit reporting agencies (Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian).