What a 600 credit score means
A 600 is Fair on FICO's scale (580 to 669), 70 points below Good at 670. It clears FHA's 580 line for 3.5% down, but it sits 20 points below the 620 many lenders still require for conventional loans. On a $300,000 conventional purchase loan at 80% loan-to-value, Fannie Mae's fee for this score band is 2.75%, or $8,250; at 640 to 659 it would be $6,750.
Where 600 sits in the Fair band
Compared with everyone else
FICO's fall 2026 report found 10.5% of scorable consumers below 550 and 48.1% at 750 or higher on FICO Score 8. A 600 sits between those groups, 150 points short of 750. A 600 is 114 points below 714 (the average) and 144 points below 744 (the median). FICO, fall 2026.
The same number on other scales
FICO 8, 9, 10 and 10T and VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0 all run 300 to 850, so 600 means the same position on each scale, though not the same band label: VantageScore tiers vary by publisher. FICO's auto and bankcard scores run 250 to 900. Your scores from different models and bureaus are usually different numbers. Every scale, explained.
Lender milestones from 500 to 800
A 600 clears 2 of the 13 cutoffs on our list. The next one is 620, 20 points away: common lender minimum.
| Score | What changes there | From 600 |
|---|---|---|
| 500 | FHA floorFHA can insure loans for scores from 500 to 579 with at least 10% down. | Cleared |
| 580 | FHA with 3.5% downAt 580 FHA allows the 3.5% minimum down payment, and FICO calls the band "Fair". | Cleared |
| 620 | Common lender minimumMany lenders still require 620 for conventional loans, even after Fannie Mae dropped its own floor in automated underwriting. | 20 points to go |
| 640 | Next pricing bandFannie Mae's pricing grid steps every 20 points from 640 up to 780. | 40 points to go |
| 660 | Next pricing bandAnother 20-point step on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 60 points to go |
| 670 | FICO "Good"FICO labels 670 to 739 as Good. | 70 points to go |
| 680 | Next pricing bandAnother 20-point step on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 80 points to go |
| 700 | Next pricing bandAnother 20-point step on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 100 points to go |
| 720 | Next pricing bandAnother 20-point step on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 120 points to go |
| 740 | FICO "Very good"FICO labels 740 to 799 as Very Good, and it is another pricing step. | 140 points to go |
| 760 | Next pricing bandAnother 20-point step on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 160 points to go |
| 780 | Best mortgage pricing band780 is the top band on Fannie Mae's loan-level pricing grid. | 180 points to go |
| 800 | FICO "Exceptional"FICO labels 800 and up as Exceptional. Past this point, extra points rarely change a price. | 200 points to go |
Mortgages at 600
FHA
FHA rules allow 3.5% down
FHA's rules let a minimum decision credit score of 580 or higher qualify for maximum financing, which is 3.5% down on a purchase. At 600 you're 20 points above that line. On a $300,000 home, 3.5% is $10,500.
HUD's rules, per Mortgagee Letter 2026-11, which keeps the 580 and 500 lines for every score model FHA accepts. Lenders often set higher minimums, called overlays. FHA score rules in full.
Conventional
No minimum in DU, but many lenders want 620
Fannie Mae's Desktop Underwriter no longer applies a minimum score for casefiles created on or after November 16, 2025, so a 600 is not an automatic no from Fannie Mae's system. Many lenders still require 620 anyway, and a manually underwritten Fannie Mae loan needs 620 for a fixed rate and 640 for an ARM on Classic FICO. You're 20 points from 620.
Sources: Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-5.1-01 and the DU 12.0 release notes. Conventional score rules in full.
What Fannie Mae charges at this score
Purchase loan, 75.01% to 80% loan-to-value, $300,000 loan
$8,250
2.75% of the loan, band 639 or lower
At 640 to 659, the next band up, the fee is 2.25%, or $6,750. That's $1,500 less on the same loan, and 40 points away. The top band, 780 or higher, pays $1,125. This applies only if a lender approves a conventional loan at this score.
| Score band | Fee | On $300,000 |
|---|---|---|
| 780 or higher | 0.375% | $1,125 |
| 760 to 779 | 0.625% | $1,875 |
| 740 to 759 | 0.875% | $2,625 |
| 720 to 739 | 1.25% | $3,750 |
| 700 to 719 | 1.375% | $4,125 |
| 680 to 699 | 1.75% | $5,250 |
| 660 to 679 | 1.875% | $5,625 |
| 640 to 659 | 2.25% | $6,750 |
| 639 or lower600 is here | 2.75% | $8,250 |
This is a one-time loan-level price adjustment (LLPA) from Fannie Mae's matrix dated 09.30.2026, which uses one grid for Classic FICO and VantageScore 4.0 (FHFA). Lenders usually build it into your rate rather than billing it, other adjustments can apply, and rates change daily. How the fee becomes your rate.
Car loans at 600
Experian sorts auto borrowers into tiers by VantageScore 4.0. If your VantageScore 4.0 is 600, you'd be in its subprime tier (501 to 600), 1 point below near prime at 601. Many auto lenders pull a FICO Auto Score (250 to 900) instead, so your tier at a given dealer can differ.
| $30,000 over 60 months | Subprime (501 to 600)this score | Near prime (601 to 660)next tier up |
|---|---|---|
| New car | ||
| Average APR | 13.52% | 9.71% |
| Monthly payment | $690.60 | $633.14 |
| Total interest | $11,436.00 | $7,988.40 |
| Used car | ||
| Average APR | 19.1% | 13.93% |
| Monthly payment | $779.87 | $696.96 |
| Total interest | $16,792.20 | $11,817.60 |
At these averages, moving from subprime to near prime would cut total interest by $3,447.60 on the new-car loan and $4,974.60 on the used one.
Averages from Experian's State of the Automotive Finance Market for Q2 2026, as published by Experian on Sep 10, 2026. They are averages across many loans, not offers. Payments use standard amortization with a fixed rate, no fees and no down payment. Credit scores and car loans.
What usually holds a score at 600
A Fair score can come from one recent late payment, a collection, high card balances, or a file that's still young. FICO doesn't publish what any single item costs, so treat these as places to look, in roughly the order FICO weighs them: payment history 35%, amounts owed 30%, length of history 15%, new credit 10%, mix 10%.
A late payment in the last couple of years
A late payment weighs most while it's recent. In FICO's own published example (a FICO Score 9 simulation), one 30-day late took a profile at 607 to somewhere between 570 and 590. If it was a one-time slip on an account you otherwise paid well, a goodwill letter is a polite request the lender can refuse. See recovering from a late payment.
Card balances that report high
FICO says people with utilization below 10% tend to score better, and its data doesn't show a cliff at 30%. Both overall and per-card utilization count. Start with how utilization works.
A collection, paid or unpaid
Older score versions, including the ones mortgage lenders pull, still count paid collections. Read how collections affect each score version before you decide whether to pay, settle or validate. The bureaus no longer report medical collections under $500.
Report errors
Mixed-up accounts, wrong balances and duplicate collections are worth ruling out at any score. Dispute what is inaccurate with the bureau, and use the free letter builder if you want a clean letter.
A young or thin file
If most of your accounts are new, time is doing the work. One well-chosen account is usually a better move than several, because each application adds a hard inquiry and each new account lowers your average age.
Nobody outside FICO and VantageScore can tell you how many points any one change is worth, because it depends on everything else in your file. These are the places to look, not a forecast. FICO's late-payment example comes from myFICO.
Common questions about a 600
Is 600 a good credit score?
FICO labels 580 to 669 as Fair, so 600 is Fair, 70 points below Good. It is 114 points below 714, the average U.S. FICO Score in FICO's fall 2026 report.
Can you get a mortgage with a 600 credit score?
FHA allows 3.5% down at 580 or higher, so 600 meets FHA's own score rule, though lenders can set higher minimums. Fannie Mae's automated underwriting has no minimum score, but many lenders still want 620 for conventional loans. Fannie Mae's fee at this score is 2.75% of the loan at 80% loan-to-value, $8,250 on $300,000.
What car loan rate goes with a 600 credit score?
Experian's Q2 2026 data puts a VantageScore 4.0 of 600 in its subprime tier (501 to 600), where the average APR was 13.52% for new cars and 19.1% for used. At the new-car average, a $30,000 loan over 60 months works out to about $690.60 a month. Those are averages, not offers, and your lender may use a different score.
Sources
- What is a credit score? (FICO score ranges), myFICO
- What's in my FICO Scores?, myFICO
- FICO Score Credit Insights, fall 2026 edition, FICO
- Mortgagee Letter 2026-11 (issued Oct 8, 2026), HUD
- Selling Guide B3-5.1-01, General requirements for credit scores, Fannie Mae
- Desktop Underwriter Version 12.0, November 2025 release notes, Fannie Mae
- Loan-Level Price Adjustment Matrix (09.30.2026), Fannie Mae
- Credit scores, FHFA
- Average car loan interest rates by credit score (Sep 10, 2026), Experian
- How do credit actions affect FICO Scores?, myFICO
Every figure on this page is computed from the published rules and averages above, checked October 11, 2026. This is education, not lending advice: lenders add their own requirements, and your offer depends on your full application.