Your Key to Cracking Credit Report Codes

By Katelyn Hayes   

credit report codes

Understanding a credit report isn't always so easy. To the untrained eye, all of those credit report codes and abbreviations can look like another language. Making sense of all the numbers and letters is the key to cracking the report code and getting the most information out of your credit reports.

The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) provides some standard credit report codes that each of the big three credit reporting bureaus — TransUnion, Experian and Equifax — use. However, in other areas (like payment reporting), credit report codes can slightly differ from bureau to bureau. It can get confusing when you're comparing your three credit reports side-by-side.

It's important to see what lenders see when they review your credit report, but it's more important to understand what you're looking at, especially since false information can harm your credit score. Understanding your credit report inside and out can help you spot inaccuracies and fraud.

Use the guides below to decipher what your credit report is really telling you.

Type of Account

O Open Account
R Revolving Account
I Installment
M Mortgage
C Credit line

     

ECOA codes

A Authorized user
C Jointly liable with a Maker (see M)
I Individual account
M Maker responsible for account. Co-maker is responsible if Maker defaults.
P Participant in a shared account
S Shared account
T Terminated
U Undesignated: Not enough information to classify an account
X Deceased


Other codes

  TransUnion1 Equifax2 Experian3
A Automated Inactive  
B Lost/stolen cards   Account condition change
C Closed Contact member for status  
D Declined Refinanced  
E   Dead  
F Repossessed/ Charged Off/ Collection Financial counseling  
G     Collection
H   Wage garnishment from someone other than the account holder Foreclosure
I Indirect    
J   Adjustment pending Voluntary surrender
K     Repossession
L     Charge-off
M Manually frozen Chapter 13 filing  

                              

Payment History

  TransUnion Equifax Experian
0 Too new to rate Too new to rate   
1 As agreed As agreed 30 days late
2 30-59 days late 2 payments late 60 days late
3 60-89 days late 3 payments late 90 days late
4 90-119 days late 4 payments late 120 days late
5 120+ days late 120+ days late 150 days late
6     180 days late
7 Wage garnishments Wage garnishments Chapter 13 bankruptcy
8 Repossession Repossession  
9 Charged off Charged off  

 

Footnotes

1 "The TransUnion Credit Report Training Guide"

2 "Equifax Credit Report Format" 

3 "Experian Credit Report Codes and Tutorial"