FICO vs Big three credit scores

[jhubert]

Just wondering why this would be: I just opened a trial myFICO.com account and see my FICO score is 706. I have a recent report from the big three: Equifax 782; Experian 753 and TransUnion 753.
So which ones should I care about and why the differences amongst the big three and the difference between the FICO and the big three.

[poundwise]

Your question shows a bit of misunderstanding.

A FICO score is a score derived from information contained in your credit report. It is proprietary system developed by Fair Isaac, the FICO people.

Equifax and TransUnion each will provide a FICO score. Experian uses its own system to provide a score, which they call a PLUS score. (TransUnion also offers its own score, called a VantageScore. When ordering a TransUnion score, you have to be aware if you are getting a FICO score or a VantageScore.)

There is no such thing a FICO score apart from a credit reporting bureau. Therefore, you do not have one FICO score but two. (Formerly three but, as mentioned, Experian does not offer FICO scores any longer nor allow their data to be used to generate a FICO score.)

So, there is a FICO score based on your Equifax report data, a FICO score based on your TransUnion data, and a PLUS score from Experian.

The FICO scores are available from myFICO.com and the PLUS score is available from Experian's site. These are the three scores, and the only scores, I would concern myself with.

[jhubert]

Okay, that helps me understand better. I was certainly misunderstanding it. Thank you for your explanation.