How To Create a Personalized Credit Score Improvement Plan

It’s no fun to find yourself with a credit score that needs improvement. The bad news is that there’s no quick-fix — restoring your credit can be painful — and putting it off just costs you more in interest charges and late fees.

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The good news is that you can follow these steps to fix your credit once and create a personalized credit score improvement plan.

1. Request a Full Credit Report

There are numerous sources you can turn to for a credit report, including GOFreeCredit.com, CreditKarma or countless others. Review your report thoroughly to be sure it’s accurate, then request corrections for any errors you find.

2. Assess Your Situation

Be sure to note the key factors that impact your score and plan for improvement. These include:

• Your credit score

• Total you owe

• The interest rates

• Payment history

• Credit utilization ratio

3. Make a Plan

First and foremost, resolve to make all payments on time. Decide whether you’ll pay off the smaller amounts first or tackle the highest rate debt first. Some people do better when they see balances quickly “drop off” the list of what’s owed. Others do better when they know they’re paying less overall by paying down the highest rate cards first.

From there, put your cards away (but don’t cancel them — you may need to use any credit you have left in an emergency). Having credit is an important part of your credit utilization ratio, as long as you don’t run the cards to the max and leave them there.

4. Put the Plan into Action

Create autopays for timely payment, and be sure to pay the minimum on all cards. Put as much extra as you can manage on the card you’re paying first, then make a budget and go cash only until you’re out of the weeds.

If necessary, you can ever take on a side gig to earn extra money in order to make larger payments.

5. Track Your Progress

Making a chart or spreadsheet to track improvement to your balances due is key to keeping yourself on track. Be sure to pay special attention to your credit utilization ratio and credit score. You can even celebrate each time your credit score reaches a new tier in order to keep yourself motived.

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At first, it may seem you’re doing a lot of work and not seeing any change in your situation. When you see an improvement in your credit score in a few months, it will be easier to keep going.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How To Create a Personalized Credit Score Improvement Plan