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574 Credit score: What You Need to Know in 2025
July 1, 2025
TL;DR
A 574 credit score is a foundational step on your credit-building journey, offering a clear opportunity for growth. This score is considered in the "Poor" range by FICO, which highlights a direct path toward improving your financial standing and unlocking better rates.
What Does a 574 Credit Score Mean?
A credit score of 574 is considered "poor" on the FICO Score scale, which ranges from 300 to 850. Lenders often see scores in this bracket as a sign of high risk, making it difficult to qualify for new credit cards or loans. If you are approved, you'll likely face higher interest rates and less favorable terms, which can significantly increase the cost of borrowing and limit your financial options.
While a 574 score presents immediate challenges, it's not a permanent financial sentence. Think of it as a baseline from which you can grow. By understanding the factors that contribute to your score, you can begin to build a stronger credit history, paving the way for better financial opportunities and greater flexibility in the future.
Who Has a 574 Credit Score?
While a 574 credit score is considered poor, it's helpful to see how scores vary across different age groups. Generally, credit scores improve as people get older and have more time to build a positive financial history. According to 2023 Experian data, here is the breakdown of the average credit score by generation:
- Generation Z (ages 18-26): 680
- Millennials (ages 27-42): 690
- Generation X (ages 43-58): 709
- Baby Boomers (ages 59-77): 745
- The Silent Generation (ages 78+): 760
Credit Cards With a 574 Credit Score
A credit score of 574 falls into the "poor" credit range, which can significantly impact your ability to qualify for a credit card. Most lenders view this score as a high risk, meaning you'll likely face rejections for standard, unsecured credit cards that offer premium rewards and low interest rates. Your options will primarily be limited to secured credit cards, which require a cash deposit, or unsecured cards designed for building credit, which often come with higher fees and interest rates.
Kudos offers AI-powered tools like the Explore Tool and Dream Wallet to help you find the right credit card for your specific financial needs. These tools provide personalized recommendations by either asking about your preferences or analyzing your spending habits to match you with the best options from a database of nearly 3,000 cards.
Auto Loans and a 574 Credit Score
A 574 credit score places you in the subprime borrower category, which can make securing an auto loan more challenging. Lenders will likely offer you significantly higher interest rates to compensate for the perceived risk, with an analysis of 2025 data showing just how much rates can vary by credit score.
- Super-prime (781-850): 5.25% for new cars and 7.13% for used cars
- Prime (661-780): 6.87% for new cars and 9.36% for used cars
- Non-prime (601-660): 9.83% for new cars and 13.92% for used cars
- Subprime (501-600): 13.18% for new cars and 18.86% for used cars
- Deep subprime (300-500): 15.77% for new cars and 21.55% for used cars
Mortgages at a 574 Credit Score
A 574 credit score is below the minimum for conventional loans, but you may qualify for an FHA loan. Per mortgage guidelines, FHA applicants with scores under 580 are eligible if they can provide a 10% down payment. Other government-backed loans, like VA or USDA, are generally out of reach, as most lenders require a score of at least 580 to consider an application.
This score also leads to less favorable terms. Expect higher interest rates and more expensive mortgage insurance fees. Lenders will conduct a stricter review of your finances, known as manual underwriting, where they scrutinize your income and debt. They may also cap the total amount you can borrow, making affordability a key challenge.
What's in a Credit Score?
Figuring out what goes into your credit score can feel like trying to solve a complex puzzle, but it's primarily based on a handful of key financial habits. The most common factors include:
- Your payment history tracks whether you have paid past credit accounts on time.
- Credit utilization is the percentage of your available credit that you are currently using.
- The length of your credit history considers the age of your oldest account and the average age of all your accounts.
- Having a healthy mix of credit types, such as credit cards and installment loans, can positively impact your score.
- Recent credit inquiries and newly opened accounts can temporarily lower your score.
How to Improve Your 574 Credit Score
No matter your starting point, it is always possible to improve your credit score through consistent, positive financial behaviors. Taking the right steps can lead to meaningful changes in just a few months.
- Monitor your credit reports. Regularly checking your reports allows you to spot and dispute inaccuracies that could be dragging down your score. For someone with a 574 score, correcting even a single error can provide a significant boost.
- Become an authorized user. You can be added to the credit card of a trusted person with a strong payment history, allowing their good habits to reflect on your credit file. This is an effective way to build credit when you might not qualify for a card on your own.
- Apply for a secured credit card. These cards require a cash deposit that acts as your credit limit, making them much easier to obtain with a poor credit score. Your on-time payments are reported to the credit bureaus, helping you establish a positive history.
- Reduce your credit utilization ratio. This ratio measures how much of your available credit you use, and it heavily influences your score. Paying down balances to get your utilization below 30% is one of the fastest ways to see improvement.
As you work to build your credit, a tool like Kudos can help you find the right cards and use them more effectively.
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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are those of Kudos alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
