What credit score do you need to buy a house?

Mortgage lenders weigh your credit score heavily when deciding whether to approve your application and what rate to offer you.

Your credit score is a three-digit number that can range from 300 to 850. It reflects your credit history and overall creditworthiness. The higher the number, the more likely you are to be approved.

There are multiple versions of your credit score, but mortgage lenders typically use FICO^® Score 2, 4 or 5.

Below, we outline credit score requirements for common mortgage types, look some of the best lenders if you have bad credit and show you simple ways you can improve your score.

The score you need to secure a mortgage depends on what kind of loan it is.

Conventional loan

About 70% of all mortgages are conventional loans, which typically require a FICO score of 620 or better. If your score is 760 or higher, you should qualify for the best interest rates.

FHA loans

Insured by the Federal Housing Administration, FHA loans only require a score of 500 if you can put 10% down. If you have a score of 580 or better, however, you can put down just 3.5%.

VA loans

Insured by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, VA loans are available to current and former service members and their spouses. While the VA doesn’t set any credit score requirements, most lenders will want a 620.

USDA loans

A USDA loan is insured by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and is meant for low- to moderate-income borrowers buying a home in a designated rural or suburban area. The USDA doesn’t set a minimum credit score requirement, though most lenders will want borrowers to have at least a 620.

Jumbo loan

A jumbo loan exceeds the limits for mortgages set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which means they can’t be insured by FHA or bought by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Since that puts lenders at increased risk, they require a higher credit score — typically a 700.

Mortgage lenders use your FICO credit score to decide whether to approve your loan and what interest rate to charge you. Generally speaking, the higher your credit score, the lower your rate will be.

A homebuyer with very good or excellent credit (780 to 850) taking out a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for $400,000 will receive a mortgage rate of 5.965% interest rate on average, according to FICO’s Home Purchase Center calculator.

If the same borrower has a credit score between 700 and 759, their rate would go up to 6.187%.

That rate starts to rise precipitously as the score drops below 700, according to FICO: With a 640, you would pay 7% on average. With a 620, it would go up to 7.554%.

While a 620 FICO score is the benchmark for a conventional mortgage, there are options for borrowers who have a lower score or no credit score at all.

For bad credit: Carrington Mortgage Services

Carrington Mortgage Services specializes in working with borrowers with poor or fair credit. The Carrington Flexible Advantage loan is a non-qualified mortgage with a credit score requirement of 550, making it a good option if you’ve made late payments or had a bankruptcy in the past.

In addition, the California-based lender considers alternative credit sources, such as bank statements and paid bills.

For no credit score: Guild Mortgage

Guild Mortgage will consider applicants who don’t have a FICO credit score by looking at non-traditional credit sources, such as on-time rent, medical or utility bill payments. In addition to conventional mortgages, Guild offers government-backed USDA, FHA and VA loans.

For VA loans: Rocket Mortgage

While most lenders look for a 620 FICO score for a VA loan, Rocket Mortgage accepts applicants with a 580. This online lender is the nation’s largest issuer of home loans and routinely tops JD Power’s mortgage surveys.

Flagstar will approve USDA loans for applicants with scores as low as 580, compared to the 620 most lenders want to see. With the Flagstar Gift Program, eligible first-time homebuyers can receive 3% of their home’s purchase price to put toward their down payment or closing costs.

Your credit score reflects your history of paying off debt. Here are some ways to improve it.

• Make on-time payments on credit cards, loans and other debts.
• Pay the full balance due on your credit card each month
• Keep your credit utilization rate under 30%
• Increase the credit limit on existing credit cards
• Don’t open new lines of credit

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every mortgage article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of mortgage products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.

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