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Four scores, one you. Here is why they differ.
Different files, different formulas, different update cycles. Which score banks actually pull, what the CRIF number is, and why one lender-side correction fixes all four files at once.
Written by Harish Krishnamurthy, Co-founderReviewed & updated August 20263 min readReviewed by Aradhana Prasad, Sr. Credit AnalystKey takeaways
- India has four licensed bureaus — CIBIL, Experian, Equifax, CRIF High Mark — all scoring 300 to 900, each on its own file and formula.
- Banks choose which bureau to pull, not you — an error at any of the four can cost an approval.
- A spread of some tens of points across bureaus is normal; around a hundred points usually means one file carries an error the others do not.
- One correction made by the reporting lender flows to all four bureaus in the next reporting cycle — fix at the source, verify everywhere.
Why they differ
Four bureaus, four files, four formulas.
India has four licensed credit bureaus, TransUnion CIBIL, Experian, Equifax and CRIF High Mark, and your score differs across them for three mundane reasons. Coverage: not every lender reports to every bureau with equal speed and completeness, so the underlying files differ. Models: each bureau computes its score with its own formula on its own scale. Timing: lenders report fortnightly, and each bureau ingests on its own cycle, so the same correction can show at one bureau weeks before another. A 40-point spread between bureaus is unremarkable; a 100-point spread usually means one file carries an error the others do not, which is worth investigating, not ignoring.
The four, side by side
One borrower, four files.
| Bureau | Score range | Commonly pulled for | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| TransUnion CIBIL | 300–900 | Consumer loans and cards, most banks | So dominant its name became the generic word for score; also runs the commercial CMR |
| Experian | 300–900 | Consumer lending, fintech apps | Frequent source of free-score apps, often the first place people see a second number |
| Equifax | 300–900 | Banks and NBFCs | Strong NBFC and microfinance reporting relationships |
| CRIF High Mark | 300–900 | Microfinance, commercial, plus consumer | The "fourth file" most people never check, and where our published CRIF correction case lived |
All four score on a 300-to-900 scale, which makes them look comparable while the files underneath differ, the trap in comparing raw numbers across bureaus.
The question behind the question
Which score do banks actually use?
Whichever they choose, and it varies by lender and product. CIBIL is the most commonly pulled for consumer lending in India, which is why its name became the generic word for credit score, but plenty of banks and NBFCs pull Experian, Equifax or CRIF High Mark, and some pull more than one. CRIF High Mark is especially prominent in microfinance and commercial data. The practical conclusion: you cannot pick your bureau, the lender does, so a report error at any bureau can sink an application. That is why corrections must land at all four, and why the lender-first method matters: a correction made by the reporting lender flows to every bureau in the next cycle, one fix, four files.
Reading a spread
When the gap is the diagnosis.
Suppose your four reads come back 742, 731, 725, and 655. The first three disagree the way bureaus normally disagree, coverage and timing. The 655 is not a variation, it is a symptom: something sits on that file that the others do not carry, a wrongly surviving account, an unmerged duplicate, a delinquency reported to one bureau only. The move is to pull that bureau's full report, find the divergent entry, and dispute it there, via the lender if the lender is the source. The outlier bureau is not the "wrong score"; it is the map to the error.
CRIF, specifically
The score everyone suddenly has.
CRIF High Mark's free-score push has millions of Indians discovering a "CRIF score" that differs from their CIBIL number and wondering which is real. Both are, they are different bureaus' reads of overlapping data. CRIF errors are as correctable as any other bureau's, through the same lender-first route: we published a CRIF case where a written-off entry (bank booked it as a loss) was removed after investigation. Treat CRIF as the fourth file it is: check it when applying, dispute it when wrong, and expect corrections to reach it on its own ingestion cycle.
Sources & regulation
Where these claims come from.
| Claim in this guide | Source |
|---|---|
| Lenders report to all bureaus fortnightly; each individual is entitled to one free full credit report per bureau per year | RBI Master Direction — Credit Information Reporting, 2025 |
| Licensing and regulation of India's credit information companies | Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 |
Quick answers
Answered first.
Why is my Experian score different from my CIBIL score?
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Which credit score do banks use in India?
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What is a CRIF score?
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Which credit score is the most accurate?
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Do I need to check all four credit bureaus?
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One bureau showing something the others do not?
That gap is usually an error. One free analysis reads all four files and tells you what is wrong where.
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