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Thursday, October 22, 2026 Independent since 2026. We are not a lender.
Hub for Credit

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01 The premise

We don't lend money. We explain the system that decides your credit.

No sponsored rankings. Every rate below comes from the Federal Reserve, and every article says where its numbers came from.

  • 73 articles
  • 5 sections
  • Sources: Federal Reserve · CFPB · FTC
Credit Cards

A secured vs unsecured card for bad credit comes with very different costs

One route locks your money in a bank account while the other charges non-refundable fees that federal rules stop capping after twelve months.

By Hub for Credit Team · October 22, 2026 · 5 min read

A heavy steel padlock clamping shut a minimalist dark-leather pouch, cast in sharp, geometric shadows on a raw concrete ledge under a single beam of dramatic sunlight.
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What actually moves your score

FICO's own published weights
  1. 35% Payment history Whether you paid past accounts on time. One 30-day late mark outweighs years of perfect months.
  2. 30% Amounts owed How much of your available credit you are using. The ratio matters more than the dollar figure.
  3. 15% Length of history How long your accounts have been open. Closing an old card shortens this on purpose.
  4. 10% New credit Accounts opened recently, and the hard pulls that came with them.
  5. 10% Credit mix Whether you handle more than one kind of debt. The smallest lever.
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Start here

Guides we keep current
Credit Cards A credit card is cheap or expensive depending on one habit: paying the statement balance in full by… Debt These guides are about debt you already have: how to pay it down faster, and what your rights… Credit Scores A credit score is a summary of your credit report, so most score problems are report problems. Fix… Loans Compare loans by total cost, not by the monthly payment. A longer term lowers the payment and raises… Saving & Banking Where you keep cash matters less for the rate than for two things: whether it is insured, and…
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Trending

1 How rolling negative equity into a car loan inflates your total balance 2 Apple Card monthly installments look like a loan but tap your credit limit 3 Goodwill letter for a late payment: what convinces a creditor? 4 Sued by a debt collector: The first step that decides the case

How we report

Every article is checked against primary sources: the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Reserve and issuer terms. When a number changes, we update the piece and say when.

How we make money

Some pages contain partner links that may earn us a commission. This never changes what we publish and costs you nothing. No lender pays for placement or for a better review, and nobody outside our editorial team sees a piece before it runs.

What we are not

Hub for Credit publishes independent information about credit cards, loans, and consumer finance. We are not a bank, a lender, or a card issuer, we do not extend credit, and we do not broker applications. Nothing here is personalized financial advice.