Do student loans affect a credit score?

Repaying loans on time will strengthen your credit — but paying late will hurt it

Illustration depicting a scale of poor credit to excellent credit
Student loans can make either a positive or negative impact on your credit score
(Image credit: invincible_bulldog / Getty Images)

Student loans are a major financial commitment and not just because of the long road to repayment. They can also have a bearing on your credit score — and by extension, your overall financial health and borrowing capability.

The good news is that the impact of student loans on credit is not necessarily bad, though it certainly can be. Rather, "student loans affect your credit score in much the same way other loans do: Repaying the loan on time will strengthen your credit; paying late will hurt it," said NerdWallet. There is a little extra buffer when it comes to student loans and your credit too, as they "may give you extra time to pay before you're reported late."

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Becca Stanek, The Week US

Becca Stanek has worked as an editor and writer in the personal finance space since 2017. She previously served as a deputy editor and later a managing editor overseeing investing and savings content at LendingTree and as an editor at the financial startup SmartAsset, where she focused on retirement- and financial-adviser-related content. Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.