Does Your Credit Score Go Up After Inquiries Fall Off?

Your credit score can go up after inquiries fall off your credit report, but the increase is usually small — typically fewer than five points per inquiry, and often nothing visible at all. That’s because FICO scoring models stop counting a hard inquiry after 12 months, even though it stays on your report for a full two years. By the time the inquiry actually disappears at month 24, the scoring penalty has usually been gone for a year.

How Many Points You Get Back

A hard inquiry usually costs fewer than five FICO points when it’s first added, and VantageScore models may knock off five to ten points. The recovery when the inquiry falls off tends to land in that same range — a few points, sometimes less.¹

Inquiries sit inside the “new credit” category, which is only 10 percent of your FICO score. VantageScore 4.0’s equivalent “recent credit” factor carries 11 percent. That category also weighs how many new accounts you’ve opened and how recently, so a single inquiry is a small slice of a small slice.²³

If several inquiries from the same time period fall off together, the effect can be more noticeable. Five inquiries dropping off at once could translate to a recovery of up to 15 or 20 points, depending on the rest of your profile. If those inquiries were already past the 12-month FICO threshold, though, removal may produce little or no change.

Why the 12-Month Mark Matters More Than the 24-Month Mark

Hard inquiries stay visible on your credit report for two years from the date of the check. FICO models, however, only factor in inquiries from the last 12 months. After that first year, the inquiry is still on the report but no longer pulling your score down.⁴

So if you’re watching a FICO-based score — which most mortgage and auto lenders use — the removal at two years is largely cosmetic. The scoring relief already happened at month 12.⁵

VantageScore works differently. It can weigh hard inquiries from the previous 24 months, meaning an inquiry could technically affect your VantageScore for the entire time it appears on your report. In practice, the impact usually fades within a few months on both scoring models, especially if the rest of your credit is in good shape.¹

When You’ll Actually See the Change

You don’t need to do anything to make the removal happen. The credit bureaus take inquiries off automatically at the two-year mark.⁴

The updated score usually shows up during the next reporting cycle after the inquiry drops off. Credit reports don’t refresh on a fixed schedule — they can update multiple times a month as different lenders report new data. You may see the change within a few days or wait several weeks.⁶

Why Your Score Might Not Move at All

Plenty of people watch an inquiry disappear and see nothing happen to their score. A few common reasons:

The inquiry already stopped counting. On a FICO-based score, anything older than 12 months was no longer affecting your number. Removing it at month 24 changes nothing in the math.⁴
Higher credit card balances. Rising utilization sits in the “amounts owed” category, which is 30 percent of your FICO score. Even a modest balance increase can wipe out the few points you’d gain from an inquiry falling off.²
A new late payment. Payment history is 35 percent of your FICO score. One missed payment can drop your score by far more than any inquiry ever cost you.
Closing an old account. Shutting down a longstanding card can shorten your average account age and cut your available credit, both of which can pull your score down.
Opening new accounts. A fresh application means a new hard inquiry and a new account on your file, both of which add to your “new credit” activity and can offset the loss of an older inquiry.

Scoring models weigh all of these factors at once. A gain in one area can easily be canceled out — or overwhelmed — by a change somewhere else.

Getting an Inquiry Removed Early

Legitimate hard inquiries cannot be removed before the two-year mark. The only inquiries you can challenge are ones you didn’t authorize, which may point to a creditor error or identity theft.

To dispute one, contact each credit bureau that shows the inquiry. You can file online, by phone, or by mail, explaining which inquiry is inaccurate and attaching any supporting documents. The bureau has 30 days to investigate and must notify you of the result in writing.⁷

If the unauthorized inquiry is tied to identity theft, file a report at IdentityTheft.gov to generate an FTC Identity Theft Report. Credit bureaus are required to block information resulting from identity theft once you provide that report along with proof of your identity.⁸

To keep unauthorized inquiries from happening again, you can place a credit freeze with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. A freeze blocks new creditors from accessing your report, so no one can open a new account in your name until you lift it. Placing and lifting a freeze is free.⁹

For a legitimate inquiry, though, the answer is patience. If your goal is a meaningful score bump, focus on payment history and lowering credit card balances — those categories carry far more weight than any inquiry ever will.

1
Experian. How Long Do Hard Inquiries Stay on Your Credit Report
2
myFICO. How Are FICO Scores Calculated
3
VantageScore. The Complete Guide to Your VantageScore 4.0 Credit Score
4
myFICO. The Timing of Hard Credit Inquiries: When and Why They Matter
5
myFICO. How New Credit Impacts Your Credit Score
6
TransUnion. How Long Does It Take for a Credit Report to Update
7
Consumer Advice – FTC. Disputing Errors on Your Credit Reports
8
Federal Trade Commission. Identity Theft: What to Do Next
9
Consumer Advice – FTC. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts