Is 690 a good credit score?

It is not bad. Why do you ask? In some situations a 690 is fine for getting some credit cards. You really need to know the overall picture of your credit. It is possible for one person with a 690 credit score to get a great credit card and another with a 690 to get a sub-prime card only. There are other factors than the score lenders look at. A person with a 690 might have a delinquency on their report and this would bar them from some lenders. Another person might have a 690 and no problems. The score alone is not so important. The score is based on a weighting of different measurements. Some items might be having a negative impact on your report and these items by themselves can keep you from getting certain cards.

Your best bet is to get Credit Karma, it is free, and understand the factors which are affecting your score. It also has advice about what to do for the best results. Don't rely on a score when you apply for credit, rely on the factors which make up the score. Improve them where you can and you will be better off. For example the factors which make up my score are a; B, D, A, D, A. My utilization is a B level utilization, my inquiries are a D level, and my average age of accounts is also a D, but I also have a score just over 690. I also have a lot of credit. I have a delinquency which is not 2 years old so obviously that is impacting my score. Without this and so many inquiries I would probably have a score over 720. With longer history I would have a 760 or more score. I can't qualify for a Chase Saphire card, but others with a 690 score are able to. I am not too concerned about it right now as I have insured that I have the score that is low now for the score that will be much higher late. When the delinquency ages and the inquiries fall off I will be able to get the best credit card out there and really good rates on home loans.

(The delinquency is from my student loan. I filled out all the paperwork before going overseas to work for a while and they reported me in default. I did what they said to do and then they said later it was not right. Arrgh. I hate Sallie Mae, their problems are now going to cost me an extra $20,000.) Because of this I can't go over 20% utilization before it affects my score. For normal people it is 40%.

Trust me get Credit Karma and you will learn so much.

Good score: 660/749 so you're fine.

Not absolutely awful, but no, not good.