Two different scoring algorithms reading much of the same credit data, which is why the numbers rarely match. They weigh the same accounts differently, so the VantageScore a free app shows you and the FICO scores a mortgage lender pulls can sit meaningfully apart. That mismatch surprises a lot of people at pre-approval. Where mortgages stand: FICO has historically been the only score mortgage lending ran on, and most mortgage pricing still runs on FICO today. That exclusivity is ending, though. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac now accept VantageScore 4.0 alongside classic FICO in a phased rollout, potentially paired with a shift that lets lenders pull two bureaus instead of three. Since the transition is still in motion, confirm current requirements rather than counting on a timeline. The case for VantageScore is inclusion. By VantageScore's own research, several million Americans have no FICO score but do have a VantageScore, and that group skews disproportionately toward people of color, a real argument for moving past the FICO-only approach. For now, the practical takeaway is simple: when you are preparing to buy, look at your FICO scores, since that is still what most mortgage pricing is built on.