Credit Card Programs - How long before my credit score is updated ?

I want to apply to Chase to get an Avios card because of the great sign up bonuses.

As my credit score is only 704 (I always run a current high ratio of credit used) my strategy to get the Avios card is to pay all my other Chase cards in full immediately. So i will then show low usage currently of all my credit

My question is when you pay off credit cards in full, how quickly is that reflected in your credit score or updated on your credit reports ?

Input is appreciated.

Worldspan

I want to apply to Chase to get an Avios card because of the great sign up bonuses.

As my credit score is only 704 (I always run a current high ratio of credit used) my strategy to get the Avios card is to pay all my other Chase cards in full immediately. So i will then show low usage currently of all my credit

My question is when you pay off credit cards in full, how quickly is that reflected in your credit score or updated on your credit reports ?

Input is appreciated.

Worldspan

If you pay in full for all your credit cards before the closing date, it will not reflect on your credit score until each and every one of those credit cards hit their closing dates and report to the credit bureaus.

So for instance, you pay X credit card on May 4th and the closing date is May 10th, it won't be until the 10th or later before X card reports to the bureaus. If card Y closes on the 15th, then it'll only report on the 15th or later. So for all the cards to cumulatively impact your credit score, it may take up to a month depending on closing dates.

As a rule, try and keep your credit utilization under 10% of your total available credit. That's the optimal range. I always pay down my credit cards before the closing date if I go over that 10 percent.