Your Credit score is one of the most important factors in how much you‘ll pay for a Mortgage, or even on whether you qualify for a mortgage at all.

The reason your credit score, or your FICO score as it’s known in the financial industry, is so important is that mortgage lenders will use it to determine how much of a risk it is to lend to you, based on your history of paying your bills on time and other factors.

Lenders will generally feel you’re a safer bet to loan to when your credit score is higher, and you could therefore qualify for a lower interest Rate on your mortgage. Your interest rate is the amount you pay on top of the principal, so the lower that is, the less you will pay for your mortgage overall.

We talked to a few mortgage experts to give you a sense of what sort of mortgage rates you might be qualified for based on your credit score, and to help you understand the relationship between your credit score and your mortgage options.