Maximum Credit Rating

A perfect consumer credit rating is so rare that even some credit rating agency executives, such as Maxine Sweet of Experian, have never seen one. Not only is a perfect credit rating practically impossible, it serves little benefit. Getting close to the perfect score gives you just as much opportunity.

Identification

The FICO score model, used since the 1970s, has a maximum rating of 850, according to the Government Services Administration. A new credit scoring model developed by the credit rating bureaus during the first decade of the new millennium -- called VantageScore -- has a maximum score of 990.

Getting a Perfect Score

Nobody knows the FICO score calculation except for a few high-level executives in the credit rating industry, so there is no specific route to get the perfect score. To get an 850, you could never miss a payment and only use credit sparingly. Also, most people with a credit score over 800 have a credit history going back several decades.

Benefits

Even if you did have an 850, you would have the same loan approval rate and interest rate as someone within 100 points, according to MSN Money Central. Once you get above 770 on the FICO range lenders lump everyone into the same tier of scores. In practice, scores above 825 are the most you can get.

Tips

Another step in achieving a perfect score would involve getting credit without a creditor pulling your file -- hard inquiries ding your score a few points, according to Mint.com. Consider adding yourself to someone's existing account. You can often get a credit limit increase just by asking. Make sure you pay your bills on time and do not use more than 25 to 35 percent of your available credit.