If you have a revolving line of credit, which is the case when you have a credit card, the amount you owe in payments and the total credit card balance can change from month to month. Since a personal loan is an installment loan and not a line of revolving credit, it doesn't count toward your credit utilization. If you were to apply for a credit card or loan after your score dropped, you may struggle to get approved or be subject to higher interest rates than you would've gotten with a better credit score.