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You can apply for more than one credit card at once, and nothing stops you from submitting two applications on the same day. Whether that serves you well is a different matter.
Multiple applications in a short window usually mean multiple hard inquiries into your credit, and those can pull your credit score down while signaling added risk to future lenders. Knowing the trade-offs makes it easier to decide whether to apply together or space things out. Getting prequalified can help you decide on one card you're most likely to qualify for and possibly remove the need to apply for multiple cards at once. Here's what to know.
Can I Apply for Multiple Credit Cards at Once?
Credit card issuers make their approval decisions independently, and there are no limits on how many applications you can submit in a day or a week.
What's more, hard inquiries and new credit card accounts may not show up on your credit reports at the same time. So, you could potentially apply for three cards from three different issuers within the same hour, and each one might process your application without knowing about the other two.
Before you try it, though, it's important to understand and weigh the potential risks to your credit profile.
Learn more: How Many Credit Cards Should I Have?
Risks of Applying for Multiple Credit Cards at Once
The costs of a rapid-fire application strategy are easy to overlook when a welcome bonus is sitting on the table. But here's what stacking applications actually does to your credit.
Credit Score Impact
Each credit card application generally triggers its own hard inquiry on your credit report. While FICO groups multiple inquiries together for mortgage, auto and student loan applications—minimizing the impact to your credit score—credit card applications don't get that treatment.
The individual hit from one inquiry is modest. For most people, one hard inquiry takes less than five points off a FICO® Score☉ Θ, and new credit accounts for just 10% of the score overall. Hard inquiries stay in your credit report for two years, though FICO® Scores only consider them for 12 months.
But several inquiries in a short span add up, and the effect can be larger for anyone with few credit accounts or a short credit history. There is no fixed threshold for how many hard inquiries are too many, but there can be a compounding negative effect.
Tip: If you want to protect your credit score, it's a good idea to avoid multiple credit card applications at the same time and instead only apply for one credit card.
Decreased Average Age of Accounts
Length of credit history makes up 15% of your FICO® Score, and one of the things it measures is the average age of all your accounts. Opening a new card pulls that average down, and opening two at once pulls it down further.
The math is more unforgiving if you have a thin credit file. For example, if you only have one credit card, and it's three years old, your average account age is three years. Add two new cards today and that average falls to one year.
Meanwhile, someone with a dozen accounts spanning 15 to 20 years may barely register the same two additions.
Perception of Financial Distress
Beyond the point totals, a cluster of applications creates a pattern that lenders notice, primarily because a higher number of inquiries signals greater credit risk. FICO reports that people with six or more inquiries in their credit reports can be up to eight times more likely to declare bankruptcy than people with none.
Even if you get approved, that signal can affect the credit limit and rate you are offered.
How Long Should I Wait Between Credit Card Applications?
There is no required waiting period between credit card applications. As a general guideline, spacing applications three to six months apart keeps recent inquiries from piling up and gives new accounts time to establish a payment history.
How long you should wait between card applications depends on a few factors:
- Your credit profile: Inquiries and new accounts carry more weight when you have few accounts or a short credit history, so a thinner file calls for more patience.
- Upcoming loan applications: If you have a mortgage or an auto loan on the horizon, it's best to hold off on credit card applications entirely until that loan closes.
- Issuer standards: Card issuers set their own approval criteria, so a timeline that works with one bank may not work with another.
- Recent denials: A rejection means something in your credit profile fell short. Address that first rather than adding another inquiry to the pile.
Myth buster: A denial does not leave its own mark on your credit report. Credit reports record the hard inquiry from your application, not the issuer's decision, which means an approval and a rejection cost your score the same amount.
Learn more: Can Bad Timing Hurt Your Credit Application?
Alternatives to Applying for Multiple Credit Cards at Once
More available credit, better rewards and a lower utilization rate are all reasonable goals, but applying for multiple credit cards in quick succession is far from the only or the best way to achieve those goals. Here are some other options to consider:
- Stagger your applications. Apply for the card you want most now and revisit the second one in a few months. You could still end up with both cards, and the inquiries land far enough apart to soften the impact. If you're going for welcome bonuses, this also gives you time to meet the spending requirements for each card.
- Request a credit limit increase. Adding available credit to a card you already have lowers your utilization without adding an account. Requesting a credit limit increase is best when your credit or income have improved since you first opened the account. Keep in mind, too, that it'll typically result in a hard inquiry.
- Consider a personal loan. For a single large expense, a personal loan comes with a fixed rate and a set payoff date. You'll also know how much you can borrow before you accept the loan, whereas a credit card issuer won't disclose your credit limit until your account is already open.
- Compare offers first. Prequalification and preapproval tools let you gauge your odds using a soft inquiry, which won't affect your credit scores. Experian's credit card comparison platform, for example, allows you to see which cards you might qualify for based on your unique credit profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Many Credit Cards Should I Have?
How many cards you should have comes down to what you can comfortably and responsibly manage. If you start noticing that you're racking up debt, or you're forgetting about due dates, you may have too many.
How Many Credit Cards Is Too Many?
You may have too many credit cards if you struggle to track due dates, balances or annual fees. U.S. consumers actively use an average of 3.7 credit cards, but your own ceiling depends on how well you manage them.
Can I Apply for Multiple Credit Cards on the Same Day?
Yes. Card issuers don't coordinate applications, so nothing prevents you from applying for two or three cards in a single afternoon. But each application still generates its own hard inquiry, and the combined effect on your credit score can be noticeable.
Can I Apply for the Same Credit Card Twice?
If you already have a card, you typically won't be able to open a second account without closing the first. That said, some card issuers may not allow you to earn a welcome bonus on a card if you've previously had it.
The Bottom Line
Applying for two credit cards at once can negatively impact your credit more than just applying for one. Each application adds its own hard inquiry, and every new account you open lowers the average age of your accounts. Additionally, lenders who review your credit report later will see several recent applications close together and treat that as a sign of added risk.
Before you apply for credit, check your credit report and FICO® Score for free from Experian to see exactly where you stand. Knowing your score makes it easier to target cards you are likely to qualify for, which is the simplest way to keep unnecessary inquiries off your credit report.