I often get this question from friends and family. How many cards can I open before it becomes a problem for my credit?
The answer is never! As long as you time it right and are able to meet the minimum spend for the sign up bonus, you can open as many cards as you want and it’ll actually increase your credit score! So how do you time it right? Well, keep reading!
The official recommendation by credit experts is once every 3 months. If you have a spouse, that would equate to once every 1.5 months. That’s a total of potentially 8 sign up bonuses a year! Although not recommended, (and definitely not for the faint of heart) I open a new card on average once a month. It definitely depends on the season (higher expense months vs lower expense months) and I make sure that I have met the previous sign up bonus before signing up for a new card.
Additional factors to consider when applying to multiple cards:
5/24 rule: Chase will typically not approve you for a new card (business or personal) if you have opened more than 5 personal cards in the last 24 months. You can track this in the Travel Freely app.
Make sure you are eligible for the sign up bonus. Different cards have different rules so check that before you apply. Getting approved for a card does not automatically mean that you are eligible to earn the sign up bonus!
Business credit cards do not show up on your personal records.
Make sure you don’t have duplicate benefits on two different cards with an annual fee. No need to pay for two different cards that provide the same benefits, such as travel insurance.
Always try to downgrade to a no annual fee card rather than close a card. Banks do not look favorably on people who close accounts.
Use a credit card tracking service such as the Travel Freely app to easily track and manage your credit cards. It has features such as annual fee reminders, 5/24 tracking and more.
If you’re worried about meeting a minimum spend requirement you can read up on different ways I have met my minimum spend requirements here.
Go get those points!
Chavy
Comments