Ive Got Good Credit Why Was I Denied For A Credit Card
Oftentimes you can still be denied for a credit card even though your credit score isnt that bad. This is especially true if your credit score isnt in the mid-700s or better.
What gives?
Banks approval criteria for each card changes all the time. But common reasons you may be denied a credit card, even if you have a good credit score, include:
- Too much debt
- Too much available credit
- Too short of a credit history
- Recent late payments, charge-offs, or other negative items
If your credit score is in the high 600s, you may still get approved for some of the leading card offers, but this is where you have to be careful. Youre more likely to be approved if you have a year or two of on-time payments and very little credit card debt. If your score is lower than 700 because youve missed payments or have a lot of revolving debt, your approval chances are lower.
Dont apply for new credit if you have recent late payments or big balances on your existing credit cards. Even if you pay your cards in full each month, that big balance from the month you went on vacation could look like debt to a banks computers. The best time to apply for a new credit card is when:
- Your current card balances arent too high
- You have not missed a payment in the last two years
- You have not recently applied for other credit
The Platinum Card From American Express
Our pick for: Luxury travel perks
The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with a hefty annual fee, but travelers who like to go in style can more than get their money’s worth. Enjoy extensive airport lounge access, hundreds of dollars a year in travel and shopping credits, hotel benefits and more. That’s not even getting into the high rewards rate on eligible travel purchases and the rich bonus offer for new cardholders. Read our review.
What Credit Score Do I Need To Get The Amex Gold Card
As with most card issuers, American Express doesnt specifically disclose what credit score is required to be approved for any of its cards. That leaves credit card experts to speculate based on reports of people who have applied. Most of these reports indicate that people with excellent credit have a very high likelihood of being approved, and there are even some accounts of applicants with good credit being approved for this card.
With FICO scores, excellent credit is considered to be a score of 740 or above, while good credit is a score of 670 to 739. This means that you likely need a credit score at least near 700 or above to be considered for the Gold Card.
Tip: If you want to find out whether youre likely to get approved for a card, you can try a tool like CardMatch, which uses a soft pull on your credit to match you with cards youre likely to be approved for.
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Create A Realistic Budget
Putting together a realistic budget could help you create healthier financial habits and become a more mindful spender. Spending and saving every dollar with intention might also help you keep better track of your bills and when to pay them. All these factors can help contribute to a higher credit score.
Best American Express Cards Of September 2021
ALSO SEE:Best credit cards of 2021 || Visa || Mastercard || American Express || Discover || Bank of America® || Capital One || Chase || Citi || US Bank || Wells Fargo
American Express made its name with cards that were as much status symbols as payment methods. In the 21st century, the issuer offers a complete line of cards with generous rewards and valuable perks.
American Express made its name with cards that were as much status symbols as payment methods. In the 21st century, the issuer offers a complete line of cards with generous rewards and valuable perks.
- The Plum Card® from American Express: Best for Flexible financing for businesses
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Get Your Foot In The Door With The Amex Charge Card
American Express offers both credit cards and charge cards. These are two different products, and its a little easier to qualify for a charge card since your credit score doesnt need to be as high.
Charge cards are unsecured lines of credit, just like credit cards.
But the major difference is that charge cards dont come with a credit limit. That sounds exciting at first, though it means you can get into serious trouble if youre not careful with how much you purchase on the card.
Charge card statements are issued at the end of every month, and you owe the full balance when it hits. Fail to pay back what you charged, and AMEX will charge you about 3% of whatever you put on the card.
AMEX could also cancel your card if they feel you exceed your reasonable ability to repay your balance. So be careful if you apply and receive one of these cards.
If you cant qualify for an AMEX credit card or dont think your credit score is high enough to get approved you can try a charge card first. This helps you get your foot in the door with the issuer since youll have an account with them.
That, in turn, could help increase your chances of getting approved for a credit card in the future.
Just track your spending and card usage carefully, so you never spend more than you can afford to repay and maintain a good history of on-time, in-full payments.
And now its time for our last strategy
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Get Your Credit Score Improved Professionally
In some cases, we recommend speaking with a Credit Repair professional to analyze your credit report. It’s so much less stress, hassle, and time to let professionals identify the reasons for your score drop.If you’re looking for a reputable company to increase your credit score, we recommend Credit Glory. Call them on or setup a consultation with them. They also happen to have incredible customer service.Credit Glory is a credit repair company that helps everyday Americans remove inaccurate, incomplete, unverifiable, unauthorized, or fraudulent negative items from their credit report. Their primary goal is empowering consumers with the opportunity and knowledge to reach their financial dreams in 2020 and beyond.
American Express Credit Cards Faq
Comparing american express credit cards can be tough. But youve got the knowledgeable WalletHub community on your side. We encourage everyone to share their knowledge while respecting our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that editorial and user-generated content on this page is not reviewed or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution. In addition, it is not the financial institutions responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered….show moreshow less
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This Card Is Best For
- Seeks to maximize cash back earnings across spending categoriesCash Back Strategist
- Motivated to create positive credit historyCredit Builder
The Credit One Bank American Express® card is best for people with average credit or above who want a simple, easy-to-use rewards card. Youll earn a flat rewards rate on every purchase, so its a good option if you dont want the hassle of remembering different spending categories or juggling multiple cards. Instead, you can use one card for all of your everyday purchases and earn the same rewards rate.
This card is good if you want a more robust credit card that you can potentially qualify for with average credit. It offers significant benefits that can enhance and streamline your travel and shopping experiences, giving you complimentary car rental and travel accident insurance and discounts on flights and hotels.
Blue Cash Everyday Card From American Express
Our pick for: No-annual-fee grocery and gas rewards
The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express pays elevated rewards at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations and select U.S. department stores. The rewards aren’t as rich as on the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, but this card doesn’t charge an annual fee. New cardholders get a decent bonus offer and an introductory 0% APR period. If you’re buying groceries regularly but not necessarily all the time, it’s worth a look. Read our review.
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How Long Does It Take To Build Your Credit Score
If you have a high credit score, you may enjoy better financial opportunities. How long this might take depends on your starting point. Whether youre recovering from bankruptcy or already enjoy good financial health, there are some good ways to help build credit faster.
Below, well explain the factors that build your credit score so you can create a strategy that may help you increase your credit score in the next few years.
November 19, 2020 in Learn
Building Your History With Amex
A great card to consider is the new Amex Green Card. Thats a solid points earning card that earns 3X on travel and dining and comes with credits for CLEAR and Lounge Buddy that can allow you to offset the annual fee. Its known for being one of the easier Amex cards to get approved for so its a good way to start building up your credit history.
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Factors That Affect Your Credit Score
First off, its essential to understand that not all credit scores are the same. As such, even at a given point in time, you dont have just one credit score. Instead, your credit score may differ across calculation methods and credit reporting agencies. For example, your Experian FICO Score may be different than your TransUnion VantageScore.
arent publically known. However, FICO states that it calculates credit scores using credit data from your credit report in the following proportions:
- Payment history : History of paying credit accounts on time
- Amounts owed : Amount of available credit youre using, also known as
- Length of credit history : How long have your credit accounts been established and how recently have you used each account
- New credit : Opening multiple credit lines in a short period may indicate risk to a lender
- : Use of different types of credit
Related: 3 real ways to boost your credit score in 30 days
Additional Requirements Based On Data Points
You cannot be approved for more than 2 consumer cards within a 90-day period. Plus, you cannot be approved for more than 1 consumer card every 5 days.
You can apply for a business card and a consumer card on the same day and Amex could combine the credit inquiries.
Some consumers may currently hold 5 or 6 Amex credit cards but then would be declined for any further additional cards.
In addition to having good to excellent credit and the rules on how many cards you can have or apply for, American Express will also review credit report information including your payment history and credit utilization.
Bottom Line: You will need good to excellent credit to be approved for an Amex card. You can generally not receive a welcome bonus if you have had the same card in the past, and there is a limit to how many Amex cards you can have.
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Instant Approval And $40k Approval
Mav2246 reports an instant approval in February 2021 shortly after getting approved for the Amex Platinum. This decision comes after getting declined for the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
Their credit score is 724 FICO and has a $40,000 annual income. This is a healthy credit score and annual income but both credit factors can be higher.
Related: Chase Sapphire Preferred vs American Express Gold
How To Build Your Credit Score If You Have A Poor Credit Score
If you have a poor credit score, its important to understand how you got there. Get a copy of your credit report and analyze your spending patterns. You can then determine where to focus on to help build credit faster. If you find youre spending more than you earn, you could cut your expenses, boost your income, or re-examine your budget. If you keep missing paying bills, you could try automating your bill payments. Too many hard credit inquiries on your report? Wait a period of time before applying for new credit. If your credit utilization ratio is high, you will want to work on paying down your debt to lower it.
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Be Mindful Of Application Restrictions
In May 2020, The Points Guy reported that American Express had enacted new limits on the number of Amex cards consumers can hold at once. More specifically, customers are capped at four Amex credit cards and 10 Amex charge cards. Further, you cant be approved for more than one Amex card every five days .
The Plum Card From American Express
Our pick for: Flexible financing for businesses
Businesses with high working capital needs but sometimes inconsistent cash flow might find The Plum Card® from American Express a perfect fit. Pay early and get a discount, or enjoy up to 60 days without interest. Terms apply. There’s a substantial annual fee, but if you’re using the card for, say, big inventory purchases, the benefits could far outweigh the costs. Read our review.
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Should You Get A Preapproved Card From Amex
The decision to get a preapproved card from Amex or any issuer, for that matter is highly personal. Preapproval can be a risk-free way to see which American Express cards you might be eligible for, but people who struggle to manage debt might be tempted to overspend if they add another credit card to the mix. Even applying for a card for which youve prequalified can land you in hot water if, say, you already have too many recent inquiries on your report.
Lets assume you prequalify for the Amex Blue Cash Everyday. Before you officially apply, consider whats in it for you. In other words, does the Blue Cash Everyday have a lower interest rate than one of your existing cards ? Are the gas station and supermarket rewards better than what you already earn? Is the welcome offer really worth it? These are all factors you should think through ahead of time, whether youre applying for a preapproved Amex card or a card from a different issuer.
Blue From American Express Vs Blue Cash Everyday Card From American Express
- See Rates & Fees. Terms Apply.
- On American Express’ Secure Website
If youre purely interested in getting the most rewards per dollar spent, then youll almost certainly get more value from the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express assuming you can qualify for it. Unlike the Blue from American Express® card, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express offers a generous welcome bonus and a significant amount of bonus cash for U.S. supermarket, department store and U.S. gas station purchases . For example, you could earn up to $180 just from spending $500 a month on groceries. If you spent the same amount of money buying groceries with the Blue from American Express® , youd earn just 6,000 Membership Rewards points. That, in turn, would be worth just $30 to $60 or so in value, depending on how you redeem your points.
The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express may not be for you, though, if youre a frequent traveler who’s trying to collect points that you can use with one or more American Express travel partners. In that case, the Blue from American Express® may be a better fit for you. Or, if you can qualify for it, the American Everyday card or another American Express points card may be a better choice.
For rates and fees of Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express, please click here.
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No Annual Spend Requirement Like The Amex Black Card
One thing that is clear is that there is no annual spend requirement for the Platinum like there is for the American Express Centurion Card, also known as the Amex Black Card.
The Black American Express card usually requires at least $250,000 in spend per year just to receive an invitation to apply. For the business version of the Centurion Card, once you spend around $500,000 in a calendar year you might receive an invitation.
So the Black Card is a much different premium card than the Platinum Card and comes with a lore more benefits. Heres a quick look at some of the perks of the Black Card: