Does applying for a pre approved credit card affect credit score

Have you ever received a pre-approval offer in the mail? Or maybe you've received a pre-approval offer via email? Then you may have asked yourself, “What does pre-approved mean for a credit card?” Let's find out.

What's a pre-approved credit card offer?

When you've been pre-approved for a credit card offer, this means that you've been prescreened based on specific criteria, including your credit and payment history. Lenders prescreen consumers by requesting a soft inquiry to check credit and determine who qualifies.

Based on these factors, you may be pre-approved for an offer. You might receive these offers from card issuers that you already have an account with, or from affiliated partners who are looking for ways to promote their credit card offerings. Pre-approval offers can be delivered by physical mail or email, or provided verbally through a phone call.

A pre-approval offer suggests you've passed the first step in the screening process. But remember — you can't actually be approved for the card unless you apply. You may seem like a promising candidate, but the lender will likely want more information to process your application.

Pre-approved vs. pre-qualified credit card offers

Pre-qualification and pre-approval processes are different ways for you to review your credit card options.

Pre-approved

If you've received a pre-approval offer, the credit card issuer has reached out to you first because you meet the basic requirements. Pre-approved credit card offers differ because lenders already have the information needed to assess your credit worthiness.

Pre-qualified

Pre-qualification for a card indicates that you've made the first request and reached out to the credit card company to see if you might be approved for the card you're interested in. The credit card issuer may then look at your financial profile and show you credit cards and offers that you might qualify for if you apply. It's not a guarantee, but it's a good sign.

How to get pre-approved for a credit card

In short, the card issuer needs to pre-approve you for a credit card, and then you can take action. Some people receive a pre-approved credit card offer in the mail, whereas others may need to complete an online form to provide the credit card issuer with basic information. Ways to apply for a pre-approval offer include:

Respond to an offer from a credit card issuer

One way to possibly get pre-approved for a credit card is by applying for an offer that the credit card issuer has sent you by mail, email or phone, also known as “prescreened offers.” Although mail may not be as popular as it once was, pre-approved offers may appear in the pile. Offers may include an invitation code that you can enter when you apply.

Request a pre-qualification on the credit card issuer's website

Most major credit card issuers that offer pre-approval have online links to a simple form where you can apply that can be found on the issuer's site. These forms will often ask you to provide basic personal and financial information. Once the information is entered, you may be shown a credit card offer that the issuer feels best fits your financial needs. Your offer may be more personalized since you provide information about yourself. In this situation, you'll need to get pre-qualified first to get pre-approved. Once you're pre-qualified, you may receive a pre-approval offer.

Does a pre-approved credit card affect your credit score?

Pre-approved offers, alone, typically don't impact your credit score because the card issuers perform a soft inquiry instead of a hard inquiry before providing an offer of pre-approval. However, if you follow through and apply for a pre-approved offer, the issuer may request a hard inquiry, which would then be indicated on your report and may impact your credit score.

In summary

So, if you've been asking yourself, “what does pre-approved mean for a credit card?” know that you're not the only one. And while pre-approval offers don't guarantee approval, they can indicate that you have a higher chance of being approved once you finally apply for that card.

It seems like all you ever get in the mail are bills, advertisements, occasionally a catalog…and oh, credit card offers. Can’t forget about those!

While the plethora of envelopes splashed with “limited time” and “apply now” might be annoying, there are a few reasons you might not want to toss them out.

What Are Preapproved Credit Card Offers?

Credit card companies regularly ask the main consumer credit bureaus (Equifax®, Experian™, and TransUnion®) for the names of people who meet a certain set of credit criteria.

If you’re on the list, a credit card company might assume you’re a good borrower and send you a preapproved credit card offer (also known as a prescreened or prequalified credit card offer) to encourage you to apply.

In other words, receiving one of these mail offers may indicate you’ve passed certain requirements set by the card issuer (which is possible even if you have “bad credit”). A preapproved offer does not guarantee you will be approved if you apply.

What’s the difference Between preapproved, prequalified, and prescreened?

In the world of credit cards, “preapproved,” “prequalified,” and “prescreened” are typically used interchangeably, fitting the definition we described above.

However, some credit card issuers and credit-related websites may differ in how they apply these terms, and this may lead to some confusion. They might also use these terms differently when it comes to mortgages and other lending products than they do with credit cards. Contact the issuer or website in question or check for an FAQ section if you’re uncertain.

On this page, we’re sticking with the first option, and using the terms as if they mean the same thing.

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Where Can You Find Your Preapproved Credit Card Offers?

Ready to see which pre-approved credit card offers are available to you?

Often all you need to do is fill out a form with your name, street address, zip code, and the last four digits of your Social Security number.

We’ve included the links to many of the major financial institutions’ credit card preapproval forms below.

• American Express
• Barclays (U.K. only, unavailable in the U.S.)
• Bank of America
• Capital One
• Chase
• Citi
• Discover
• U.S. Bank
• Wells Fargo 

Once you’ve seen which cards you qualify for, it’s time for the fun part: deciding which one you want to try to snag. 

Insider tip: If you really want to dig into the details of how issuers decide to approve or deny applications, take a look at the Credit Card Approval/Denial Reporting Mega Thread over at Reddit.

How To Request Preapproved Credit Card Offers

What many people don’t know is you can actually request pre-qualification offers— you don’t need to wait for them to come to you.

It’s an easy process that only requires submitting some personal information on the credit card issuer’s website (check the links above).

When you make a request, the issuer will do a soft credit check. Then, if you’re eligible, you’ll be able to view the credit cards for which you’re pre-qualified. Sometimes they’ll be the same offers available to the general public, but in many cases, you’ll find a better deal.

What Are the Benefits of Preapproved Credit Card Offers?

There’s a decent chance you have a pile of preapproved credit card offers in your mailbox right this minute — but is there any reason you shouldn’t throw them out?

Yes! Here are two benefits to consider:

• You can reduce the impact of the card selection process by applying for just one card with high approval odds, rather than shopping around and applying for several.
• You might get better terms, like an enhanced signup bonus or a lower introductory interest rate.

You could reduce the impact on your credit

Every time you apply for a credit card, the issuer runs a hard inquiry on your credit reports.

So, rather than applying for several different cards — and getting several hard inquiries — you can simply apply to one card: the one you’re prequalified for. Though there’s no guarantee you’ll get approved, your odds are much better than with a randomly selected card.

And you don’t need to wait for an offer to come in the mail, either: you can actually request preapproval offers on the card issuer’s website.

You could land better terms

Another advantage of preapproved credit card offers is they can, in many cases, include better terms than those available to the general public.

The credit card company gives these to you — a seemingly creditworthy customer — to entice you to apply.

Such enhanced terms might include:

• Better rewards program or signup bonus (more points or cash back for spending a certain amount)
• Reduced intro APR on purchases or balance transfers for a limited time

Credit card issuers have both public offers and private offers. Public offers are available to the general public and are usually the offers advertised on issuer websites. Private offers are customized for and only available to specific people based on their credit histories and other criteria. One person’s private offer will not necessarily be available to someone else.

Do Preapproved Credit Card Offers Hurt My Credit?

No need to worry: preapproved credit card offers don’t hurt your credit.

Credit card companies make these offers after performing soft inquiries on your credit reports — which, unlike hard inquiries, have no effect on your credit scores.

That being said, taking the next step and applying for a credit card — whether you’re prequalified or not — will trigger a hard inquiry.

Though this will have a slight negative effect on your credit scores, it will be temporary (and not a cause for great concern, unless you have more than about five on your credit reports).

Can You Get Denied When Applying for a Preapproved Card Offer?

Even after you get a preapproval letter, you’ll still need to complete the regular credit card application process. Unfortunately, preapproval doesn’t guarantee you’ll get the card.

One reason is that offers aren’t always based on your specific credit profile. To determine if an offer is tailored to you, look in the fine print: is there a “prescreen and opt-out notice”?

If you don’t see that phrase, then the offer is generic and not based on your credit history.

If you see it, that means the credit card issuer has already checked your credit history — and can’t change the terms of the offer (unless your credit situation has changed dramatically since it was sent).

Also, be aware that if your credit changes after you receive a pre-qualification offer, you may no longer be eligible for the card. Other, non-prescreened factors — like your income — may affect the decision, too. Long story short: If you apply for a card for which you received a prequalified offer, you could still be denied.

So, if you’re searching for a new credit card or think that one of your old ones could use an upgrade, take a few minutes to see what prequalified offers are available for you.

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