Skip to main content
Advertiser Disclosure
We do receive compensation from some partners whose offers appear on this page. We have not reviewed all available products or offers. Compensation may impact the order in which offers appear on page, but our editorial opinions and ratings are not influenced by compensation.

The Ascent Logo The Ascent Logo - Blue circle with an A in it and the ascent a motley fool company to the right of that

  • Credit Cards
  • Banking
  • Brokerages
  • Loans
  • Mortgages
  • Knowledge
  • Latest Picks
  • Search Icon Click here to search

Credit Cards

Top Picks
  • Best of January 2021
  • Cash Back
  • Balance Transfer
  • Travel
  • 0% APR
  • Rewards
  • Bad Credit
Knowledge
  • Beginners Guide to Credit Cards
  • How to Rebuild Your Credit
  • Maximize Your Credit Card Rewards
  • Learn More About Credit Cards
Credit Card Tools
  • Compare Cards
Looking for a new credit card?

Explore the best credit cards in every category as of January 2021.

Get started!

Banking

Top Picks
  • Best Savings Accounts
  • Best Bank Accounts
  • Best Money Market Accounts
  • Best CDs
  • Best Checking Account Bonuses
Knowledge
  • Beginners Guide to Banking
  • Everything You Need to Know About Savings
  • Money Market Accounts Made Easy
  • Learn More About Banking
Looking for a place to park your cash?

Check out our top picks of the best online savings accounts for January 2021.

Get Started!

Brokerages

Top Picks
  • Best Brokers of January 2021
  • Best Online Brokers for Beginners
  • Best Options Brokers
  • Best IRA Accounts
  • Best Roth IRA Accounts
  • Best Robo Advisors
Knowledge
  • How to Open a Brokerage Account
  • Beginner's Guide to Brokerages
  • Learn More About Brokerage
Just getting started?

Explore our picks of the best brokerage accounts for beginners for January 2021.

Get Started!

Loans

Top Picks
  • Best Loans of January 2021
  • Best Personal Loans for Bad Credit
  • Best Loans for Debt Consolidation
  • Best Low-Interest Personal Loans
  • Best Personal Loans for Good Credit
  • Best Personal Loans for Fair Credit
Knowledge
  • Personal Loans Made Easy
  • Debt Consolidation Guide
  • How to Pay Off Debt
  • Learn More About Loans
Thinking about taking out a loan?

Before you apply for a personal loan, here's what you need to know.

Get Started!

Mortgages

Top Picks
  • Best Mortgage Lenders of January 2021
  • Best Mortgage Lenders for Poor Credit
  • Best Refinance Lenders
  • Best VA Mortgage Lenders
Knowledge
  • First Time Homebuyers Guide
  • Home Loans Made Easy
  • The Complete Guide to Refinancing
  • How to Get a Mortgage with Bad Credit
  • Learn More About Mortgages
Tools & Calculators
  • Mortgage Calculator
Compare Rates
  • Today's Mortgage Rates
  • Refinance Rates
  • 15-Year Mortgage Rates
  • 20-Year Mortgage Rates
  • 30-Year Mortgage Rates
  • Jumbo Mortgage Rates
  • VA Loan Rates
  • 5/1 ARM Rates
  • 7/1 ARM Rates
  • FHA Mortgage Rates

Knowledge

Knowledge Section
  • All Articles
  • Credit Card Articles
  • Banking Articles
  • Brokerage Articles
  • Personal Loan Articles
  • Mortgage Articles
  • Personal Finance Articles
Recent Articles
  • Stimulus Check Update: Lone Democratic Holdout May Be Softening Toward the Idea of Another Stimulus Check

    Personal Finance

    Stimulus Check Update: Lone Democratic Holdout May Be Softening Toward the Idea of Another Stimulus Check
  • Today's Mortgage Rates -- January 21, 2021: Rates Are Mixed

    Mortgages

    Today's Mortgage Rates -- January 21, 2021: Rates Are Mixed
  • Should You Pay an Annual Fee for a Credit Card? Answer These Questions to Find Out

    Credit Cards

    Should You Pay an Annual Fee for a Credit Card? Answer These Questions to Find Out
  • 3 Big Financial Surprises Coming in 2021 and How to Prepare for Them

    Personal Finance

    3 Big Financial Surprises Coming in 2021 and How to Prepare for Them
  • The Ascent
  • Knowledge
  • Credit Cards

Here's the Average Credit Card Approval Rate by Credit Score

by Elizabeth Aldrich | Dec. 23, 2019

The Ascent is reader-supported: we may earn a commission from offers on this page. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures our experts’ opinions aren’t influenced by compensation.

You should understand your chances of approval before applying for a credit card.

The fact that you need credit to qualify for credit might be the most frustrating credit-related dilemma, but there's a close runner-up: The only way to know whether or not you'll be approved for credit is to apply, but too many applications for credit can tarnish your credit score.

When you apply for a credit card, the issuer will perform a hard pull on your credit report to decide whether or not you're a risky borrower. These hard pulls show up on your credit report and remain there for two years, and they're factored into your FICO® Score under the "new credit" category, which makes up 10% of your credit score. Luckily, this is one of the least important categories, so one or two recent credit card applications may only cause a credit score decrease of a few points, if any at all. The decrease is also temporary, as new inquiries only affect your credit score for one year.

However, sending out more than a couple of applications in a short period of time -- within six months or so -- can lower your score more drastically. On top of that, too many recent inquiries on your credit report is a red flag to many lenders, as it's common for people in severe financial trouble to apply for lots of credit. 

A woman meeting with bank associate at a desk.

Image source: Getty Images

This explains why it's important to make sure you've got a good shot of approval before applying for a new credit card. Luckily for you, the 2019 Credit Card Market report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) shows credit card approval rates by credit score and even highlights the most successful application methods.

Approval rates by credit score

The CFPB breaks down consumer credit scores into six categories: superprime, prime, near-prime, subprime, deep subprime, and no score. Below you'll find approximate approval rates for general-purpose credit cards in 2018 at each credit score tier.

Superprime 720 or greater 80% approval
Prime 660 to 719 60% approval
Near-prime 620 to 659 40% approval
Subprime and deep subprime 619 or less < 20% approval
No score No credit score < 20% approval

The numbers show that consumers with prime and superprime credit scores are more likely to be approved for a given general-purpose credit card than not. It's more challenging for consumers with near-prime credit to be approved, but if they target credit cards that cater to consumers with credit scores in the mid-600s, they might have luck. As for folks with credit scores below 620 or no credit, their chances of approval are slim.

However, these numbers paint a very broad picture of credit card approval rates. The requirements -- and rates of approval -- differ drastically from credit card to credit card and card issuer to card issuer. The best travel credit cards and low interest credit cards typically require excellent credit. On the other hand, there is an increasing number of credit cards geared toward consumers with bad credit or no credit, from secured credit cards to student credit cards.

The best way to understand your chances of approval before applying for a new credit card is to research that credit card's credit score requirements and make sure you meet them. Many credit card issuers also offer "pre-qualification" tools that ask you a few basic questions and give you a sense of whether or not you might qualify. Before you use them, check for language stating that they won't perform a hard check on your credit, which would impact your credit score. Pre-qualification can be immensely helpful to your credit card research process, but remember that it's still not a guarantee of approval. 

How to maximize your chances of approval

Apart from seeking out cards with credit requirements that match your credit profile, data from the CFPB report suggests that the channel through which you apply for a credit card could impact your chances of approval.

For applicants with superprime or prime credit, the highest approval rates for general-purpose credit cards came from applications based on pre-screened solicitations. These are flyers people received in the mail or through email with credit card offers stating they've been pre-screened. These offers often include a code that's meant to be entered into the credit card application.

The highest approval rates for near-prime, subprime, and deep subprime consumers came from mail-in applications. However, mail-in applications are often sent in response to pre-screen offers, so consumers in these credit score tiers might also have more luck applying for credit cards for which they've already been pre-screened.

If you have a credit score, regardless of where that score falls, applying for pre-screen offers can increase your odds of approval. However, there is little point applying for a credit card that isn't a good fit, even if your chances of approval are higher. Make sure any credit card you apply for comes with good terms and aligns with your spending habits. If the pre-screened offers you receive are not a good match, try researching the best credit cards that fit your credit profile and using their pre-qualification tools to gauge your odds of approval.

Applying for a credit card with no credit

Unlike other segments, applicants with no credit score didn't have high rates of success when they applied through pre-screen offers or mail. Instead, consumers with no credit had the highest approval rates when they applied in person, with their approval rate jumping from just under 20% for digital applications to over 40% for in-person applications. 

The CFPB postulates that in-person applications might be more successful for consumers without credit because the risk of synthetic fraud -- which is when someone creates a false persona using real consumer data in order to apply for credit cards -- is much lower with in-person applications. No-credit consumers also tend to have better luck applying for a credit card with a bank or credit union where they already have an existing, positive relationship, and so it would be worthwhile for those consumers to go into their local branch and apply in person.

Regardless of how you apply, there's no way to guarantee you'll be approved -- but with proper research and knowledge of your credit score, you can turn the odds in your favor.

Our credit card expert uses the card we reveal below, and it could earn you $1,148 (seriously)

As long as you pay them off each month, credit cards are a no-brainer for savvy Americans. They protect against fraud far better than debit cards, help raise your credit score, and can put hundreds (or thousands!) of dollars in rewards back in your pocket each year.

But with so many cards out there, you need to choose wisely. This top-rated card offers the ability to pay 0% interest on purchases into 2022, has some of the most generous cash back rewards we’ve ever seen (up to 5%!), and somehow still sports a $0 annual fee.

That’s why our expert – who has reviewed hundreds of cards – signed up for this one personally. Click here to get free access to our expert’s top pick.

About the Author

Elizabeth Aldrich
Elizabeth Aldrich icon-button-linkedin-2x icon-button-twitter-2x

Elizabeth is a writer specializing in credit cards, debt repayment, and small business. Her work has also appeared on MSN Money, Yahoo! Finance, and Business Insider.

Share This Page
Blue Facebook Icon Share this website with Facebook
Blue Twitter Icon Share this website with Twitter
Blue LinkedIn Icon Share this website with LinkedIn
Blue Mail Icon Share this website by email

The Ascent is reader-supported: we may earn a commission from offers on this page. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures our experts’ opinions aren’t influenced by compensation.

Related Articles

Credit cards on a desk image for Best Credit Cards for 2021

Best Credit Cards for 2021

Interest spelled out on a calculator image for Compare Credit Cards Side by Side

Compare Credit Cards Side by Side

Man holding cash image for How Do Cash Back Credit Cards Work?

How Do Cash Back Credit Cards Work?

Cyber security and computer screen image for How to Protect Yourself from Credit Card Fraud

How to Protect Yourself from Credit Card Fraud

Featured Articles

Best Credit Cards for 2021

Compare Credit Cards Side by Side

How Do Cash Back Credit Cards Work?

How to Protect Yourself from Credit Card Fraud


We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.

The Ascent Logo

The Ascent is a Motley Fool service that rates and reviews essential products for your everyday money matters.

btn_facebook-yellow btn_twitter-yellow btn_instagram-yellow

Copyright © 2018 - 2021 The Ascent. All rights reserved.

About The Ascent
About Us Contact Us Newsroom How We Make Money Editorial Integrity Ratings Methodology
Legal
Terms of Use Privacy Policy Accessibility Policy Terms and Conditions Copyright, Trademark and Patent Information
Learn
Credit Cards Banking Brokerage Loans Recent Articles

By submitting your email address, you consent to us sending you money tips along with products and services that we think might interest you. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please read our Privacy Statement and Terms & Conditions.

Back to The Motley Fool