When applying for multiple credit cards at one time, how does a person avoid getting multiple credit pulls by the credit card companies when you complete a new credit card application? I will walk you through the 2, 3, or 4 browser method (depending on how ambitious you are) and explain the best way to apply for multiple credit cards at one time and only get one credit pull on your statement.
I didn’t coin the term and I didn’t come up with this method, so I can’t take credit for learning this technique from some of the more seasoned credit card and travel bloggers. However, my goal is to make the process of acquiring reward travel points easy and user friendly for everyone.
I like to apply for multiple cards in one day and then wait 6 months or so before applying for multiple cards again. Some people only wait a few months, and some like to jump on the best available promotion that pops up at any given time. I recommend that you find a few cards that help you reach a certain goal and make sure you are able to meet the spending threshold for all those cards. There are other ways to help meet the spending threshold which I have discussed in ways to meet your spending threshold.
Here is how the 2/3/4 browser method works. Let’s say I want to open 3 new cards with Chase. I will proceed to open a browser in Firefox, a browser in Google Chrome, and a browser in Internet Explorer. I want to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred, the British Airways card, and the United MileagePlus Explorer. I will open the application for each card in a different browser and fill out each application. As soon as I am done completing all 3 of the applications, I will attempt to submit each application one after the other as quickly as possible. Sometimes each application will accept you on the spot, other times the application will say the decision is pending and you will hear back from them within 7-10 business days. If this happens, you can either call Chase to find out if you need to move around some credit in order to open that card or sometimes you just need to verify some information. If you take a look at your credit report, there should only be one credit pull from Chase on that date of the applications.
This method applies to American Express, Barclays, as well as other banks but apply at your own risk (Citi doesn’t allow you to apply for multiple cards on the same day). I recommend using the multiple browser method if you would like to open up multiple cards at a given time and to maximize certain reward programs or goals that you may have. Good luck!