Approval Rules Amex 4 Credit
Amex will decline your application if you already have 5 credit cards (not charge) and apply for a sixth
Deep Dive into the Amex 4 Credit Rule
American Express has both "credit" cards (Hilton, Marriott, Delta, EveryDay, Blue Biz) as well as "charge" cards (Green, Gold, Platinum, Plum, & Business versions of Green, Gold, and Platinum). The latter, charge cards, don't have preset credit limits. So they must be paid off at the end of each statement period.
American Express will decline you if you apply for a sixth "credit" card. We suggest you cancel an Amex card at least one week (going down to 4 active credit cards) before applying for another Amex "credit" card.
Amex says the limit on charge cards is 10, but since there aren't even 10 "charge" cards offered, this would be tough to trip without corporate entities.
Important to know:
Knowing the distinction between charge cards and credit cards is important for a few different American Express rules. As this rule states, you are not allowed to have more than five credit cards at once with American Express. As stated, that does not apply to charge cards, though. There is also the Amex 3/90 rule which states that you can’t open more than three cards in a 90 day period. This applies to credit cards only, not charge cards.
Related Rules
How Does This Affect Your Credit Card Strategy?
This rule is important to your overall card strategy because you will most likely collect more than five American Express credit cards over the course of your points and miles hobby. Being aware of where you’re at regarding this rule is important because you will have to cancel some cards at some point. Having a strategy for which cards to close and when is crucial to your overall plan, as it’s always a moving target because of the various rules put into place by the banks.
As always, we recommend diversifying when it comes to strategy. The more you switch between banks, personal and business cards, credit and charge cards, and time between applications, the better off you’ll be in the long run. So as long as you keep this general recommendation in mind, you’ll give yourself the best opportunity to avoid denials.
Important to know:
When you are in the hobby for a while, a lot of thought and strategy goes into choosing your next card. You don’t want to choose an American Express card then go to apply and find out you aren’t able to get the card you want because of this rule. Being surprised by this information at the time of application is never fun. If you use the Points Navigator, though, we can keep track of all these rules for you, letting you know when you trip one before ever applying.
Importance of this Rule
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American Express is the next step down from Chase as far as value and importance in the points and miles hobby. Any rule having to do with their cards is going to be one to pay attention to. When you combine the various rules American Express has set forth, it becomes even more important, as there are a lot of moving parts to consider.
Making sure you never have more than five credit cards with the bank should be easy enough, but it’s not so easy when you also have to consider other rules. The Amex 1/10 rule states you can only receive a signup bonus on a card if you haven’t had the card in the previous 10 years. So you have to factor that rule into your decision making while balancing this five credit card max rule. You never know when you’re going to come across an elevated signup bonus that you want to jump on. So if you are always below the five credit card threshold, that will allow you to be able to quickly apply for a new card when a high welcome offer pops up.
Cards Subject to This Rule
FAQs
Are there exceptions to this rule?
Yes, just like the American Express 3/90 rule, this rule excludes the seven charge cards offered by the bank. You are allowed to hold up to ten charge cards but only five credit cards.
How do I check my status?
While you can track all this yourself, why do that when you have a much better option? Let us keep track of all these rules for you. If you load all your cards into the Points Navigator, we can organize everything for you. This will allow you to sit back and apply for new cards and keep earning signup bonuses with the confidence that nothing will fall through the cracks.
Do business cards count for this rule?
Yes, business credit cards do count for this rule. Business charge cards do not. The American Express Business Green, Gold, and Platinum cards are the three business cards that are exempt from this rule.
Do product changes on existing cards count for this rule?
No, they do not. You are allowed to downgrade or upgrade, and it won’t count as another card against your limit of four.
About Approval Rules
Collecting credit card points is largely driven by understanding and abiding by bank rules regarding approval (or disapproval) of cards. So here's what you need to know:
- Approval rules are rarely fully publicized by the banks
- We use our own research and data points from other users in creating the rules listing
- Our goal in sharing/using the rule listings is to provide you guidance to avoid getting declined
- There can sometimes be exceptions to the rules, but we try to take a more cautious approach in advising you.