Before you apply - Revision history

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Editor at 19:49, 12 February 2021

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Editor at 18:51, 2 February 2021

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‎Get set up

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 But be careful. Sometimes, the referral offer isn't as good as the best signup offer out there. In that case, you may be better off applying with a promotional link, getting the best possible offer, and forgoing the referral points.
-<li>'''Always use a referral link to apply for American Express cards'''. American Express has the most flexible referral process. Anyone with an American Express card can generate a link that can be used to apply for any of their other cards. You can even apply for a business card using a referral link from a personal card and vice versa.</li>
+<li>'''Always try a referral link to apply for American Express cards'''. American Express has the most flexible referral process. Anyone with an American Express card can generate a link that can be used to apply for any of their other cards. You can even apply for a business card using a referral link from a personal card and vice versa.</li>
 When you sign up for an Amex card with a referral link, you will almost always receive the best possible signup offer and your friend will receive a large number of extra points as well. In a perfect world, you have a family member that can refer you, or you and a friend can make a deal to refer each other.
 <li>(optional) '''If you are applying for airline or hotel card, try making a "fake reservation"'''. Usually, when you are partway through the reservation process, the airline or hotel will pop up an offer to sign up for their card. These offers often include an extra $50 or $100 statement credit that you wouldn't get by applying for the card the regular way. Once you are done applying, you can cancel out of the reservation process—you don't need to book a room or flight.  If you don't see an offer, or the offer isn't as good as the best promotional offer, you can switch over to applying elsewhere.</li>

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 Because these banks, especially Chase and Bank of America, issue a lot of interesting cards, you need to get these first, before you get blocked for a year or two (or more if you are collecting signup bonuses). It is easier to get any Amex or Citibank cards you want later.
-Cards you are mostly likely to want that are issued by these banks are up to two [[Southwest Credit Cards|Southwest Airlines Cards]], the {{Card|Amtrak|only}}, the {{Card|Alaska|only}}, the {{Card|United|only}}, one of the [[Sapphire Credit Cards|Chase Sapphire Cards]] and the {{Card|FreedomUnlimited|only}} or the {{Card|BOAPremium|only}}, the {{Card|Hyatt|only}}, the {{Card|Marriott|only}}, and at least one of the [[Ink Preferred Card|Chase Ink cards]].
+Cards you are mostly likely to want that are issued by these banks are up to two [[Southwest credit cards|Southwest Airlines Cards]], the {{Card|Amtrak|only}}, the {{Card|Alaska|only}}, the {{Card|United|only}} or {{Card|UnitedQuest|only}}, one of the [[Sapphire credit cards|Chase Sapphire Cards]] and the {{Card|FreedomUnlimited|only}} or the {{Card|BOAPremium|only}}, the {{Card|Hyatt|only}}, the {{Card|Marriott|only}}, and at least one of the [[Ink preferred card|Chase Ink cards]].
 <li>'''You may also want to prioritize getting the Altitude Reserve '''. If you plan to optimize the points you earn from your spending, the {{Card|altitude|only}} can be very helpful. It provides a valuable 4.5% reward rate on purchases made with mobile wallets (such as Apple Pay), along with some other nice benefits. By taking advantage of contactless credit card terminals (and many Samsung phones), you can use a mobile wallet for many of your payments. But because it is difficult to get the Altitude Reserve, once you start collecting other cards, you need to try to get it as one of your first few cards. You'll also need to open a bank account at U.S. Bank before you can get it.</li>

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{DISPLAYTITLE:Step-by-Step Guide: Before Applying for a New Card}}
 {{seo|description=Step by step checklist for applying for a new credit card. What to do and what not to do.}}
-{{Page|article|Card Strategies}}
+{{Page|article|Card Strategies|card step by step}}
 {{ImageX|OpeningEnvelope.jpg|full}}

@@ Line 59: / Line 59: @@
 <li>'''If you are planning to follow our recommendation to start signing up for cards just for their signup bonuses, it is really worthwhile to plan out your applications'''. Otherwise, you are likely to get blocked from many of the best offers. We provide a {{link|first signups|detailed plan}} of how to time your applications. {{Link|Signup Intro}}.</li>
-<li>'''Prioritize getting any Chase, Bank of America, Barclays, Capital One or Barclays cards you want'''. At least Chase and Bank of America issue a lot of interesting cards and they won't approve you for any of them once you've gotten more than a handful of cards over a one or two year period. It is easier to get any Amex or Citibank cards you want later.</li>
+<li>'''Prioritize getting any Chase, Bank of America, Barclays, Capital One or Barclays cards you want'''. Once you've gotten new 5 cards from any bank in the previous 24 months, Chase won't approve you for any new cards. Bank of America has a similar rule, except that it is 3 cards in the previous 12 months (for non banking customers). Most business credit cards don't count against those limits, which is part of the reason you should try to get them if you can.</li>
 Cards you are mostly likely to want that are issued by these banks are up to two [[Southwest Credit Cards|Southwest Airlines Cards]], the {{Card|Amtrak|only}}, the {{Card|Alaska|only}}, the {{Card|United|only}}, one of the [[Sapphire Credit Cards|Chase Sapphire Cards]] and the {{Card|FreedomUnlimited|only}} or the {{Card|BOAPremium|only}}, the {{Card|Hyatt|only}}, the {{Card|Marriott|only}}, and at least one of the [[Ink Preferred Card|Chase Ink cards]].

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 {{Box|Avoid Getting Blocked from Cards You Might Want Later}}
-Once you've signed up for several cards, it becomes harder to get approved for new cards from most of the credit card companies.
+Once you've signed up for several cards, it becomes harder to get approved for new cards from most credit card companies.
 If you think you might try collecting signup bonuses, or you simply want to get more than a few new cards for your core credit card collection, it helps to plan ahead. That way, you can make sure you won't be blocked from getting the cards that are most important to you.
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 <ul class="bulletlist">
-<li>'''If you are willing and able to get small business cards, always get the small business version when it is available'''. It usually provides the same benefits and  has less impact on getting approved for other cards later. For example, if you want the Amex Delta Gold Card for its free checked benefit, get the small business version rather than the personal version.</li>
+<li>'''If you are willing and able to get small business cards, always get the small business version (when it is available)'''. It usually provides essentially the same benefits as the personal card and will have less impact on your chances of getting approved for other cards later. For example, if you want the Amex Delta Gold Card for its free checked bag benefit, get the small business version rather than the personal version.</li>
 If you have any kind of small business, you are eligible to get small business cards. Your business doesn't need to be incorporated. Even a side business—like selling stuff online, doing odd jobs, or working on a book or website—is enough. In most cases, you don't even need to have made any money yet. You just need to apply with your social security number and provide a little information about your business. {{Link|Business Cards}}.
-<li>'''If you are planning to follow our recommendation to get cards just for their signup bonuses, it is really worthwhile to plan out your applications'''. We provide a {{link|first signups|detailed plan}} of what cards to get first. {{Link|Signup Intro}}.</li>
+<li>'''If you are planning to follow our recommendation to start signing up for cards just for their signup bonuses, it is really worthwhile to plan out your applications'''. Otherwise, you are likely to get blocked from many of the best offers. We provide a {{link|first signups|detailed plan}} of how to time your applications. {{Link|Signup Intro}}.</li>
-<li>'''Prioritize getting any Chase and Bank of America cards you want'''. They issue a lot of interesting cards and won't approve you for any of them once you've gotten more than a handful of cards over a one or two year period. It is easier to get any Amex or Citibank cards you want later.</li>
+<li>'''Prioritize getting any Chase, Bank of America, Barclays, Capital One or Barclays cards you want'''. At least Chase and Bank of America issue a lot of interesting cards and they won't approve you for any of them once you've gotten more than a handful of cards over a one or two year period. It is easier to get any Amex or Citibank cards you want later.</li>
 </ul>
 {{/Box}}

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	<li>(optional) '''If you are applying for airline or hotel card, try making a "fake reservation"'''. Usually, when you are partway through the reservation process, the airline or hotel will pop up an offer to sign up for their card. These offers often include an extra $50 or $100 statement credit that you wouldn't get by applying for the card the regular way. Once you are done applying, you can cancel out of the reservation process—you don't need to book a room or flight. If you don't see an offer, or the offer isn't as good as the best promotional offer, you can switch over to applying elsewhere.</li>		<li>(optional) '''If you are applying for airline or hotel card, try making a "fake reservation"'''. Usually, when you are partway through the reservation process, the airline or hotel will pop up an offer to sign up for their card. These offers often include an extra $50 or $100 statement credit that you wouldn't get by applying for the card the regular way. Once you are done applying, you can cancel out of the reservation process—you don't need to book a room or flight. If you don't see an offer, or the offer isn't as good as the best promotional offer, you can switch over to applying elsewhere.</li>
		+
		+	For example, to see if a better offer is available for the Alaska Airlines card, you would go to the Alaska Airlines website and start buying an airline ticket. You aren't going to complete the purchase, so any airline ticket will do. Partway through the process, the website will ask you if you want to sign up for a new Alaska Airlines credit card. Click to apply for the card. When you return to the check-out page, you can cancel the original purchase while enjoying the benefits of the enhanced signup offer.
		+
		+	<li>(optional) '''To see better Amex signup offers, you often need to browse in "Private" mode'''. When you visit the Amex website, the signup offers are individually targeted to you. If Amex hasn't targeted you for a better offer, you won't see it.
		+	But better offers are often available to anonymous users. To see these offers, you need to open a private browser window, which ignores all your cookies and other identifying information. Each web browser uses a different name for this feature. You may also need to refresh the page a few times. In some extreme cases, you'll need to use a Virtual Private Network to make it look like you are visiting Amex from a foreign country. Of course, when you actually sign up, you would still be using your real information on the application form.</li>
	</ul>		</ul>