Chase’s credit card portfolio is one of the best out there.
The bank has a slew of great cobranded credit cards, ranging from British Airways and United MileagePlus to Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt, in addition to iconic credit cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Credit Card that earn valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
That said, Chase is one of the more difficult banks to get a credit card with. This is because of a rule called “Chase 5/24” which has become notorious in the travel credit card world.
This rule means you will be automatically denied a new Chase card if you’ve opened five or more credit cards across all banks in the past 24 months. It’s not a published rule, but it has been widely reported on for years.
Thankfully, there are some exceptions to this rule and other important things to consider. Here, we’ll give you an in-depth look at the Chase 5/24 rule and discuss how to plan your credit card applications accordingly.
The Chase 5/24 rule means that — in most cases — you cannot be approved for a new Chase credit card if you’ve been approved for five or more new credit cards in the past 24 months.
This includes new credit cards across all banks, including Chase. However, car loans, mortgages, personal loans, and other loans do not count toward 5/24.
This frustrating rule applies to both personal and business Chase credit cards, so it’s essential for you to carefully plan out Chase credit card applications early in your credit journey.
If you’re already over 5/24, our team found that the timer resets at the beginning of the month following when you fall under 5/24. For example, if you opened a credit card on March 4, 2023, it would fall off your 5/24 status on April 1, 2025.
With this in mind, it’s essential to keep track of when you open new credit card accounts so you can keep tabs on your 5/24 status. You can also use the free Experian app to track when you open new credit card accounts. Head to the “Accounts” screen. Here, you’ll see your credit card accounts. You can view the day you opened them when you tap on the account. They are sorted in chronological order, starting with the newest account.
Thankfully, there are a couple of notable exceptions to Chase’s 5/24 rule.
Namely, most business credit cards do not count toward your 5/24 status, even business cards issued by Chase. Being over 5/24 will, however, prevent you from being approved for a Chase business credit card.
Unfortunately, Capital One small business credit cards do count toward 5/24 in most cases, since they’re listed like personal credit cards on your credit report. That said, business credit cards from American Express, Chase, Citi, and most other banks will not count.
It’s also worth noting that authorized user cards do not count toward 5/24, but it might prevent you from being automatically approved for a Chase card online. If you’re denied, call Chase and explain that you’ve been added as an authorized user to someone else’s card. They should be able to reconsider the application with this in mind.
Over the years, we’ve also seen reports of certain targeted and in-branch offers being excluded from 5/24. These offers can be few and far between, so don’t count on them when planning your Chase credit card strategy.
With the Chase 5/24 rule in mind, you should consider applying for Chase cards before cards from other banks. This gives you the freedom to be approved for high-value Chase cards without restriction. Then, you can move on to applying for cards from other banks.
This is especially important if you qualify for a small business credit card. You can apply for these cards first, and they won’t count toward your 5/24 status for other Chase credit cards if you’re approved.
Some Chase cards you might consider applying for first include:
Chase’s infamous 5/24 rule is an unfortunate reality in the travel rewards world. It makes life difficult when you’re applying for new cards, but with some planning, you can still get the Chase cards you want.
Make sure to read our guide to the best Chase credit cards before you apply. Here, you’ll find the best offers and the Chase cards we recommend to those new to the travel rewards space.
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