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May 24 = 5/24. So naturally, we’re covering all things Chase 5/24 on AwardWallet today. Whether you’re under, over, or not sure what 5/24 even means, we’ve got guides, tips, and strategies to help you navigate this card application rule.
When building a credit card strategy for earning points, there are many card application restrictions to navigate. One of the most infamous and restrictive is Chase’s 5/24 rule. This policy applies to all Chase-issued cards, including cobranded and business cards, as well as those that earn Ultimate Rewards points like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
A question we encounter on a regular basis, both here on the blog and in AwardWallet’s Facebook community, Award Travel 101, is how to check your 5/24 status.
We recommend keeping a detailed record tracking all of your credit card applications, approvals, and cancellation dates. However, if you don't already have these details, there are free tools available that can help you determine your Chase 5/24 status. Here's how.
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A Quick Recap of Chase's 5/24 Policy
Under Chase's 5/24 policy, most applicants will be denied if they’ve opened five or more new credit card accounts within the last 24 months. This number is based on what Chase sees on your credit report. Chase applies this restriction to essentially all applications for Chase credit cards, including all Sapphire, Ink, Freedom, airline, hotel, and business credit cards.
Here are the main takeaways from this rule:
- All personal credit cards opened in the past 24 months (from any card issuer) count towards your 5/24 status. For example, say you’ve opened one card each with American Express, Bank of America, and Barclays in the previous 24 months. You would be 3/24, even though none of the cards are issued by Chase.
- In most cases, Chase doesn’t count business cards toward your 5/24 status, including its own cards. This can be confusing, as applications for the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card are still subject to the 5/24 policy when applying. However, if you're approved, Chase won't count this card towards your 5/24 status when applying for another Chase card.
- The exceptions to this rule are Discover, TD Bank, and most Capital One business cards. These card issuers report most of their small business cards to your personal credit report. Therefore, it's important to know that these business cards will count toward your 5/24 status.
- Even if you subsequently close a card, that card will still count toward your 5/24 status. This policy is based on the date you opened a new credit card, regardless of closing activity.
- If you're an authorized user on credit cards opened in the past 24 months, Chase may count these during your application. If that pushes you past five new accounts, a reconsideration call can straighten this out.
- Other loans you have, such as car loans, personal loans, mortgages, and tuition, do not count toward your 5/24 status.
Related: Why Starting With Chase Cards Matters if You’re Under 5/24
The Simplest Way to Check Your Chase 5/24 Status
The good news is that you have several ways to check your 5/24 status for free, including apps like those from Experian or counting the new cards on the report from AnnualCreditReport.com, which you can check for free each week. Let's look at some of the apps that can be useful here.
Experian
Sign up for a free Experian account and download the app on your device. Although Experian may try to sell you an upgraded service, you do not need to purchase anything to check your credit report for your 5/24 status.
Once logged into the app, click on the tab at the bottom that says Credit, and then select View Report.
On the following page, click the arrow next to Accounts. This will bring you to the list of all open accounts on your Experian credit report.
Finally, click on Views at the top and select Date Opened (New to Old) to sort your accounts. You can now see which accounts you have opened in the last 24 months.
Count up the total number that fall within that timeframe, and you have your 5/24 number.
Intuit Credit Karma
Another free option for checking your 5/24 status allows you access to your TransUnion and Equifax reports: Credit Karma.
On Credit Karma's site, fill out the requested information to create an account. After it pulls your credit profile, you can select either TransUnion or Equifax on the Dashboard and then scroll down to the Credit Factors section until you see the option for “credit age” and click on that.
On the next page, scroll down to where you see “credit cards.” These will be listed from oldest to newest.
Scroll down to the newest accounts and note anything that's less than two years old.
Unfortunately, this list only includes your open accounts. Chase will include closed accounts in your 5/24 status. So you'll need to find those as well. To do so, click on “credit” and then scroll down until you see the tab listed as Total Accounts.
Then, scroll down to the “View closed accounts” option.
These aren't sorted by account opening date, which is what we really need. All you'll see is the issuer's name and a closing date. Cards that were closed more than 24 months ago can obviously be ruled out. For anything closed within the last two years, you'll need to click on the card name to view details about when it was opened.
Add any cards from this closed accounts list to your open accounts list to get a total of how many cards you've opened in the past 24 months. This is your Chase 5/24 number.
Other Free Methods To Check Your Chase 5/24 Status
There are other ways to check how many new cards you've opened, although they do require a little more legwork.
If you spend the time putting your credit card history into Travel Freely, it will tell you your 5/24 status every time you log in. It also shows when each card will fall off your 5/24 count, helping you plan ahead
However, it can take some time to add all of your accounts to your free account at Travel Freely, depending on how many credit cards you have.
For past accounts, you may not be worried about listing the bonus that you earned or when you product changed from one credit card to another. However, the important details include the card name and the opening date. You'll need to find that opening date from your credit report or by asking your credit card issuer.
The good news is that maintaining your information on Travel Freely is quite simple once you set up an account and enter all of your cards. Adding a new card is quick, as is updating a card that you changed or closed, and you'll see your 5/24 status every time you log in.
Check your 5/24 status from your free credit report
You can get a free copy of your credit report at annualcreditreport.com. As the name implies, this site previously offered a report annually. After that, you had to pay for viewing your full report additional times. However, since 2023, the site has offered weekly access to your credit report. Of course, the full report will include all pertinent information, but it does not sort the accounts for you, so some work is required to sort through your accounts.
How to determine which accounts are Authorized User accounts
No matter which method you use to check your credit report, you can identify authorized user accounts in the details for each. Look for “Responsibility: Authorized User” or similar language when checking an account's details.
If you're the primary cardholder on the account, the Responsibility row will show “Individual.”
When counting how many credit cards are under two years old, make sure to note how many of those are authorized user accounts. While authorized user accounts don't count toward your 5/24 status, it's important to know these numbers in case you need to explain this to a phone representative.
Final Thoughts
Because of Chase’s inflexible application rules, we recommend building your portfolio of Ultimate Rewards earning cards before diversifying into other rewards currencies. If you focus on other card issuers and climb over 5/24, getting back under 5/24 can be a hassle. And it's no fun missing out on Chase's great sign-up bonuses.
Do you know other free, simple methods to check your 5/24 status? Let us know in the comments below.
Header image credit: Frugal Flyer
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