Here at TPG, we love adding credit cards to our wallets. Whether we’re looking to earn more points and miles or enjoy a new suite of benefits, there are plenty of reasons we enjoy getting new cards.

However, there’s still an application process to get through, and you have to be approved for every new piece of plastic (or metal) you collect. You always want to consider your credit, as well, because if you’re denied, you’re getting a hard inquiry on your credit report (and the resulting temporary drop in your score) without any upside.

If you look into the premium American Express Platinum Card®, the versatile Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) and a cobranded card like the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (see rates and fees), you’ll notice that all three cards are issued by different banks.

These banks all have their own restrictions that could make it harder to get approved or earn a welcome offer, so you’ll want to know each bank’s rules before you apply. Here’s a look at application rules for each of the seven major issuers. Just remember, most of these restrictions aren’t considered hard-and-fast rules applicable to every scenario, and there are often stories of exceptions to every one.

American Express

Number of cards

Amex has a five-card limit per person, including personal and business cards. However, this doesn’t include cards without a preset spending limit, such as the American Express Platinum Card.

However, there are isolated reports of cardmembers carrying more than five American Express credit cards at any one time.

Number and timing of applications

When it comes to American Express’ rules for how many applications you can have and how frequently you can submit them, again, there aren’t any published, hard-and-fast requirements. However, there are a few data points that may help you decide how to apply:

• You can apply for two cards in a single day.
• You may be approved for more than two cards within a 90-day period.

Welcome offers

Amex restricts cardmembers from earning a welcome offer more than once per lifetime, no matter how long it’s been since you applied. For example, here’s the specific language from the offer terms page for the Amex Platinum: “You may not be eligible to receive a welcome offer if you have or have had this Card, the Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Charles Schwab, the Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley or previous versions of these Cards.”

That sentence is crystal clear: If you currently have (or have had) this particular card, you are not eligible to earn the welcome offer.

Similar language appears on the application pages across Amex’s entire portfolio of cards, both business and personal. In certain instances, it even extends to previous card versions.

Amex also has welcome offer restrictions based on having cards within the same family. For example, if you hold the top-tier Amex Platinum, you won’t be eligible for the welcome offer on the mid-tier American Express® Gold Card.

You lose eligibility for future Amex welcome offers by carrying a card, not by earning its bonus. This is why you should always think twice about upgrading or downgrading an Amex card if there’s no bonus attached.

Note: Personal and business versions of the same card are treated as separate, so you should be eligible to earn the welcome offer on each one once during your life.

The information for the Amex Platinum for Charles Schwab and the Amex Platinum for Morgan Stanley has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Check your eligibility

American Express offers a tool that lets you check your eligibility for a welcome offer during the application process. Amex allows you to withdraw the application if you’re not eligible for the bonus, so you can avoid having a hard inquiry on your credit report for a card for which you could not receive the welcome offer.

Related: Best American Express credit cards

Bank of America

Number of cards

Bank of America doesn’t have hard-and-fast rules regarding how many total cards you can have.

You could have the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card, Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card and Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card all at once.

Number and timing of applications

Bank of America has what’s known as the 2/3/4 rule, meaning:

• You can only get approved for two new cards in a 30-day period.
• You can only get approved for three new cards in a 12-month period.
• You can only get approved for four new cards in a 24-month period.

Data points indicate that this does not extend to business credit cards issued by the bank.

The bank may also still consider the total number of cards and hard inquiries you’ve had when it runs your credit, so you may get denied even if you fall below these thresholds.

Anecdotally, we’ve seen data points of further restrictions. Customers with a Bank of America deposit account may not be approved for new cards if they’ve opened seven cards (across all issuers) in the last 12 months, while customers without a deposit account will be rejected if they’ve opened three or more cards in the last 12 months.

Last but not least, Bank of America may restrict cardholders from opening a card if they currently hold one or have opened one at some point in the past 24 months.

Welcome offers

Once you overcome these restrictions and are approved, the bank has no published language restricting your welcome offers. You can earn a welcome bonus on the same card multiple times, as long as you’re approved for the card.

Related: Best Bank of America credit cards

Barclays

Number of cards

Barclays typically doesn’t limit the number of cards you have open with it at any one time. The bank will, however, consider your overall credit profile before approving you.

It seems that a high number of cards or hard inquiries or large balances may affect your chances of successfully opening a new card.

Number and timing of applications

Barclays can be inquiry-sensitive, so we recommend keeping your inquiries under 6/24 before applying for this card. In other words, you shouldn’t have opened more than five cards in the past 24 months before applying for a Barclays card.

Welcome offers

When it comes to offers, Barclays typically hasn’t prevented you from earning the welcome bonus on a card multiple times, as long as you close the card first and then wait to apply (generally six months). However, the issuer does have a couple of notable items in the terms and conditions of popular cards, such as the JetBlue Plus Card:

“You may not be eligible for this offer if you currently have or previously had an account with us in this program. In addition, you may not be eligible for this offer if, at any time during our relationship with you, we have cause, as determined by us in our sole discretion, to suspect that the account is being obtained or will be used for abusive or gaming activity (such as, but not limited to, obtaining or using the account to maximize rewards earned in a manner that is not consistent with typical consumer activity and/or multiple credit card account applications/openings).”

The information for the JetBlue Plus Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Related: Best Barclays credit cards

Capital One

Number of cards

Capital One does not provide official information on the number of cards you can hold with the issuer, but data points suggest the limit may be five cards. If you’re interested in the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card or Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you’ll want to pay attention to these restrictions.

Number and timing of applications

Capital One also has a hard-and-fast rule when timing your applications. You can only get approved for one card every six months. This lumps personal and small-business cards together.

Capital One is also incredibly sensitive to recent inquiries. Many people have received multiple rejection letters for the Venture Rewards despite having a nearly perfect credit score.

Welcome offers

The issuer has been known to award welcome offers multiple times on the same card if you follow the above rules and are approved.

However, as with Barclays, there is some language on the website for some Capital One cards that gives the issuer the right not to award the bonus. Here’s the specific language on the Capital One Venture Rewards card application page: “Existing or previous cardmembers are not eligible for this product if they have received a new cardmember bonus for this product in the past 48 months.”

Related: Best Capital One credit cards

Chase

Number of cards

Chase doesn’t formally limit the number of credit cards you can have.

You can carry the Sapphire Preferred Card, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (see rates and fees) and the World of Hyatt Credit Card (see rates and fees), among many other combinations.

However, the issuer often limits the total credit you can extend across all your Chase cards.

For example, let’s say you have four Chase credit cards with $25,000 credit lines on each, and Chase has determined that you should only have a total credit limit of $100,000. It’s unlikely that you’ll be approved for another credit card because you’ve reached your combined credit line of $100,000 across all your accounts.

Fortunately, you can call Chase’s reconsideration line within a few days of your application and ask to have your credit lines shifted to get approved. If that’s approved, you can have five credit cards with the same $100,000 in total credit.

Number and timing of applications

There isn’t a formal, consistent policy that limits the number or timing of your applications with Chase. The general rule of thumb is to limit applications to no more than one personal and one business card within 90 days.

It’s also worth pausing to talk about risk tolerance here. Chase (and Amex) have been known to unilaterally close all accounts of users they deem high-risk or potentially fraudulent.

You might not want to rush through your applications with Chase, even if there’s a chance you can get approved for more cards in a shorter period.

Chase 5/24 rule

Chase’s one hard-and-fast application rule is the 5/24 rule. If you’ve opened five or more credit cards with any issuer over the previous 24 months, you will likely be denied for most Chase-issued credit cards with little to no chance of reconsideration.

A few notes about this policy:

• Chase will look at all accounts across all issuers (not just its own).
• Even though you list your Social Security number when you apply for business cards, the accounts themselves sit on a separate business credit report and, as such, usually do not count against your 5/24 status. However, Chase generally takes your 5/24 count into consideration when you’re applying for one of its business cards.
• While success isn’t guaranteed, you may be able to get around the 5/24 rule if you’re just an authorized user on any of your “new” accounts from the previous two years.

Related: Want to open a new Chase card? Here’s how to calculate your 5/24 standing

Welcome offers

Chase also imposes restrictions on earning welcome offers. In general, you won’t be able to earn a bonus on a Chase card if you currently hold that card or earned a welcome bonus on that exact card in the last 24 months.

There is specific language on most Chase cards’ application pages. For example, the Chase Freedom Unlimited®‘s page (see rates and fees) states: “This product is available to you if you do not have this card and have not received a new cardmember bonus for this card in the past 24 months.”

So, you must cancel or downgrade a card before reapplying for it. The 24-month waiting period starts when you receive the bonus, not when you cancel the card.

It’s also worth noting that some slight variations to this policy apply to specific cards, such as all Marriott Bonvoy cards (including those issued by American Express), Chase Sapphire cards and Southwest Airlines cards.

Related: Best Chase credit cards

Citi

Number of cards

Citi typically doesn’t limit your overall number of credit cards. Instead, it limits your overall credit across all Citi cards. Once you’ve reached that tipping point, you’ll likely be given the “application pending” notice when you apply for a new card. A quick call to Citi’s reconsideration line should help you get approved by moving some credit from another card to the new one.

This is relevant if you’re interested in the Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (see rates and fees) and already have the Citi® / AAdvantage® Globe™ Mastercard® (see rates and fees) with a high limit, for instance.

Citi is also known to be incredibly sensitive to recent inquiries, so after you’ve used up your 5/24 slots with Chase, you might consider applying for Citi cards.

Number and timing of applications

Citi has specific rules on how often you can apply for credit cards. There are slightly different rules for personal and business cards. You can only apply for one card (personal or business) every eight days and no more than two cards in a 65-day window, and you can only apply for one business card every 90 days.

Citi 48-month rule

Citi is stricter with its credit cards than other issuers. On most of its cards, you’ll have to wait 48 months to earn the welcome bonus again. For example, here’s the language found on the Citi Strata Premier® Card (see rates and fees): “Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you received a new account bonus for a Citi Premier® or Citi Strata Premier® account in the past 48 months or if you converted another Citi credit card account on which you earned a new account bonus in the last 48 months into a Citi Premier® or Citi Strata Premier® account.”

Related: Best Citi credit cards

Wells Fargo

Number of cards

Wells Fargo generally doesn’t limit the number of cards you can have, but the normal recommendations apply regarding your overall credit profile.

Number and timing of applications

We don’t have much data on how many applications you can have with the bank. However, you can find this statement on the terms and conditions page for most Wells Fargo-issued cards: “You may not qualify for an additional Wells Fargo-branded consumer credit card if you have opened a Wells Fargo-branded consumer credit card in the last 6 months.”

Wells Fargo can also be inquiry-sensitive. As a rule of thumb, it’s best to be under 5/24 before applying for a Wells Fargo card. This isn’t a specific rule; it’s just a suggestion to increase your chances of approval.

Related: Best Wells Fargo cards

Bottom line

Travel credit cards are a great way to quickly earn points and miles across your loyalty accounts. Many carry a wealth of valuable perks in addition to an initial bonus.

Unfortunately, if you misunderstand the nuances of each issuer’s application restrictions, you could be left with a hard inquiry, a missed welcome bonus or, even worse, a hard inquiry with a flat-out denial.

While the policies above are a mix of “rules” and “guidelines,” it’s strongly encouraged that you pay close attention to them as you plan out your next set of applications.

Related: How to choose the best credit card for you