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Does Switching Credit Cards Affect Your Credit Scores?
Your credit scores may be impacted — either in a good or bad way — when you switch credit cards. Here are a few things to expect.
Cancelling The Credit Card
Depending on the credit scoring model used, around 15% of a credit score calculation is based on the credit history or age of the credit accounts. As such, if you cancel your current credit card to switch to another, it may negatively affect your credit scores as it’ll be lowering the average age of your credit accounts.
Generally, it is recommended to keep old credit card accounts open, unless there’s a high fee associated with it. If there’s no fee, keeping your credit card account open and active (1-2 transactions a month) can be beneficial for your credit.
Applying For A New Credit Card
When you apply for a new credit card, your creditor will want to see a copy of your credit report. This is known as a “hard inquiry,” and when this happens, your credit scores may be negatively affected. It’s important not to apply for too many credit cards within a short period of time to protect your credit scores from too many hard inquiries.
Credit Limit Changes
If you decide to cancel your current credit card to switch to another one, it may impact your credit limit. If your new credit card has a lower credit limit, it can affect your debt-to-credit ratio which usually accounts for 30% of a credit score, depending on the credit scoring model used.
For example, if your old credit card had a credit limit of $5,000 and your new credit card has a credit limit of $3,000, it will impact the way your debt-to-credit ratio is calculated. If you have a balance of $1,000, your debt-to-credit ratio would be 20% for your old credit card and 33% for your new credit card.
Generally, a lower credit utilization ratio is better for your credit scores, and your credit limits play a key role. If you’re able to get a higher credit limit on a new card, your credit utilization ratio may be positively impacted. But the opposite may also be true if the credit limit on your new card is lower.
Switching Credit Cards With The Same Bank
Switching to a new credit card with the same bank may be the easier way to go. The new credit card will be under the same bank account, so there will likely be no need to re-apply for a credit card or have a credit check performed. You may even be pre-approved for certain credit cards.
That said, you probably won’t be able to take advantage of any introductory welcome bonuses that new clients would have available to them.
Switching Credit Cards With A Different Bank
The biggest perk of switching cards with a different bank is that you’ll benefit from introductory signup bonuses, such as a 0% introductory APR, free welcome bonus points, or waived fees in the first year.
Just be aware that you’ll likely need to go through a new credit card application process. This means the creditor may perform a credit check, which may pull your credit scores down temporarily.
Tips On Switching Credit Cards
Before you switch your credit card for a new one, consider the following tips: