How to prequalify for discover card?

You have 7 days to apply for your pre-approved offer before it expires. After that, you can request a new pre-approved offer.

Currently, pre-approved offers are only available online.

If we don't have an offer for you, we'll tell you why. And you're welcome to come back and submit another pre-approval request after 8 days.

Your pre-qualified (or pre-approved) offers show you which credit card offers issuers think you’ll qualify for. By comparing pre-qualified offers across different credit card issuers, you can find the best rates and benefits for you. You can see your pre-qualified offers by checking a credit card website for ‘pre-approved offers’ or ‘pre-qualified offers’. Checking for pre-qualified credit card offers will usually not impact your credit score because financial institutions place a soft inquiry on your credit report when checking your eligibility, but be sure to check the issuers’ websites for details. When you apply for a pre-approved offer, however, the issuer will place a hard inquiry on your credit report, which could impact your credit score.

Checking to see if you are pre-qualified for credit card offers with the Discover website is a great first step.

If you have pre-qualified offers, pay close attention to fees, APR (including any promotional rates), rewards programs and balance transfer offers. While finding a card that can immediately provide you with an introductory rewards bonus or a promotional rate for a limited duration, be sure to understand the long-term impact of the card on your financial future.

When you decide on your best credit card offer, your full application will include a hard inquiry that could affect your credit score.

Preapproval can help. With it, credit card issuers can give you a general idea about the accounts for which you have a strong likelihood of approval. Here’s what you need to know about Discover’s preapproval system.

To check for preapproval, visit the Discover website to access the preapproval form. At the top, you will see that the company assures applicants that there will be no adverse action against their credit when they use this feature.

You will have to input your identifying information, such as your name, address, and date of birth. Discover has many different credit cards, so you will also see a drop-down menu for the card benefit you’re looking for, such as cash back, travel rewards, or a balance transfer.

Once you start completing the application, you will see that it requires more detailed information, such as:

Discover may also mail you a pre-screened credit card offer. That means you appeared on a list of consumers who met the credit card’s initial credit criteria, which it obtained from the credit bureaus. In this case, you’ve been preapproved for the card, and may even be eligible for competitive introductory APRs.

After filling out the online preapproval form, you will see a box at the bottom of the page asking you if you wish to receive further electronic communications, give Discover permission to pull your credit report.If you click the box, the system will search for preapproval offers. Within seconds you will be presented with additional options, should any be available.

At that stage, you can read about the credit cards for which you are preapproved, and can select the one that you want. Discover’s pre-application tool will autofill the information that you already provided which streamlines the process.

Because you provide your basic personal and financial information and give the Discover permission to pull your credit report, the cards you’re presented with will likely be approved if you apply.

However, Discover notes that preapproved credit card offers do not mean guaranteed approval. You will only know if you really qualify after completing the official application and submitting it for final review.

Although the preapproval process does narrow your choices to eligible cards, the information in your credit report may have changed from the time you were preapproved. If so, you may be denied a preapproved offer that was previously presented to you. Discover would then send you a letter explaining the reason for this denial.

If Discover does not present you with any offers after going through the preapproval process, it’s an indication that you do not meet the qualifications for any of their current preapproval offers.

Eligibility is largely based on the health of your credit score. Discover stresses the importance of paying bills on time, since missed and late payments can hurt your credit scores, as can using too much of your available credit on existing credit cards. Also check your credit report for errors. If you find any, dispute them with the credit bureau so your credit reports only reflect accurate information.

You can also skip the preapproval process and apply directly. Discover offers consumers a myriad of options including cash-back, travel rewards and student cards. To narrow your choices, review the details of the various credit cards, including their benefits, rewards and terms. Discover does not publish the credit score you will need to qualify, though its student cards don’t require an established credit history and the secured card is developed for people without high credit scores.

Read the terms and conditions to learn about the account that looks best. You will also see an array of card design options from which to choose.

To apply for the card you want, press the “Apply Now” button on Discover’s website. The online form will ask you to supply your:

Within minutes you will find out if you are approved. That application, whether you’re approved or not, will result in a hard credit inquiry being added to your credit file.

Preapproval isn’t the same thing as being approved for a credit card. When a credit card company gives you a preapproved offer, it simply means that you have met basic qualifications. For example, a credit card company may send preapproval offers to prospective customers who already meet specific credit and payment history criteria. In most cases, you won’t know if a credit card company is evaluating you for a preapproval offer, and they do not need your permission to check your credit report.

Credit card issuers will typically determine who receives a preapproval offer by making a soft inquiry(also called a soft pull) on your credit report. Soft pulls usually don’t impact your credit score and don’t require you to give the lender permission to do a soft pull. If you meet the lender’s criteria, you may receive a preapproved offer for an unsecured or a secured credit card.

Preapproval just means that your information has gone through this initial process, you still have to apply to get approved for the credit card. Your lender might need more information to finish your application.

A credit card company may look for people who meet certain criteria that it desires for new card customers. The companies work with the three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) to get contact information for prospective customers who meet the criteria they’ve outlined. They’ll use that information to send prospective customers preapproval offers to encourage them to apply for an account.

Because lenders typically look for borrowers with good credit history, your chance of getting preapproval offers may increase when you practice responsible credit habits. If you meet the criteria of a lot of different credit card companies, you might get multiple different preapproval offers. This can allow you to compare them to determine what credit card terms would be best for you.

Preapproved credit card offers are potentially a much better way to apply for a new account than selecting a credit card company at random. Here are some of the reasons why:

Preapproval is one way to review your credit card options, but you may have heard of something called prequalification. What’s the difference?

The major difference between preapproval and prequalification is who reached out first. Here’s what we mean:

In the case of preapproval, the credit card issuer reached out first. You may not have considered getting a card from them, but because you met some of their basic requirements for an account, they sent you an offer. That means lenders have already looked at some of your information to determine your creditworthiness (how likely you are to pay your credit card bill).

Prequalification is different. When you prequalify for a credit card offer, you make the first move and reach out to the credit card company to see if they could approve you. When you do, the credit card company will look at their different offers and decide which ones you could qualify for if you apply. A prequalified offer is not guaranteed approval but gives you a good idea of the best credit card offers you may be eligible for.

It’s important to note that neither preapproval nor prequalification are guarantees that you will get a credit card account. This is because the details of your credit report could have changed between the time of the offer and the hard credit pull that you approve when you apply for a card.

Generally, credit card preapproved offers don’t impact your credit score. However, if you apply for the offer, the lender may request a hard pull of your credit file(s) to make a final decision about your application. A hard inquiry may show up on your credit report(s) and affect your credit score.

Once you get the preapproval offer and decide to apply, you’ll likely be asked for more information from the potential lender. For instance, they may ask about your income and finances before pulling your credit.