Pre-Approved vs Pre-Qualified Credit Cards: What's the Difference?

In the world of credit cards, there are two similar terms that come up a lot: pre-approval and pre-qualification. They’re easy to confuse, and credit card applications already have enough confusing terms to worry about.

Use this guide to understand the difference between pre-approved vs pre-qualified credit cards to make your application process simpler.

Understanding Pre-Qualified Offers

If you’re interested in opening a new credit card, you may reach out to a credit card company to see whether it will pre-qualify you for a card. A pre-qualified offer means the credit card issuer does a soft credit inquiry — it reviews your credit report without impacting your credit scores. The issuer also does a basic review of your personal information and uses those details to decide whether it should pre-qualify you for a card.

Keep in mind that even if you are pre-qualified, there is no guarantee that the credit card company will approve your formal application. Credit card companies reserve the right to deny your application.

Even so, getting a pre-qualified offer is generally a step in the right direction. If you’re pre-qualified, you know there’s a good chance you’ll get approved for the card. You can use that information to narrow down the list of credit cards to apply for.

Exploring Pre-Approved Offers

A pre-approved offer means the credit card company is the one initiating the process — it reaches out to you to let you know you are pre-approved for a certain card.

Like pre-qualification, the pre-approval process generally involves a soft credit inquiry and a general review of credit history. Neither pre-approved nor pre-qualified credit cards affect your credit score.

If the credit card company decides you’re a good fit for one of their cards, it may send you a pre-approval offer. Generally, being pre-approved means you’re even more likely to get approved for the card than being pre-qualified, but it’s still no guarantee.

Comparing Pre-Qualified and Pre-Approved Offers

You may be pre-qualified for some cards and pre-approved for others. But is it better to be pre-approved or pre-qualified?

When you’re comparing pre-approved vs. pre-qualified credit card offers​, you can generally assume that pre-approval carries a bit more weight. Since the credit card issuer initiated the pre-approval process, that’s a good sign that you have a better chance of approval than for a pre-qualified card.

Can you get denied after pre-approval for a credit card, though? Yes, with both pre-qualification and pre-approval, the credit card company can still deny your application.

If you have poor credit and are worried you won’t be approved, work on improving your credit history or check out credit cards for bad credit.

Major Financial Institutions Offering Pre-Qualification

Many major financial institutions offer a pre-qualification or pre-qualification process. If you’re looking for a new card, check out the process with Capital One, Discover, and American Express.

Capital One’s Pre-Qualification

With Capital One, you can check whether you have any pre-approval offers by simply answering pre-approval questions about topics like your income and date of birth. If you’re pre-approved for any cards, you can explore your offers and accept the one that fits your needs. 

Discover’s Pre-Approval Features

Visit Discover’s website to see if you’re pre-approved for any Discover cards. You just need to enter simple details, including your:

• Name
• Address
• Date of birth
• Monthly housing payment
• Annual income
• Whether you are a student

If you’re pre-approved, you can submit an application for that card right from the website.

American Express Pre-Qualification Options

American Express also offers pre-qualification options that let you see card offers that match your credit profile. You provide some basic personal and financial details, and then American Express shows you the cards you pre-qualify for.

Keep in mind that one of the American Express approval requirements is a good credit score, so if you have poor credit, you likely will not pre-qualify for any AmEx cards. If you’re not seeing appealing pre-qualification options for traditional cards, virtual credit cards are another great option to explore. 

Benefits of Pre-Qualified and Pre-Approved Offers

Since pre-qualification and pre-approval don’t guarantee approval, you may wonder how they help you. Well, there are a few benefits to these offers, such as:

• Getting a better idea of what cards you’ll be approved for
• Avoiding unnecessary hard credit inquiries that could hurt your credit score
• Being able to strategically plan your credit accounts

You don’t need to pursue pre-qualified and pre-approved offers, but they’re great options for making more informed decisions about your credit card applications.

Dealing with Unsolicited Offers

You may have received unsolicited credit card offers in the mail before. It’s normal but also annoying.

If you want to stop receiving these offers, you can opt out for five years or permanently on optoutprescreen.com, an official, confidential website recommended by the Federal Trade Commission. Alternatively, you can call 1-888-5-OPT-OUT and follow the directions.

Remember that credit card offers are just that — offers. You can ignore them or choose other options as you see fit.

For example, you might get an offer for a balance transfer card, which is essentially paying off a credit card with another credit card to save on interest payments. But if you don’t have much credit card debt, it probably wouldn’t make sense to act on that offer. 

Learn More About the Best Credit Card Offers with Money Atlas

When it comes to pre-approved vs pre-qualified credit cards, there are so many options that it can be challenging to find the right choice for your needs. That’s what Money Atlas is here for.

With thorough credit card comparisons that cover interest rates, terms, rewards, and more, Money Atlas makes the search easy. Compare offers to find the best credit card for you with Money Atlas today.