The Apple Card is one of the most unique and interesting credit cards on the market, but as with any card, being approved ultimately comes down to someone’s credit score. Since its debut in 2019, the Apple Card has stood out as one of Apple’s most peculiar products. From Apple’s perspective, it’s the first financial-based product the company’s ever created. As a credit card, the Apple Card is the first iPhone-exclusive credit card on the planet — and one of the first credit cards from a consumer tech brand.

While the Apple Card may not be for everyone, it is a pretty compelling option for most iPhone users. It’s integrated seamlessly into the Apple Wallet app, offers instant access to customer service via iMessage, and its Daily Cash system rewards cardholders with easy-to-understand cashback earnings that are paid out every single day. For the person who owns an iPhone and wants a credit card that’s as easy to use as possible, the Apple Card makes a solid argument for itself.

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However, as is the case with any credit card, being approved for the Apple Card isn’t a guarantee. As Apple explains on its website, card issuer Goldman Sachs uses “your credit score, your credit report (including your current debt obligations), and the income you report on your application when reviewing your Apple Card application.” Unlike most credit cards, the Apple Card only pulls a hard inquiry on someone’s credit report if they’re approved and accept their offer. If someone applies and isn’t happy with the credit limit or interest rate they’re given, they can deny the offer and receive no hard inquiry at all. Similarly, anyone who applies and gets rejected for the Apple Card isn’t faced with a hard inquiry either.

How To Improve Your Chances Of Getting The Apple Card

While this system takes out a lot of the sting often associated with most credit card applications, there are still some things to keep in mind that’ll increase someone’s chances of being approved (and potentially get them a higher credit limit). One of the biggest impacts on someone’s credit score is their payment history with exisitng debt — such as credit cards, car loans, etc. If someone has a 100 percent payment history with all of their other accounts, it shows Goldman Sachs that this person can be trusted to make all of their payments. Similarly, the application will look at how much a person is using for their available credit. If someone applies and their credit report shows they’ve currently used $4,500 of their $5,000 limit across all their other cards, that high utilization can hurt their chances of being approved. By comparison, someone who only has $200 spent of that $5,000 limit will be a much more attractive candidate in Goldman Sachs’s eyes. This is why it’s recommended to pay off credit card balances as soon as possible instead of waiting to make one big payment once a month at the end of the billing cycle.

Another key factor the Apple Card application looks at is the total hard inquiries someone’s received over the last couple of years. If an applicant has 15 inquiries on their credit report, that tells Goldman Sachs they’re desperate for new credit sources and may not be a reliable customer. Alternatively, someone with 1 or 2 inquiries will be much more likely to get approved. Something else to keep in mind is the average age of someone’s credit history. Having multiple accounts in good standing is one thing, but these mean even more if they’ve been like this for 3 or 4 years instead of a couple of months. While there’s no way to increase the age of an account other than waiting, it might be worth holding off on the Apple Card until someone has at least one account that’s been open for a while like this.

As mentioned above, the upside to the Apple Card is that there’s no real consequence if someone applies and isn’t approved. They’ll receive a soft inquiry, there isn’t a negative impact on their credit score, and they can move on with their day. But if someone really wants an Apple Card and wants to ensure their application is approved, understanding the above points is tremendously helpful. If you aren’t already, using apps like Credit Karma and Experian is a great way to see your current credit score and understand how all of these factors come into play. Build up that credit history, keep making current payments, avoid too many inquiries, and that Apple Card application should be approved in no time.

Source: Apple

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About The Author


Joe Maring
(1521 Articles Published)

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Joe has been actively writing and talking about consumer tech since 2012. His biggest passion lies with smartphones, but he’s happy to talk your ear off about just about anything with a CPU. He lives in Kalamazoo, MI with his wife, two cats, and pit bull/boxer mix.

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