American Express Credit Card Rules
Amex's once-in-a-lifetime rule is the most consequential restriction — you can only earn the welcome bonus on a specific card once. Amex also limits you to 5 credit cards at a time.
Application Rules
You can only receive the welcome bonus for a specific Amex card once per lifetime. Amex tracks this by Social Security Number. Applying for the same card a second time will result in approval without the bonus.
- Affected cards
- All personal and business Amex credit and charge cards
- Workaround
- Amex often shows a pop-up before you complete an application warning that you are not eligible for the bonus. If you see this pop-up, do not submit — you will get the card without the bonus.
Amex limits you to 5 open credit cards at any one time. Charge cards (Green, Gold, Platinum, Business Platinum, etc.) do not count toward this limit.
- Affected cards
- All Amex credit cards (not charge cards)
- Workaround
- Close an existing Amex credit card before applying for a new one, or shift to charge cards which have no limit.
Amex typically limits approvals to 2 new cards per 90-day period across personal and business cards.
- Affected cards
- All Amex personal and business cards
- Workaround
- Space applications at least 91 days apart. Some cardholders report the limit applies separately to personal and business cards.
Amex may decline applications if you have opened 1+ Amex cards in the past 5 days, or applied for 2+ Amex cards in the same day.
- Affected cards
- All Amex cards
- Workaround
- Wait at least 5 days between Amex applications.
American Express Cards We Track
The Platinum Card from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley
The Platinum Card from American Express Exclusively for Charles Schwab
The Platinum Card from American Express
The Business Platinum Card from American Express
Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant
Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business Card
Hilton Honors Aspire
American Express Business Gold Card
Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Business Card
American Express Gold Card
American Express Graphite Business Cash Unlimited Card
Marriott Bonvoy Bevy American Express
Hilton Honors Business Card
Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express Card
Hilton Honors Surpass
Delta SkyMiles Gold Business Card
American Express Green Card
Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card
Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express
Hilton Honors American Express Card
American Express EveryDay® Credit Card
Blue Business Cash Card
Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card
Blue Business Plus Credit Card from American Express
Blue Cash Everyday Card from American Express
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the American Express Once per lifetime rule?
- You can only receive the welcome bonus for a specific Amex card once per lifetime. Amex tracks this by Social Security Number. Applying for the same card a second time will result in approval without the bonus.
- How many American Express credit cards can I have at once?
- American Express limits you to 5 open credit cards at a time. Charge cards (Gold, Platinum, etc.) do not count toward this limit.
- Do American Express rules apply to business cards?
- The once-in-a-lifetime bonus rule applies to both personal and business Amex cards. The 2/90 velocity limit applies across personal and business cards combined.
- Will American Express do a hard pull when I apply?
- American Express typically performs a single hard inquiry when you apply for a credit card. The bureau pulled varies by region and applicant.