Soft Inquiry vs. Hard Inquiry: Compared | Capital One (2024)

FAQs

Is Capital One credit increase a soft inquiry? ›

If you have a Capital One credit card, requesting a credit limit increase won't hurt your credit. That's because Capital One credit reviews involve soft inquiries. But that might not be the case for other issuers. If a credit limit increase involves a hard inquiry, that could cause credit scores to dip temporarily.

Soft inquiries don't impact credit scores. This type of credit check commonly occurs when your credit reports are reviewed for things like a background check or pre-approval offer.

Going through Capital One's pre-approval process won't affect your credit, but applying for a credit card typically results in a hard credit check, which can temporarily lower your credit scores. Getting pre-approved doesn't guarantee you'll be approved once you apply for a credit card.

The defining factor is that a soft inquiry occurs when someone is only seeking credit information about you (but not looking into making you a loan), while a hard inquiry happens when a lender is deciding whether to make you a loan.

Unfortunately, Citi and Capital One are both incredibly sensitive to this. I've heard stories from plenty of friends with credit scores over 800 who both issuers have rejected for having too many recent inquiries on their credit report.

A request may be denied because of previous missed payments or a high balance. Or it may be because the account hasn't been open long enough. If your credit limit increase request is denied, it doesn't mean you can't get approved for one in the future.

You can't remove hard inquiries unless they are fraudulent, but even legitimate hard inquiries don't ding your credit score too much. Other things, namely, paying bills on time and using less than 30% of your credit limits, influence your credit score more than hard inquiries do.

Soft inquiries do not affect credit scores and are not visible to potential lenders that may review your credit reports. They are visible to you and will stay on your credit reports for 12 to 24 months, depending on the type. The other type of inquiry is a “hard” inquiry.

Unlike hard inquiries, soft inquiries won't affect your credit scores. (They may or may not be recorded in your credit reports, depending on the credit bureau.) Since soft inquiries aren't connected to a specific application for new credit, they're only visible to you when you view your credit reports.

You need a credit score of 700 or higher (good to excellent credit) to get the best Capital One credit card offers. Other options are also available for people with lower scores, as it is possible to get approved for Capital One credit card with limited credit history or a bad credit score.

Why is it so hard to get a Capital One credit card? ›

Some Capital One credit cards are hard to get because they require at least good credit, which means you need a credit score of 700+ for good approval odds. Other Capital One credit cards are easier for people with lower credit scores to get approved for, so it's important to choose wisely.

It is not very hard to get a Capital One credit card because Capital One offers cards for people with bad credit, no credit, or better. As long as you meet a Capital One card's credit score requirement and you have a steady income, you should have a good chance of being approved.

Which Credit Bureau Does Capital One Use? Capital One appears to pull from any of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Though all evidence is limited to anecdotal data, Capital One does seem to rely on specific bureaus in some states, though this is not a guarantee.

Does getting pre-approved for a credit card hurt your credit scores? Typically, the credit card pre-approval process doesn't affect a person's credit scores. For example, pre-approval at Capital One uses soft credit checks, which involve a simple review of credit and don't affect scores.

A soft inquiry happens whenever you check your credit report, or when a lender checks your credit report without your knowledge or permission. Soft inquiries have no effect on your credit score. Lenders can't even see how many soft inquiries have been made on your credit report.

You recently applied for a new line of credit or requested an increase with another creditor: You may experience a hard credit pull if you apply for a new line of credit, and there's a good chance you'll incur a hard credit inquiry for the requested credit limit increase.

Issuers will generally offer you a credit line increase periodically without you having to ask for it. In these circ*mstances, they will likely only use a soft inquiry, which won't impact your credit. Just check with your card issuer so you understand how your score will be affected.

Cardholders in good standing (e.g. good credit score, consistent on-time payments) may also receive an automatic credit limit increase once or twice a year. If requesting an increase from Capital One, approval can happen immediately or could take up to 30 days to process.

Consider accepting a pre-approved credit limit increase if: You pay off your card every month and have no problem making payments. You need to make a big purchase, and the extra credit will be handy. You may need a higher limit at a later date.