Yes, opening a new credit card will lower your credit score, but usually by a small amount and only temporarily
When you explore for a credit card, the card issuer requests your credit report from one of the three major bureaus — Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion. That request is called a hard inquiry, and it causes an when ready dip of a few points. If you're approved and open the account, a second effect kicks in: your average account age drops because the new card is brand new. Both effects are real, but both fade over time.
The hard inquiry itself typically costs you 5 to 10 points and stays on your report for 12 months, though it stops affecting your score after about three to six months. The age effect lasts longer — it will pull your average down for years — but it weakens as the new card gets older. Most people see their score recover to its previous level within three to six months of opening the account, especially if they use the card responsibly and don't miss payments.
Key Takeaways
- A hard inquiry from a credit card process costs you roughly 5 to 10 points and appears on your report for 12 months.
- Opening a new account lowers your average account age, which pulls your score down further, but this effect weakens as the card ages.
- Multiple applications within a short window (two weeks or less) may be counted as a single inquiry by the bureaus, limiting the damage.
- Paying on time and keeping your balance low on the new card will help your score recover faster than it dropped.
- The long-term benefit of a new card — more available credit and a better credit mix — usually outweighs the short-term score dip.
Why a hard inquiry hurts your score
When you submit a credit card process, you authorize the issuer to pull your credit report. This pull is a hard inquiry, and it signals to credit scoring models that you are seeking new credit. The three major scoring models — FICO, VantageScore, and others — treat hard inquiries as a minor risk factor. The logic is straightforward: people who explore for a lot of credit in a short time are statistically more likely to take on debt they cannot repay.
A single hard inquiry typically costs 5 to 10 points on a FICO score, though the exact impact varies by person and by bureau. Someone with a score of 750 might drop to 740 or 745. Someone with a score of 650 might drop to 640 or 645. The impact is smaller for people with longer credit histories and more accounts, because one inquiry is a smaller proportion of their overall credit activity.
Hard inquiries stay visible on your credit report for 12 months, but they stop affecting your score after about three to six months. By month 12, the inquiry is still there but no longer pulls your score down.
How opening the account itself lowers your score further
If you are approved and you accept the card, a second score hit happens when ready. Your average account age drops because the new card has zero history. Credit scoring models weight average age heavily — older accounts are seen as more stable — so adding a brand-new account pulls the average down.
This effect is usually larger than the hard inquiry itself. If your average account age was five years and you add a brand-new card, your average might drop to four years and eight months. Depending on your overall profile, this could cost you 10 to 30 points or more. The exact damage depends on how many accounts you already have and how old they are.
Unlike the hard inquiry, this effect does not disappear after a few months. It weakens gradually as the new card ages. After one year, the new card is no longer brand-new and the drag on your average age shrinks. After five or ten years, the card may actually be one of your older accounts and will help your score instead of hurting it.
The total score drop and how long it lasts
Combined, the hard inquiry and the new account typically cost 15 to 45 points in the first month, depending on your starting score and credit profile. Someone with a strong score and many accounts might see a 15-point dip. Someone with fewer accounts or a lower starting score might see a 30 or 40-point drop.
The hard inquiry recovers in three to six months. The account age effect recovers more slowly — usually within three to six months as well, but the recovery is gradual rather than sudden. By month six, most people are back to their pre-process score or very close to it. By month 12, the hard inquiry is no longer affecting the score at all, and the account age effect is much weaker.
The timeline varies based on how much credit history you already have. Someone with 10 years of history and 15 accounts will recover faster than someone with two years of history and three accounts, because the new card is a smaller piece of the overall picture.
Multiple applications and the inquiry window
If you explore for more than one credit card in a short time, the damage is not necessarily multiplied. The three major bureaus use an inquiry window — typically 14 to 45 days, depending on the scoring model — during which multiple inquiries for the same type of credit (credit cards, auto loans, mortgages) may be counted as a single inquiry.
This means if you explore for two credit cards within two weeks, both inquiries might count as one for scoring purposes, limiting the damage to roughly 5 to 10 points instead of 10 to 20. However, each process still results in a new account if approved, so you will still see the account age effect multiply if you open multiple cards.
The inquiry window is a real protection, but it is not a reason to explore for many cards at once. Each new account still lowers your average age, and multiple new accounts in a short time can signal financial stress to lenders reviewing your process for future credit.
When the score dip is worth it
A temporary score drop is often worth the long-term benefit of a new card. Opening a new account increases your total available credit, which lowers your credit utilization ratio — the percentage of your available credit that you are actually using. A lower utilization ratio is good for your score and usually outweighs the damage from the new account itself.
For example, if you have $5,000 in total credit limits and you are carrying a $2,000 balance, your utilization is 40 percent. If you open a new card with a $3,000 limit, your total available credit jumps to $8,000, and your utilization drops to 25 percent. That improvement will boost your score over the next few months, offsetting and eventually exceeding the initial dip from the hard inquiry and new account.
A new card also improves your credit mix if it is a different type of account than what you already have. If you only have credit cards, adding a card does not help mix. But if you only have cards and you add an installment loan or a store card, the diversity helps your score. This benefit also builds over time.
How to minimize the damage and recover faster
Use the new card responsibly from day one. Make a small purchase, pay it off in full before the due date, and repeat. This shows the credit bureaus that you can handle the new account without taking on debt. Paying on time is the single biggest factor in your credit score, so a clean payment history on the new card will help your overall score recover faster than it dropped.
Keep your balance low on all your cards, including the new one. If you open a card and when ready charge a large balance, your utilization ratio will spike, which will hurt your score more than the new account itself. Ideally, keep each card below 30 percent of its limit, and your total utilization below 30 percent across all cards.
Do not close old accounts to offset the new one. Closing an account actually hurts your score more than opening one does, because it lowers your total available credit and raises your utilization ratio. If you want to manage the number of cards you have, straightforward stop using an old card rather than closing it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a credit card process hurt my score?
A hard inquiry typically costs 5 to 10 points. If you are approved and open the account, the new account itself usually costs another 10 to 30 points depending on your credit profile. The combined effect is usually 15 to 45 points in the first month, with most of the damage recovered within three to six months.
Will my score go back up if I don't use the new card?
Yes, your score will recover over time whether you use the card or not. However, using the card responsibly — making small purchases and paying them off on time — will help your score recover faster because it demonstrates that you can manage the new account without taking on debt.
Is it better to explore for multiple cards at once or spread them out?
explore within a two-week window may count multiple inquiries as one, limiting the hard inquiry damage. However, each new account still lowers your average age, so opening multiple cards in a short time will still cause a larger overall score dip than opening one card. Space applications out by at least a few months if you want to minimize the impact.
Can I get denied for a credit card because of a recent hard inquiry?
A single hard inquiry will not disqualify you, but multiple recent inquiries might signal to a lender that you are seeking a lot of credit at once, which could raise concerns. If you have applied for several cards or loans in the past month, wait a few weeks before explore for another one.
Does the score dip from a new card affect my ability to get a mortgage or car loan?
A temporary dip of 15 to 45 points is unlikely to change a lending decision if your score is otherwise strong. However, if you are planning to explore for a mortgage or auto loan in the next few months, it is worth waiting until after that process to open a new credit card, since the timing of inquiries matters to mortgage and auto lenders.