Chase 5/24 Rule: The #1 Thing You Need to Know

If you remember nothing else about award travel, remember this: the order you open credit cards matters. There’s one rule that can make or break your success…

Here’s why: Chase has what’s called the 5/24 rule. It means that if you’ve opened 5 or more credit cards (from any bank) in the last 24 months, Chase will not approve you for their cards.

Why does this matter? Because Chase has some of the most valuable travel cards out there with the biggest welcome bonuses + most flexible points. If you use up your first few card slots on random store cards or cash-back cards that don’t really help with travel, you might lock yourself out of Chase cards later…and miss out on thousands of dollars in nearly free flights and hotels. (cue the booing)

The good news is, once you understand this rule, it’s easy to work around. You just need to start with Chase cards first before branching out to other banks.

Staying Organized with 5/24

Now, keeping track of when you opened cards and where you’re at with 5/24 can feel a little overwhelming at first. But you don’t have to DIY spreadsheets or keep mental notes (been there, don’t recommend 😅).

Travel Freely is an app and amazing for keeping track of your cards and your 5/24 status, and I recommend it all👏🏻the👏🏻time.

Just a quick note though: when you’re actually ready to apply for a new card, I’d love if you’d use my links that I share. It’s a simple way to support my work (at no extra cost to you), and it helps me keep creating free resources like this blog.

👉 You can download it for free here: