Bogdan Roberts, Credit Cards Moderator
@bogdan_roberts
Yes, Capital One will close a credit card for inactivity after an extended period of time, but only after contacting the cardholder first. Capital One doesn't provide a specific time frame for closing credit card accounts due to inactivity, but it’s usually longer than 12 months.
Things to Know If Your Capital One Credit Card Account is Inactive
- When the account has been inactive for too long, Capital One will notify the cardholder by mail or email. That way, Capital One gives them the chance to use the account again to avoid having it closed.
- Note that "inactivity" means that there has been no purchase, transaction, or balance on the account.
- To avoid having Capital One close your credit card for inactivity, just make at least one purchase per year.
- The best thing to do for your credit score is to make one small purchase every month and pay it off in full. For example, it could be something you would have paid for anyway, like gas or groceries.
If Capital One does close your credit card account for inactivity, you should expect to see a drop in your credit score, due to a change in the average age of your accounts.
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I used to charge a small, recurring amount to my Capital One cash rewards card just to keep it open, but back in 2020 Capital One significantly reduced the credit limit on my card due to lack of utilization. I was not thrilled with this and contacted them, but they said there was nothing they could do because of the limited amount charged to the card. Sure, many other banks during this time were lowering credit limits too (the practice made the daily broadcast TV news), but I had no trouble with any of my other banks in getting them to keep my limits as is. One of the few reasons I wanted to keep the Capital One card was for potential travel where the lack of a Foreign Transaction Fee might come in handy. I do have another card with no FTF, but its rewards program is less desirable to use vs. my Capital One card, in this travel scenario. However, since Capital One is by far the youngest of my credit cards and the credit limit is now so small relative to my other, much older cards, I have stopped charging even small items to the card and have little concern about the ‘threat’ of closure having a negative impact on my credit score. If Capital One really wanted to keep me as an active customer they should have offered better, more competitive cash rewards, but doing things like lowering existing credit limits is a sure-fire way for me to stop directing any business their way. I no longer charge anything to the card. If they close my account, good riddance.