Does the PenFed Power Cash Rewards card have pre-approval?

Yes, it is hard to get a PenFed credit card. As of July 2020, all of PenFed’s main credit card offers require excellent credit for approval, or a score of 750+. Those include the PenFed Platinum Rewards card, Gold Visa and Power Cash Rewards card. In addition, PenFed’s other credit cards that are co-branded with various organizations tend to require good credit, or a score of 700+. Therefore, PenFed credit cards are hard to get for the average person, since the average credit score is only in the fair credit range. Applicants who don’t have a steady income will also find it hard to get a PenFed credit card, although PenFed doesn’t disclose a specific income needed for approval.… read full answer

Another factor that makes it hard to get a PenFed credit card is that you can’t apply for the card without first becoming a member of the credit union. While doing so is free, as well as open to any U.S. citizen or permanent resident, it does require the time to fill out an extra application and open a savings account with at least $5 in it. If you don’t want to go through that trouble just to apply, especially when approval isn’t guaranteed, you may want to look elsewhere.

The only way to get pre-approved for a PenFed credit card is if you received a pre-approved offer via mail or e-mail. PenFed does not have an online tool to check for pre-approval.

Here’s what you should know about PenFed credit card pre-approval:

• Unlike online pre-approvals that may return results for multiple cards with the highest odds of approval, PenFed’s mailed or e-mailed pre-approval offers will be for one specific credit card.… read full answer
• You can respond to a PenFed credit card pre-approval offer online or over the phone at (800) 247 -5626. Be sure to provide the access code at the bottom of the offer letter so that PenFed can flag the application as pre-approved.
• Non-members who are approved for the card must also qualify for PenFed membership, which includes opening a PenFed savings account with a minimum $5 deposit.
• PenFed pre-approval doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be approved for a card, but it does indicate that your chances of getting approved are very high if you apply.
• Pre-approvals do not affect your credit score, as they’re done using a soft inquiry. But if you decide to apply for the card, PenFed will conduct a hard inquiry, which will lead to a slight, but temporary decrease in your credit score.

Alternatively, you can use WalletHub’s CardAdvisor tool to find the right credit card for you. Just answer a few general questions, and based on your responses, CardAdvisor will provide you with some recommended credit card offers.

Make sure to also check out our editors’ picks for the best pre-approved credit cards available right now on the market.

Pre-approved and pre-qualified credit card offers both indicate that a potential credit card applicant is likely to be approved. The terms are often used interchangeably, but their exact definitions are a bit different. A pre-approved credit card offer is when a credit card issuer proactively browses someone’s credit history and decides that he or she is likely meet the requirements for one of its cards. A pre-qualified credit card offer is when someone asks a credit card company to take a preliminary look at his or her credit history to gauge the likelihood of approval if an application is submitted.… read full answer

Both pre-approved and pre-qualified credit card offers have no effect on your credit standing. They only use a harmless “soft pull.” But if you decide to apply after being pre-qualified or pre-approved, the issuer will do a “hard pull” of your credit, which will temporarily lower your score.

Pre-approved vs. pre-qualified credit cards:

Pre-approved and pre-qualified offers generally provide an 80% - 90% chance of approval. On the other hand, if you get a “pre-selected” offer, it means you fit some general criteria established by the issuer and have around a 70% chance of approval. Lastly, an “invitation to apply” gets sent out based on demographics, not your credit. Such offers have lower acceptance rates because they’re sent to large groups of people and are not as targeted.