Here’s how long it takes to increase your credit card spending limit:

I got approved for a credit card, but the limit is less than my patience is already exhausted. I want a higher limit so I can spend more without harming my credit score.

There are a few things you can do to increase your credit card spending limit. You can wait for your credit issuer to increase your limit on its own, or you can request a limit increase manually.

Automatic growth takes at least 6 months.

Your credit card company will impose a lower limit if they think you can handle it. You must wait at least six months after being approved for a new credit card.

But it may take longer than that. Discover® tripled my first credit card limit from $500 to $1,500 within a year of being approved. Thanks to the steady increase in automatic credit growth, the limit has increased by more than 10 times.

Going for a hike proved to me that Discover can trust me to spend responsibly. I did this by paying my credit card bills on time and using no more than 30% of my total credit limit. This is also called credit utilization. It’s important.

Why credit card companies like Discover care if you spend responsibly: If I overspend and don’t pay off my credit card debt, Discover loses money. This is why the best credit card issuers start with low limits and steadily increase them.

The maximum time period for a manual increase is 1 month.

According to Experian, it can take up to a month for your credit card company to approve a new credit limit increase if you request it manually. However, some companies approve it on the spot.

You can manually request a credit card increase through your credit card app or website. Discover allows you to request a higher credit limit by:

1. When you open the Discover app,
2. If you go to credit card,
3. When you tap the “Services” tab,
4. Tap ‘Increase Credit Limit’
5. Enter your average annual income plus your monthly rent.
6. Tap “Submit”

(As of this writing, I went through these steps and was immediately approved for a $3,000 credit limit increase, from $9,000 to $12,000. Not too shabby, Discover.)

Some companies include: chase afterWe recommend calling to request an increase. You should have your projected annual income and rent ready in advance. You should also wait at least six months rather than making one request after another. Otherwise you will probably be rejected.

Obstacles to increasing your credit limit

Late payments, using too much credit, and loss of income can make it more difficult to get a higher credit limit. All of these are signals to the credit card company that you are at risk of not being able to pay off your credit card debt.

But these factors don’t tell the whole story. You may still be on solid footing despite losing income or paying even one late payment.

Unfortunately, credit card companies rely heavily on your FICO® score to summarize your situation in an easy-to-understand way. A lot of the nuance has been lost. Credit card companies are more likely to trust numbers than the personal story you have to tell.

This results in late payments, loss of income, and high credit utilization becoming obstacles to increasing your credit limit. If possible, wait until your credit score has improved before requesting an increase. Doing so will maximize your chances of getting more credit.

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