BMO Adds an Online Preapproval Tool That Doesn’t Require a Hard Credit Check

The Bank of Montreal, more commonly known as BMO, has introduced a new tool allowing prospective credit card applicants to get preapproved before officially applying.

This means customers can get a pretty good idea (though not a guarantee) of what cards they’ll be approved for without the bank requiring a hard credit pull.

Let’s take a look at the details.

BMO’s New Preapproval Tool

BMO now offers a tool that allows customers to check their preapproval status for a credit card before applying, as first reported by Doctor of Credit. While preapproval does not mean a guaranteed approval, it does allow you to get a better idea of your chances without necessitating a hard credit pull.

If you want to check your preapproval status with BMO, you will need to provide your employment status, income, and housing payment. If you’re approved and accept your offer, then your credit will be pulled.

BMO offers a range of credit cards, from cash-back products to rewards-earning cards. Some charge annual fees, while others do not.

The bank joins a number of other credit card issuers that offer preapproval tools for their credit cards. The others include American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, and Citi.

In addition to the issuers themselves, there’s CardMatch, a platform that lists prequalified offers from multiple banks or issuers. It’s a great resource to use if you’re not dead-set on a particular credit card or issuer.

CardMatch works by matching you with potential credit cards based on various factors like your credit score, your income, what perks you’re looking for in a new credit card, and more.

While CardMatch does perform a soft pull on your credit to learn your score, this soft pull does not impact your credit score and helps the CardMatch algorithm determine what credit cards might be a good fit for you.

Final Thoughts

BMO has introduced a consumer-friendly tool for customers who are thinking about applying for a credit card. The ability to check preapproval status before officially applying is very helpful, especially considering how many aspects of life require a hard credit pull and how these can drop your score a few points for a while.

The bank joins several other issuers, including some of the biggest banks, in offering this capability. If you’re interested in discovering even more preapproved and prequalified offers, don’t forget about the CardMatch tool!