Too many bank/national revolving accounts

FICO code numbers

Code numbers can differ by bureau and score version. The wording of the statement is what to match.

What puts this reason on your score

This statement appears on Equifax and Experian FICO Scores as code 04. It's driven by how many bank and national revolving accounts are on the report, not by your balances. Someone who opened cards for sign-up bonuses over a few years can see it with every card at zero.

FICO doesn't publish the count that triggers it, and the answer depends on the rest of the file. A long history with many cards may never draw it, while a younger file with the same number can. Closing cards to clear it can cost more than it saves, because a closed card's limit drops out of your utilization math.

What to check on your credit report

• Count open bank cards on your Equifax and Experian reports.
• Look for cards you thought you closed that still show as open.
• Note which cards charge annual fees you no longer get value from.

What you can do about it

• Stop opening new cards for now. The count only goes up with each approval.
• Keep older no-fee cards open. Their limits help utilization and their age helps your length of history.
• If you do close a card, pick a newer one with a small limit and no balance.

How soon a change can show

This code eases only as the card count falls or the file gets older. Closed cards in good standing can keep reporting for years, so closing is a slow fix at best.

If you are applying for a mortgage

Don't close cards during a mortgage process to chase this code. Closing cuts your available credit, and a jump in utilization can lower the score a lender pulls again before closing.

Guides that go deeper

• What closing a credit card does to your scoreClosing a card cuts your available credit right away but doesn't erase its history for years. See the utilization math and when closing is still the right call.
• How many credit cards should you have? The math behind the numberFICO publishes no ideal number of credit cards. What matters is what each card does to utilization, account age and recent applications. The math, worked out.
• Product change or cancel? What each one does to your creditAnnual fee coming due? Ask for a retention offer, then a no-fee downgrade, which keeps the card's age and limit. Canceling removes the limit. The math.
• What your credit score reason codes are telling youReason codes list what held your score back the most, in order. What the common ones mean, which you can act on, and which to leave alone.