Can you combine Capital One credit cards?

Combining credit cards lets you merge balances and credit limits of two cards, but you have to close one of the cards. This is useful because Capital One limits you to only two cards. So if you want another Capital One card, your only option is to merge your two cards to free up some space.

Unfortunately, Capital One has stopped combining credit cards — although they claim only temporarily. Call Capital One to ask if they’ve resumed this program.

Alternative to combining credit cards with Capital One

Even if Capital One combines credit cards again, you may not qualify if you missed your payments. But if you’re keen on bypassing Capital One’s two card limit to boost your purchasing power or to get a signup bonus, here’s what else you can do:

• Request a credit limit increase. If you’re only looking to increase your purchasing power, request a credit limit increase for your Capital One credit cards.
• Apply for a cobranded credit card. If you’re a loyal Capital One customer and you don’t want to look for other providers to get another credit card, apply for one of Capital One’s cobranded cards, such as the BuyPower Card®. Cobranded cards don’t count toward the two-card limit.
• Request a product change. Since the bank only allows two credit cards per person, they’ve made it easy to request a product change on one of your cards.
• Apply for a credit card from another provider. If there’s no cobranded card that catches your eye or if you can’t get a credit limit increase, you can always apply for a credit card from another provider. Aside from getting another line of credit, getting a new credit card can potentially get your lower APR, a solid rewards program or a generous welcome offer.

Bottom line

Capital One was one of the rare credit card providers that allowed combining the balance and credit limits of two cards into one. Though this process has temporarily stopped, you can call Capital One to ask if the process has resumed.

But if you don’t want to wait, you can always compare credit cards from other providers and apply for the one that best fits your financial needs.

Frequently asked questions

• Does combining credit cards hurt credit?
  It depends. To combine cards you must keep one credit card and close another. If you close an older credit card account, it will shorten your credit history and could hurt your credit score.
• Do other credit card issuers allow credit card combining?
  Unfortunately, no. Capital One was one of the rare credit card providers that allowed combining two credit cards into one.