The card-hobby decoder: forum slang from 5/24 to YMMV, and the terms that signal risk

Open any US card forum and you will read something like "DP: approved for CSP with the SUB after 4 years, HP, under 5/24, PC'd from CFU, YMMV." That sentence has real information in it, and no ordinary reader can parse it. This page decodes the terms, grouped by what they do, taken largely from Doctor of Credit's long abbreviations list.

Rules and numbers

5/24

Chase's rule: you are likely to be declined for many Chase cards if you opened five or more accounts, with any issuer, in the past 24 months. People write 8/24 to say how far over they are. See US issuer application rules.

2/30

Chase's pace limit: two approved cards in a 30-day window.

8/65

A reference to Citi's application limits.

6/24

Barclays' softer version of the same idea, over 24 months.

SUB

Sign-up bonus. See sign-up bonuses explained.

MSR

Minimum spend requirement. What you must spend to earn the SUB.

Lifetime language

Offer wording that limits a bonus to people who have not held the card before. See bonus eligibility.

Pop-up jail

The message on a Chase application page saying you are not eligible for the bonus.

Account actions

HP / SP

Hard pull and soft pull. A hard pull is an inquiry that can lower your score, a soft pull does not. See soft and hard inquiries.

PC

Product change. Converting a card to another product from the same issuer, often to drop an annual fee.

CLI

Credit limit increase.

AU

Authorized user. Someone added to your account.

AF

Annual fee. See annual fees and break-even.

FTF

Foreign transaction fee. See no-FTF cards.

Recon

Reconsideration. A call to ask the issuer to review a denial or a closure.

HUCA

Hang up, call again. Calling back when a representative will not help, hoping for a different one.

AAoA

Average age of accounts, a credit-history factor.

Adverse action

A denial or closure that the lender must explain. See your rights under ECOA.

Cards and currencies

CSP / CSR

Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve. (CSR can also mean a customer service rep.)

CFU / CFF

Chase Freedom Unlimited and Freedom Flex.

BCE / BCP

Blue Cash Everyday and Blue Cash Preferred, from Amex.

DC

Double Cash, Citi's flat 2% card. (Also debit card.)

UR

Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

MR

Amex Membership Rewards points.

TYP

Citi ThankYou points.

C1

Capital One.

CPP

Cents per point. See rewards math.

PYB

Pay yourself back. A redemption that offsets purchases.

Airlines, hotels and travel

AA / UA / DL / SW

American, United, Delta and Southwest.

AS / B6

Alaska and JetBlue.

BA / JL / KE / EK

British Airways, Japan Airlines, Korean Air and Emirates.

WoH / IHG / HH

World of Hyatt, IHG and Hilton Honors.

F / J / Y

First, business and economy cabins.

FN

Free night.

PP

Priority Pass, the lounge network. See credit card lounge access.

CP

Southwest Companion Pass.

Community talk

DP

Data point. One person's reported experience, not an official rule.

YMMV

Your mileage may vary. Results are not guaranteed.

OP

Original poster.

P1 / P2

Player one and player two. Two people in a household playing the same game.

OOS

Out of state. Often about banks' regional offers.

DDF / FT / MMS / OMAAT

Forums and blogs, such as Dan's Deals Forums, FlyerTalk, Million Mile Secrets and One Mile At A Time.

The slang that signals risk

Reading a real post

In plain English: a reader reports that they were approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred and received the sign-up bonus four years after holding it before, with a hard pull. They had fewer than five new accounts in 24 months, and had converted a Freedom Unlimited into it. Results may differ for you. That one sentence uses five of the terms above, and it illustrates why the lifetime language is a risk and not a rule.