Update 3/15/21: Frequentmiler has a data point indicating that while Green cards are considered a credit card to use up a spot for future applications, they are not considered a credit card when actually applying for the Green card. So if you already maxed out your 4/5 credit card slots, you can still get approved for a Green card. But once you have the Green card it’ll add to your credit card totals to potentially stop you from getting approved for another card afterward.
Update 2/17/21: One reader report suggests that this negative change is only for Green cards opened after October 2019.
Original Post:
We’ve mentioned before about increased grumblings that American Express charge cards might be considered a ‘credit card’ – toward your limit of 4 total American Express credit cards – when Pay Over Time is enabled. Here’s how to easily unenroll in Pay Over Time.
Now, Reddit reports suggest that in the case of the AmEx Green consumer card, specifically, even if you have have Pay Over Time disabled it will still count against you as one of your credit cards. (It’s not entirely clear why that would be the case, though some have noted that the Green cards allow Pay Over Time even on small transactions with no minimum, so might have something to do with it.)
Again, in the case of other charge cards, simply disabling Pay Over Time seems to do the trick, but with the Green consumer card it appears they are now counting it consistently as one of your 4-card-limit.
Source: doctorofcredit.com