Ulta Shopping Cart Trick: How to Do It + Does It Work? We Explain

Ulta Shopping Cart Trick: Does It Work?

The “shopping cart” trick is a way to get preapproved for a store credit card without a “hard” credit check. At the time of this writing, we were unable to get the shopping cart trick to work for the Ulta Beauty Ultamate Rewards credit card issued by Comenity Capital Bank. Your results may vary, but, in general, the Ulta store credit card application process requires a hard credit check.

During our research, we attempted the shopping cart trick on Ulta’s website using verified credit information. We even tested it on multiple browsers using varying purchase amounts. None of our attempts resulted in a preapproved credit offer.

Social media users have reported mixed results when attempting the shopping cart trick for Ulta’s store card. And, a number of websites dedicated to shopping cart trick information have removed Ulta from their lists of working retailers.

This information doesn’t mean you can’t get an Ulta store credit card — you’ll just need to provide your Social Security number with the understanding that a hard credit inquiry may take place. See our related research for more on your Ultamate Rewards credit card approval odds.

How the Shopping Cart Trick Should Work

Since your individual results may vary, we’re providing information on how the shopping cart trick should work. The shopping cart trick is dependent on receiving a pop-up during the checkout process when shopping online. The pop-up will offer preapproval for the retailer’s credit card.

Before attempting the shopping cart trick, you should:

• Visit OptOutPrescreen.com — a website authorized by consumer credit reporting companies Equifax, Experian, Innovis, and TransUnion — and opt-in to receive firm credit offers. Be aware that it can take up to five business days for the website to complete your request.
• Disable all pop-up blockers on your browser.

To try the shopping cart trick, you should:

• Visit an online retailer that uses Comenity Bank as its credit card issuer (such as Ulta) and load up your cart with items as though you plan to make a purchase.
• Begin the checkout process as a guest or a member.
• Slowly enter in your name and address in the shipping information section. Your personal information must match the information on your credit report. If you don’t know the exact wording on your credit report, you can get a free copy from AnnualCreditReport.com. (This federally authorized website let you obtain a free credit report once per year.)
• A pop-up offering preapproval for the store card will appear (where available). Follow the instructions to apply — making sure the application only prompts you to enter the last four digits of your Social Security number. If it asks for your entire Social Security number, the application will likely make a hard pull on your credit.

The shopping cart trick doesn’t work every time with every retailer that uses Comenity Bank as a credit card issuer. Our article on fixing shopping cart trick issues recommends clearing out your browser’s cookies and search history, trying multiple browsers, and loading up cart balances greater than $100. Others recommend using a browser’s private or incognito mode.

More Information

For the list of stores where you can use the shopping cart trick, see our related article.