Discover It Cash Back Credit Card Review
Key Takeaways
While you can technically earn up to $600 in first-year rewards with the Discover It Cash Back card, we generally don’t recommend it for serious points and miles users. The rewards are limited to cash back, and Discover has no airline or hotel transfer partners.
The card also requires far more effort than most competing rewards cards. Instead of a traditional welcome bonus, you must maximize rotating 5% quarterly categories throughout the year before Discover matches your earnings. Many travel cards offer larger bonuses with less spending and far less management.
Why This Card Could Be Right For You
The Discover It Cash Back card can generate strong first-year cash back for users willing to track and maximize rotating bonus categories:
- 5% cash back on rotating quarterly categories selected by Discover
- 5% earnings capped at $1,500 in spending per quarter
- Up to $300 in cashback earnings annually before Discover’s first-year match
- Discover matches all cashback earned during your first year, potentially bringing total rewards to $600+
- 1% cash back on all other purchases
- No annual fee
Rewards can be redeemed as statement credits, direct deposits, gift cards, PayPal purchases, Amazon purchases, or charitable donations. However, Discover does not offer airline or hotel transfer partners, and travel redemption options are limited compared to competing rewards programs.
When The Usual Advice Doesn't Apply
The exceptions where this card might not be good for you:
- You want to transfer points and miles to airlines and/or hotels to find good deals that maximize your points, which isn't possible with Discover
- This Discover card only allows you to redeem rewards as cash back or through shopping on Amazon or PayPal
How The Discover It Cash Back Credit Card Fits In The Cash in Cents Ecosystem
Discover offers two other no annual fee rewards cards alongside the Discover It Cash Back card.
The Discover It Chrome card earns 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants and 1% back on all other purchases. Like the Cash Back card, Discover matches all rewards earned during your first year. However, rewards are limited to cashback-style redemptions rather than transferable travel rewards.
The Discover It Miles card simplifies earnings by offering unlimited 1.5x miles on all purchases with no caps. It also includes Discover’s first-year rewards match. Unlike Discover’s cash-back cards, rewards can be redeemed against travel purchases, allowing you to erase eligible travel charges from your statement.
Overall, Discover’s rewards ecosystem ranks near the bottom of our recommended programs. None of the cards offer airline or hotel transfer partners, the first-year cashback match is weaker than most traditional welcome bonuses, and Discover only allows one new card every 12 months. Because of those limitations, most travelers will get better long-term value from other rewards ecosystems.
Card Information
Differentiating Perks
Rules
Historical Card Offers
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Estimated Next Offer
Discover It Cash Back Application Rules
Card approval not subject to 5-personal-cards-in-24-months rule
You can only get one Discover card every 12 months
