Discover it® Cash Back Review: A Lucrative Bonus Cash Back Card

Discover it® Cash Back is perfect for people who love cash back. (And honestly, who doesn't?) This card offers high cash back rates in several categories. But it's not just a great cash back card -- take a look at all its perks in our Discover it® Cash Back review.

This card is a fit for: Cardholders who are fee-adverse and want the best of both worlds, including high rewards rates for an array of purchases and a long intro APR offer.

Top perks

Earn up to 5% cash back

This card’s killer feature is that cardholders earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations, up to the quarterly maximum of $1,500 on purchases and when you activate. All other purchases earn 1% cash back. Cardholders maxing out the quarterly spending categories in one year ($6,000 of total spending) would net $300 in cash-back rewards.

Unlimited Cashback Match sign-up bonus

This is a credit card with a spectacular sign-up bonus. For new Discover it® Cash Back cardholders, Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year. And yes, this cash back match is unlimited. Note this sign-up bonus is only available during the first year and for new cardholders.

So, if you max out the bonus categories ($300 of rewards) and have another $5,000 of spending outside bonus categories ($50 of rewards), you’d earn $700 of total cash back with the match.

Learn more: How to Redeem Rewards on Discover Credit Cards

0% intro APR for purchases

This card blends the features of a rewards card and a 0% intro APR card, offering 15 months of 0% intro APR on purchases. The go-to variable rate applies after the 0% intro APR expires.

0% intro APR for balance transfers

The card also offers a 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 15 months. The go-to variable rate applies after the 0% intro APR expires. One nice feature is that the 0% intro APR kicks in on your first transfer before the deadline, not from the account opening, which gives you flexibility to use it on your own timeline.

No annual fee

The Discover it® Cash Back is a no annual fee credit card. You’d expect a credit card with such a deep bench of perks to charge an annual fee, but that’s not the case here.

No foreign transaction fees

The Discover it® Cash Back has no foreign transaction fee. Many cards charge a 3% fee when making purchases internationally, which can add up to $60 of savings on $2,000 of foreign spend when traveling or purchasing products from vendors who operate abroad.

Learn more: Best No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards

Other benefits

Discover credit cards all pack in a lineup of secondary perks that are worth reviewing, including the following:

• Flexible cash back redemptions: Discover it® Cash Back offers redemption methods where you can redeem your rewards in amounts as little as $0.01. This makes it ideal for even smaller spenders, who might otherwise have to wait months to accrue enough rewards to top the $25 or $50 minimum redemption requirement of other rewards cards. Cash back can be redeemed many ways, including for statement credits, bank transfer, and gift cards.
• FICO® Score for free: Cardholders get access to a real FICO® Score for free to monitor their credit history.
• No penalty APR: If you happen to miss a payment, Discover won’t increase your APR as a penalty.
• First late payment fee waiver: While it’s not good to miss payments, particularly to maintain a good credit score, Discover will waive your first late payment fee.

Read more: A Complete Guide to Discover Credit Card Benefits

What could be improved

Balance transfer fee

The Discover it® Cash Back charges an introductory 3% balance transfer fee that increases to 5% after the promo period expires (see terms). While most balance transfer credit cards charge a similar fee, it’s a fee nonetheless.

Discover it® Cash Back is intended for people with good credit score and higher. As with any credit card, banks assess more than your credit score during the approval process. Accordingly, having at least this score isn't a slam dunk for approval nor is it impossible to get approved with a lower credit score.

Want more information? Read our complete guide to the credit score you need for a Discover credit card.

Cardholders receive bonus cash back based on Discover’s cash back calendar that rotates every quarter. In 2023, Discover is announcing each quarter's reward categories as the year progresses, rather than previewing them all at once. Here's what the company has announced thus far:

• January - March 2023: Grocery stores, drug stores, and select streaming services (excluding Walmart and Target purchases)
• April - June 2023: To be announced in March 2023
• July - September 2023: To be announced in June 2023
• October - December 2023: To be announced in September 2023

Keep in mind that earning at the 5% rate does require activation, which is simple enough, and the bonus rate is capped on up to $1,500 of purchases quarterly. Just make sure your email address with Discover is up to date -- Discover sends an email notice to activate categories. Cardholders also have the option to activate bonus categories via phone.

It’s hard to beat this offer as a category bonus card, given it packs in one of the highest bonus cash-back rewards rates you’ll find with the best credit cards. If the following statements apply to you, you’re likely a good candidate to apply for it.

• You spend a lot in its bonus categories -- Given that Discover it® Cash Back’s bonus categories have included everyday essentials, spending heavily in them will be very easy for some to accomplish.
• You want a 0% intro APR offer -- The intro APR offer for purchases and balance transfers is a rare combination in any cash back card with a high rewards rate.
• You want to avoid certain fees -- There's no annual fee or foreign transaction fee.