Discover it Miles vs. Capital One Venture
Key takeaways
- The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and the Discover it® Miles are midtier travel cards that offer valuable rewards with low annual fees.
- Capital One Venture cardholders can earn a generous welcome bonus, elevated rewards on hotels and rental car purchases through Capital One Travel and a flat 2X miles on other purchases.
- Miles earned with the Capital One Venture can be redeemed in a variety of ways, including being transferred to Capital One travel partners for more value.
- The Discover it Miles comes with a nice earnings rate on purchases, an excellent introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers and no annual fee.
There are hundreds of rewards credit cards on the market today, and it can be difficult to pick just one. This is true when you’re comparing premium travel credit cards with annual fees over $500, but it’s also the case when you’re looking at mid-tier travel credit cards or top cards with no annual fee.
You may even find yourself staring down two unique offers like the Discover it® Miles and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, which makes sense. After all, these two cards offer generous rewards with no major bonus categories to keep track of.
Before you choose one of these cards, however, you’ll want to consider each card’s major details and the fine print that spells out how you can use your rewards. You’ll also want to understand the fees you’ll pay and perks you may not even know about.
Main details
| Discover it® Miles | Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card | |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome bonus | Discover will match all rewards earned after your first year | 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening, plus receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first cardholder year |
| Rewards rate | Unlimited 1.5X miles on all purchases | 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel; 2X miles on all other purchases |
| Intro APR | 0 percent intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers (18.24 percent to 28.24 percent variable APR after) | 19.99 percent to 29.99 percent variable APR |
| Annual fee | $0 | $95 |
| Redemption options | Use rewards for:
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Use rewards for:
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Discover it® Miles vs. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card highlights
Which of these two travel credit cards will leave you better off? That depends on what you care about the most — whether it’s a welcome offer, a higher rewards rate or no annual fee. Read on to learn which of these two cards win in the most important categories.
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
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The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers 75,000 miles after you spend $4,000 within three months of account opening, plus receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first cardholder year . These miles are worth an average of 1 cent each, although you can potentially get more value if you transfer them to Capital One airline and hotel partners. Either way, this bonus is worth a minimum of $1,000.
By contrast, the Discover it Miles does not offer a traditional welcome bonus. Instead, Discover will match all the rewards you have earned after the first year.
When you run the numbers, you can see that you would have to spend $50,000 on your card within a year to earn 75,000 bonus miles through Discover’s Cashback Match program. That’s a lot of spending for most people, thus the Capital One Venture is easily the winner in this category.
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
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The Capital One Venture also wins in terms of its rewards rate, considering you earn a minimum of 2X miles on all purchases and 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
The Discover it Miles only offers 1.5X miles for each dollar you spend.
Discover it® Miles
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Still, the Discover it Miles stands out due to its lack of an annual fee. Meanwhile, the Capital One Venture charges $95 per year, and this annual fee is not waived during year one.
Tie
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Neither of these cards charge foreign transaction fees, so they’re both suitable for international travel.
Which card earns the most?
Since the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has a higher earning rate on everyday purchases, you’ll always earn more with this card than you would with the Discover it Miles.
That said, how much more you’ll earn the first year depends on how much you use your card and whether you would book travel through Capital One.
Discover it® Miles vs. Capital One Venture Rewards spending example
To see the disparity in rewards, it can help to consider a true life spending example. With that in mind, let’s imagine you have a family of four. Your average food spending would work out to $1,361.40 per month (or $16,336.80 per year) on a moderate plan, according to the USDA.
Let’s also imagine you spend $400 per month ($4,800 per year) dining out, $300 per month ($3,600 per year) on hotels and rental cars and $1,000 per month ($12,000 per year) on miscellaneous purchases.
With the Capital One Venture, you would earn 84,273 miles the first year:
- 32,673 miles on groceries
- 9,600 miles on dining out
- 18,000 miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 24,000 miles on regular spending
When you add in the 75,000 bonus miles you earn the first year, plus the $250 Capital One Travel credit, as well, your rewards haul works out to 159,273 miles, worth $1,842.
With the Discover it Miles, on the other hand, you would earn 55,105 miles on spending during the first year:
- 24,505 miles on groceries
- 7,200 miles on dining out
- 5,400 miles on hotels and rental cars
- 18,000 miles on regular spending
After the first year of card membership, Discover would match your miles for a total rewards haul of 110,210 miles, worth $1,102.
Why should you get the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card?
You can’t deny that the Capital One Venture offers a better rewards rate in every scenario. However, there are additional reasons this card is well worth it.
Additional benefits
Capital One Venture benefits are fairly substantial for a card with no annual fee. For example, through December 31, 2024, cardholders get two free visits to Capital One airport lounges each year, and they can continue visiting these lounges for a $45 rate (per visit) thereafter.
Other benefits include access to presale tickets and member experiences, an auto rental collision damage waiver coverage, a fee statement credit worth up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership and extended warranty coverage on eligible items.
Redemption options
Capital One miles are considerably more valuable than they used to be, considering the card issuer improved the transfer ratios on many of its hotel and airline partners a few years ago. These days, you can move your miles to Capital One transfer partners like Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France / Flying Blue, Choice Privileges, Emirates and Singapore Airlines. Andmost partners now have a transfer ratio of 1:1. When transferred to top partners, Bankrate estimates Capital One miles to be worth 1.7 cents each — although it depends on where you transfer your miles.
Cardholders can also redeem miles for travel through the Capital One Travel portal or for statement credits to cover eligible travel purchases made within the last 90 days. Further, rewards can be used for gift cards or purchases through PayPal or Amazon.com.
Recommended credit score
The Capital One Venture requires good or excellent credit. This typically includes a FICO credit score of 670 or above.
Why should you get the Discover it® Miles?
The main reason to consider the Discover it Miles out of these two cards is if you don’t want to pay an annual fee. Other nuances to be aware of are detailed below.
Additional benefits
The Discover it Miles is fairly light on perks and benefits, although you do get a free FICO credit score and help with some basic online privacy protection.
However, the main standout benefit is this card’s introductory offer for purchases and balance transfers. Thanks to this card’s 0 percent intro APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months (18.24 percent to 28.24 percent variable APR thereafter), you can save money as you pay down large purchases or consolidate debt from other cards.
Redemption options
The Discover it Miles doesn’t have any transfer partners you can move your rewards to, but you do have the option to redeem for statement credits for travel purchases made in the last 180 days. You can also redeem your miles for statement credits to cover all or part of your credit card bill, electronic deposits to a bank account or on purchases through Amazon or PayPal.
Recommended credit score
The Discover it Miles credit card requires a good or excellent credit score. This typically includes any FICO credit score of 670 or above.
The bottom line
If you’re ready to choose a travel credit card and are looking closely at the Capital One Venture and Discover it Miles, you should stop and think about what you want most. Do you prefer the chance to earn a higher rewards rate on everything you buy, or do you want a credit card with no annual fee?
If you’re still torn between these two cards, spend some time comparing additional travel credit cards from Capital One, Discover and other major issuers. By comparing all your options side by side, you can find a travel credit card with the earning rate, redemption options and perks you want the most.
