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Best Discover credit cards for January 2025

Updated December 23, 2024

Advertiser Disclosure: The listings that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which Bankrate receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. Here's an explanation for and how we rate our cards.

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Showing 6 results

Best overall

Discover it® Cash Back

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
4.4
Bankrate review
Recommended credit score:(670 - 850)
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Cashback Match

Rewards rate

1% - 5%

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

18.49% - 27.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: Discover’s flagship card is one of the most lucrative and low-cost options on the market thanks to its stellar rewards and intro offer.

Best for travel

Discover it® Miles

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
3.9
Bankrate review
Recommended credit score:(670 - 850)
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Discover Match®

Rewards rate

1.5X

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

18.49% - 27.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: If you prefer more flexibility than some rival cards offer, you can redeem your miles for cash back without losing rewards value.

Best for students

Discover it® Student Cash Back

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
5.0
Bankrate review
No Credit History
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Cashback Match

Rewards Rate

1% - 5%

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

17.49% - 26.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: It carries perhaps the highest cash back rates and welcome offer potential of any student card — all with minimal rates and fees.

Best for gas

Discover it® Chrome

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
4.0
Bankrate review
Recommended credit score:(670 - 850)
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Cashback Match

Rewards rate

1% - 2%

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

18.49% - 27.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: It offers a streamlined rewards program with solid, year-round cash back on gas station purchases.

Best for off-campus living

Discover it® Student Chrome

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
4.1
Bankrate review
No Credit History
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Cashback Match

Rewards Rate

1% - 2%

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

17.49% - 26.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: You can reap cash back from major day-to-day purchases like gas and at restaurants, even if you have no credit history.

Best for building credit

Discover it® Secured Credit Card

Bankrate score

star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
star iconstar iconstar iconstar iconstar icon
4.5
Bankrate review
No Credit History
Apply nowLock

on Discover's secure site

See Rates & Fees

Intro offer

Cashback Match™

Rewards Rate

1% - 2%

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

27.49% Variable APR *Rates as of December 12, 2024.

Why you'll like this: It offers some of the best rewards rates, welcome offer rewards and credit-building features available with a card built for secured credit.

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Compare

Compare Bankrate’s top Discover credit cards

Card Name Best For Cash Back Highlights Bankrate Review Score

Cash back + Best overall

5% cash back on rotating categories each quarter when you activate (up to $1,500 in combined quarterly purchases, then 1%) with 1% on all other purchases

4.4 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

Travel

Unlimited 1.5X miles

3.9 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

Students

5% cash back on rotating categories each quarter when you activate (up to $1,500 in combined quarterly purchases, then 1%) with 1% on all other purchases

5.0 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

Best for gas

2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants (up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, then 1%) with 1% on all other purchases

4.0 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

Off-campus living

2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants (up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, then 1%) with 1% on all other purchases

4.1 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

Building credit

2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants (up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, then 1%) with 1% on all other purchases

4.5 / 5

Info Icon
(Read card review)
Apply now Lock Icon
on Discover's secure site

What is a Discover credit card?

Discover functions as both a credit card issuer and network, ranking among the top four issuers in the country. As a credit card network, it independently processes transactions among merchants, customers and banks, eliminating the need for partnerships to extend lines of credit.

It boasts a 99 percent acceptance rate at U.S. merchants, although international acceptance may be more limited. But despite this, Discover's range of credit cards with minimal fees and high customer satisfaction ratings makes them highly appealing.

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Bankrate Insight

Discover has a track record of excellent customer service satisfaction, ranking second in J.D. Power’s 2024 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study, falling just behind American Express.

Tips on choosing the best Discover card

The Discover card you choose should be based on your financial goals and needs. For example, students with little or no credit history might choose one of Discover's student credit cards. If you need to work on your credit, Discover offers secured cards for credit-builders, and if you’re a cash back enthusiast, you might consider a Discover cash back card.

Here are a few tips to help you determine which card best fits your needs.

Still unsure if a Discover credit card is right for you? Check out our Credit Card Spender Type Tool where you can get personalized credit card recommendations based on your credit score, spending habits and daily needs.

Expert advice on Discover cards

Here’s what credit card expert Nouri Zarrugh has to say about his experience with Discover and a lesser-known card feature that helped him: 

“One of the downsides of carrying a wallet full of cards and constantly switching back and forth between them, like I do, is that payment due dates can be tough to juggle. So I’ve paid more in late fees than I care to admit. That’s why I love Discover’s forgiving late fee policy. Mistakes happen, and when I missed my Discover card’s due date (the first and only time), I was so grateful I had a second chance to get things sorted.”

— Nouri Zarrugh, Senior Editor, Credit Cards

This is a great perk to be aware of, even if you’re an experienced cardholder. You should also keep this in mind to avoid interest charges, inconvenience and credit card debt.

What people say about Discover credit cards

Based on cardholder experiences on Reddit, there’s a lot of room for credit growth with Discover. A few users who started with modest limits between $200 and $500 on the Discover it® Secured Credit Card got a limit increase after a few years to over $5,000 on an unsecured Discover card.

Some cardholders with a solid credit history started with a credit limit in the thousands on their unsecured Discover card. One Reddit user shared how easy it was to get a credit limit increase with Discover: 

“Discover is one of the easiest lenders to grow a large limit with if you've got a sufficiently strong profile. They also don't put any restrictions on the frequency of soft pull [credit limit increases] where most other lenders require (say) 6 months between them, so if one is aggressive, they have the potential to grow their Discover limit relatively quickly [with responsible use].”

Reddit User

Regardless of the issuer, you’ll need to demonstrate positive credit habits to have a good chance at a credit limit increase, like making on-time payments and keeping your credit utilization low. It’s also good to remember that these increases take time, so don’t get discouraged if you start with a low limit.

*The quotes and citations included on this page have been verified by our editorial team and are accurate as of the posting date. Outlinked content may contain views and opinions that do not reflect the views and opinions of Bankrate. Please see the issuer’s website for updated terms and conditions.

In the news: Capital One-Discover merger

If you’re considering applying for a Discover card in the near future, you should be aware of the pending merger between Discover and Capital One. Though public details are limited, we do know that there are plans to move all Capital One debit cards to the Discover network and eventually switch credit cards from the Visa and Mastercard networks to only Discover. The deal will not be confirmed until late 2024 or early 2025 and it has to be approved by stakeholders and federal regulators. While it’s understandable for consumers to have questions, this merger has the potential to expand the power of its payment network. So, despite some uncertainty, now could be a good time to check out Capital One and Discover cards.

Frequently asked questions about Discover credit cards

How we assess the best Discover credit cards

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250+
cards rated
Congrats Icon
50+
rewards programs valued
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5000
data points analyzed
Credit Card Reviews Icon
40+
perks evaluated

When evaluating the best credit cards from Discover, we take into account several factors, including how cards score in our proprietary card rating system and whether they offer features that fit the priorities of a diverse group of cardholders, from earning rewards to scoring a large sign-up bonus to saving on interest. 

Our rating database covers over 250 of the most popular credit cards, allowing us to compare the quality of various Discover cards to each other and to cards in the same category from other issuers. We scored each card based on the factors most relevant to its primary category, including its rewards rate, estimated annual earnings, intro APR period, ongoing APR, perks and more to determine whether it belonged in this month’s roundup. 

Here’s a look at how our card ratings are distributed as of August 2024, as well as some of the key factors that we considered in selecting this month’s best Discover cards.

5
Rating: 5 stars out of 5
Overall Score
  • 5 stars 2%
  • 4 - 4.9 stars 35%
  • 3 - 3.9 stars 39%
  • 2 - 2.9 stars 22%
  • 1 - 1.9 stars 2%
Have questions for our credit cards editors? Feel free to send us an email, find us on Facebook, or Tweet us @Bankrate.