Discover Credit Cards
Discover has quite a good selection of top cash back, no annual fee credit cards you may want to check out. While Discover More is their flagship product, they also have credit cards that cover the gamut of consumer needs: including several travel credit cards and student credit cards. Discover is also one of the more accessible prime credit cards available in the marketplace -- you'll need at least a fair credit score to get yourself approved for one of these cards. Check our list below for credit cards with a top rewards program.
But you may want to check out other options in the following locations: Best Credit Cards
Top Credit Card Deals
Best Prepaid Debit Cards
Enjoy The Benefits of Discover Credit Cards
Who is Discover? The Discover brand was originally introduced into the marketplace by Sears, after a recent purchase of both Dean Witter (investment brokerage firm) and Coldwell, Banker & Company (real estate) in an attempt to add a full financial services arm to its already booming retail and mail order catalog business. The Discover Card as a credit card issuer is a pioneer in the card marketplace, establishing a large customer base in competition with Visa and Mastercard. Here are some great features you'll get with a Discover credit card:
- No Annual Fee: Discover was one of the first credit card providers that offered no annual fee credit cards. This feature was extremely attractive to cardholders then and remains that way now, thereby helping Discover become as popular as they are today. No annual fee cards make for a fast establishment of loyal customers.
- Higher Credit Limits: Discover oftentimes issued credit cards with higher credit limits than the average Visa or Mastercard. Of course, nothing could compare to the credit limit free purchasing power of the American Express card, but Discover credit cards allowed you to carry your balance over into the following months and were offered to people with lower credit ratings, making them more accessible and attractive to more individuals.
- Cash Back Bonus: Discover’s main claim to fame was the inclusion of a cash back rewards bonus on every card it issued. The cash back reward bonus allowed Discover cardholders to receive a refund of anywhere from 2% to 5% of the previous month’s purchase total. The refund would be added to their account every month.
It also didn’t hurt that Discover was the only credit card for a long time that was accepted by U.S. Customs to pay duties on items being brought back from abroad.
A little bit of Discover trivia and history: at the turn of the decade, Discover attempted to branch out and allow other financial institutions to issue Discover branded credit cards, only to be blocked by the Visa and Mastercard Card Associations. However, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Discover and within months, Discover struck a deal with G.E. Consumer Finance that would allow G.E. to issue Discover cards along with its portfolio of Visa and Mastercard products. Discover was able to get some traction in the marketplace this way.
The main drawback to the Discover brand is its lack of acceptance in foreign markets. Discover has over 50 million cardholders and over 4 million merchants that accept the brand domestically; however, the card is not issued in any territory or country outside of the U.S. and few foreign merchants accept it. Discover is looking to change this by expanding its presence in Mexico, Costa Rica, Micronesia, Belize, the Marshal Islands, and Palau with their eyes on Europe and the Asian markets next. One of the ways it’s doing this is through the purchase of the Diner’s Club brand from Citigroup in 2008.
Discover offers a great array of credit card products as an alternative to Visa and Mastercard. With a no annual fee policy and great cash back rewards, you'll realize why It Pays to Discover.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Are all the Discover Student cards the same? They all look pretty similar. I see though that the Discover Student does not allow for balance transfers while the other student cards do?
@Carol Ann,
Good question! ALL the Discover Student cards should behave similarly and what sets them apart are their designs. The classic Discover Student card should allow for balance transfers also (so that must be a typo we have there). I will have to go back to the issuer to ensure that the data they are displaying is accurate.
In general, the Discover Student Tropical Beach Card, Discover Student Monogram and the Discover Student Mix Tape Card are similar to the Student Clear and the plain Student card. If you don’t like the designs of the cards offered, you can check around for different designs.