Discover it® chrome full review
If you frequently travel, especially making frequent stops at restaurants and gas stations, the Discover it® chrome is an excellent choice.
Discover it® chrome: What You Need to Know
Discover it® chrome is a credit card with several appealing features. One of its standout features is the introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers. While there are other cards that don’t charge a fee for balance transfers, this feature is becoming more common among cards with strong selections, and the Discover it® chrome is no exception.
The card offers competitive introductory periods, although not as long as other balance transfer cards that may have offers lasting 18 months or more.
Another attractive feature of the Discover it® chrome is its rewards program. Cardholders can earn 2% cash back at restaurants and petrol stations on up to $1,000 in combined purchases per quarter. Additionally, all other purchases will earn an unlimited 1% cash back. Notably, Discover Cashback doubles all the cash back earned at the end of the first year, although it does not provide a welcome bonus.
How Does Discover it® chrome Work?
While many cash-back cards offer 1% cash back on all transactions, the Discover it® chrome card goes a step further. It provides 2% cash back on up to $1,000 in combined purchases per quarter at gas stations and restaurants, and 1% cash back on all other transactions without any restrictions.
Cardholders who make full use of this feature can earn $20 in cash back every three months, or $80 per year. In the first year, Discover Cashback Match doubles that amount, potentially providing a maximum return of $160 from the highest earning category.
Another notable feature of the Discover it® chrome card is its simple cash-back reward system, which allows cardholders to redeem their rewards at any time for any amount. Rewards are credited to the account when it is canceled and never expire.
How Much Can You Earn with Discover it® chrome’s Cashback?
To assess the rewards potential of the Discover it® chrome, we need to consider the bonus categories and estimate how much an average American household may spend on each category. Let’s assume a yearly income of $107,908 for households in the 70th percentile of wage earners.
With the Discover it® chrome, you can earn 2% cash back on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter at restaurants and petrol stations. All other purchases will earn an unlimited 1% cash back. Based on these assumptions, the maximum bonus for each quarter would be $80 in cash back, resulting in $320 cash back per year.
Assuming the sample household charges its remaining expenses to the credit card, which total $31,072, the Discover it® chrome would earn an additional $310.72 in cash back at 1% cash back. Therefore, the total cash back earnings for the year would be $630.72.
Furthermore, Discover offers unlimited Cashback Match instead of a traditional welcome bonus. At the end of the first year, Discover automatically matches all the cash back earned, providing cardholders with an opportunity to double their rewards.
Main Benefits of Discover it® chrome
Bonus Categories Cashback
The Discover it® chrome offers 2% cash back on gas and restaurant spending up to $1,000 in combined purchases per quarter, and 1% cash back after that. Unlike Discover’s 5% cards, you don’t need to “activate” these added benefits—they are always “on”.
Double the Cashback in the First Year
Similar to Discover’s other cards, the Discover it® chrome provides a new customer bonus offer: unlimited cashback matching. Discover automatically doubles all the cash back earned at the end of the first year, with no minimum or maximum prize amount.
0% Intro APR
If you need to make a significant purchase or transfer a balance, the Discover it® chrome offers an interest-free period: 0% introductory APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers, followed by an ongoing variable APR of 14.99%-25.99%.
Discover Perks
In addition to its cash-back rewards, Discover offers various perks to its cardholders. These include free access to your FICO score, 100% U.S.-based customer service, monitoring of your Social Security number, and forgiveness for your first late payment. Additionally, Discover allows you to freeze and unfreeze your account in the event of a lost card or compromised information.
How to Apply for Discover it® chrome
If you’re interested in the benefits that the Discover it® chrome card offers, you can apply by following the steps outlined in our article on how to apply for the Discover it® chrome.
