Discover it® Chrome is a good cash back rewards credit card for people with good credit (or better), especially those whose top expenses include gas and dining out. The
Discover it® Chrome credit card has a
$0 annual fee and gives 2% cash back on the first $1,000 spent at gas stations and restaurants each quarter. Plus, cardholders earn 1% cash back on all other purchases, and Discover will double the rewards new cardmembers earn the first year as an anniversary present.
So, yes,
Discover it® Chrome is a good credit card. It’s not perfect, though. After the Discover it Chrome card’s introductory APRs of
0% for 15 months on purchases and
0% for 15 months on balance transfers conclude, a high regular APR -
17.24% - 28.24% Variable - could take their place. The card’s balance transfer fee also makes it less attractive for that type of transaction:
3% intro balance transfer fee, up to 5% fee on future balance transfers (see terms)*.
Below, you can find a quick summary of the most important points to consider when deciding whether or not to apply for Discover it Chrome.
Discover it Chrome Review Highlights
Best for gas and dining out
The 2% cash back that the Discover it Chrome offers on the first $1,000 in gas and restaurant purchases that you make each quarter (combined) is almost double the market-average earning rate for a cash rewards card, according to WalletHub’s latest
Credit Card Landscape Report. But the cap on the deal means you can get no more than $80 from it each year. So if you really want to maximize your earnings in these big everyday spending categories, you might want to keep looking.
Average for other purchases after the first year
The Discover it Chrome card offers just 1% cash back on all other purchases, which is barely below the market average of
1.15% back. So you can do better – at least after 12 months, that is. Discover’s first-year rewards-match promotion changes things early on. Since Discover will match whatever rewards you earn the first year your account is open, that 1% base earn rate becomes a competitive 2%.
Good for big-ticket buys
The Discover it Chrome’s 15-month 0% purchases intro term beats the market average by 3 months. But while the 0% rate applies to both new purchases and balance transfers, you should only consider it for the former because a transfer fee makes the latter a non-starter:
3% intro balance transfer fee, up to 5% fee on future balance transfers (see terms)*.
Could have a high regular rate
Discover it Chrome advertises a regular APR of
17.24% - 28.24% Variable. That could be about the average for a card that requires excellent credit for approval. Or, it could be slightly above the average among credit cards for people with just fair credit, according to
WalletHub research. In other words, you should definitely make sure to avoid carrying a balance from month to month with this card, absent the 0% intro rate, if you’re assigned a high-end regular APR.
Good credit required
Since you generally need
good credit to get approved for the Discover it Chrome, it’s a good idea to
check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub before you apply. You may also want to check out the
market’s best overall offers for your particular need to make sure you’re not leaving anything lucrative on the table.
You can learn more about how this card stacks up against some of its top competitors from our comparison of
Discover it Cash Back vs Discover it Chrome as well as our review of the
best Discover cards.
Note: This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. Opinions and ratings are our own.