The Discover it® Miles is a good card for people looking for a $0-annual-fee travel credit card to get started using miles. It earns a competitive flat rewards rate on every purchase: Automatically earn unlimited 1.5x Miles on every dollar of every purchase - with no annual fee.
Even though it’s a travel credit card, it operates almost exactly like a cash back credit card. You can’t transfer miles — you could redeem them for cash back or statement credits on travel purchases. Since it doesn’t offer other common travel credit card features like travel insurance or credits, this card may be best for people who rarely travel or prefer a flat rewards rate.
Its unique cash back match sign-up bonus makes it a valuable card for occasional travelers to use for at least a year.
Intro Purchase APR
0% Intro APR for 15 months
Regular Purchase APR
17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR
Intro BT APR
0% Intro APR for 15 months
Regular BT APR
17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR
Annual Fee
$0
Cash Advance Fee
see terms
Foreign Transaction Fee
None
Balance Transfer Fee
3% intro balance transfer fee, up to 5% fee on future balance transfers (see terms)*
Simple flat-rate rewards
The Discover it® Miles lets cardholders automatically earn unlimited 1.5x miles on every dollar of every purchase - with no annual fee. Each mile is worth 1 cent — meaning you get 1.5% back on your purchases — which is a solid rate for a $0-annual-fee card.
Your miles won’t expire as long as your account is in good standing, and there’s no cap on how many you can earn. And Discover makes redeeming miles easy:
When redeeming miles for travel purchases, you must make the redemption within 180 days of the purchase date. Travel purchases that qualify include:
Rewards match the first year
This card comes with a unique sign-up bonus for new cardmembers: Only Discover gives you an unlimited match of all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. For example, if you earn 35,000 Miles, you get 70,000 Miles. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match.
This is a great deal because most other cards’ sign-up bonuses have a fixed limit, like $200. But with the Discover it® Miles, your sign-up bonus depends on how much you spend. For example, if you spend $30,000 on the card your first year, you’ll earn 450 miles — which is $450 if redeemed for cash back. This is great for heavy spenders, since the typical no-annual-fee card sign-up bonus is worth $200 to $300.
Long intro APR
If you need time to pay off a big trip, then the Discover it® Miles can offer some help. It offers a 0% Intro APR for 15 months on purchases. After, a 17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR applies. Plus, there’s a 0% Intro APR for 15 months on balance transfers (then 17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR).
Introductory APRs can be hard to come by. When cards do offer them, they’re usually just 12 months. So the Discover it® Miles‘s intro period is a great option if a long introductory APR is important to you.
$0 annual fee
For those looking to earn travel rewards without an annual fee, the Discover it® Miles is a great option. It offers one of the highest rewards rates of the no-annual-fee cards in the travel niche.
Foreign transaction fee: None
The Discover it® Miles is a viable option for making purchases while traveling outside the country, because it doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees. However, you may have some difficulty using it as your primary card for foreign travel, since acceptance is limited outside of the United States (more on this below).
No transfer partners
Some travel cards, such as the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, let cardholders transfer miles to airline and hotel loyalty programs — this card doesn’t. In many cases, transferring miles to travel partners can increase the value of your points. With the Discover it® Miles, you’re limited to redeeming your miles for either cash back or statement credits for certain travel purchases.
No travel benefits
The Discover it® Miles doesn’t offer travel benefits like insurance, travel credits, airport lounge access or hotel elite status. While the most robust travel benefits come with premium travel cards that have expensive annual fees, you’ll find that no-annual-fee travel cards usually come with a few benefits like lost luggage coverage.
Not always accepted abroad
While Discover has made rapid strides in the United States and is widely accepted at most locations that take credit cards, that’s not always the case in other countries. You may want to have a Visa or Mastercard credit card in your wallet when traveling abroad.
Another top travel card with a $0 annual fee is the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card. It earns a slightly lower rate on most purchases than the Discover it® Miles: 1.25 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day; 5 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
The card also comes with more travel benefits, such as concierge services and rental car insurance. Plus, the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card is a Visa card, which means you’ll find wider acceptance for it abroad.
The Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card offers more valuable ways to earn points and flexible ways to redeem them. While the Discover it® Miles offers the same rate for all purchases, the Wells Fargo Autograph Card offers more points in several common spending categories. You’ll earn unlimited 3X points on restaurants, travel, gas stations, transit, popular streaming services and phone plans. Plus earn 1X points on other purchases.
Unlike the Discover it® Miles, you have more redemption options for your miles. You can redeem them for airline tickets (must be redeemed through Wells Fargo Rewards), hotel rooms, car rentals, cruises and more. So if you want to earn more points and flexibility and don’t mind a more complicated rewards rate, the Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card might be a better fit.
Also, while not as impressive as the Discover it® Miles‘s introductory APR, the Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card does offer a 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases (then a 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable APR applies).
| Credit Cards | Annual Fee | Welcome Offer | Rewards Rate | Intro Purchase APR | Regular APR | Recommended Credit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Discover it® Miles
 Apply Now
on Discover's secure site Rates & Fees |
$0 | Only Discover gives you an unlimited match of all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. For example, if you earn 35,000 Miles, you get 70,000 Miles. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match. | Automatically earn unlimited 1.5x Miles on every dollar of every purchase - with no annual fee. | 0% Intro APR for 15 months | 17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR | Excellent/Good |
Apply Now
on Discover's secure site Rates & Fees |
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
$0 | Earn a bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel | 1.25 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day; 5 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel | 0% intro on purchases for 15 months | 19.99% - 29.99% (Variable) | Excellent/Good |
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
|
Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card
Review Coming Soon
|
$0 | Earn 20,000 bonus points when you spend $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months - that's a $200 cash redemption value | Earn unlimited 3X points on restaurants, travel, gas stations, transit, popular streaming services and phone plans. Plus earn 1X points on other purchases | 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases | 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable APR | Excellent/Good | Review Coming Soon |
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
$95 | Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel | 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day; 5 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel | N/A | 21.24% - 29.24% (Variable) | Excellent/Good |
Apply Now
on Capital One's secure site Rates & Fees |
The Discover it® Miles with its $0 annual fee is an overall good choice for the occasional traveler. It offers a solid flat-rate rewards program and makes it easy to redeem miles for cash back or past travel purchases. Plus, its rewards match in the first year makes it a great deal for new cardholders.
However, due to the lack of travel benefits on this card, consumers who would like to have protections such as lost luggage coverage will likely want to consider other credit cards like the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card.
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