Expert Rating:
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the Miles you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. For example, if you earn 30,000 Miles, you get 60,000 Miles. That's $600 towards travel!
Earn unlimited 1.5x Miles for every dollar spent on all purchases all with no annual fee.
The Discover it® Miles offers new members 14 months of zero interest on purchases and low APR on balance transfers, boasts a new miles rewards program that can be used for travel or redeemed for other rewards like cash back, and has no annual fee. Although it bills itself as a travel card and offers rewards in the form of miles, it can be used as traditional cash back bonus card and has many similar features to other Discover credit cards.
| Credit level recommended: | Excellent, Good |
|---|---|
| Intro APR on purchases: | 0% (14 months) |
| APR on purchases: | 13.99% - 24.99% Variable |
| Annual fee: | $0 |
Special offers:
The Discover it® Miles has a 14-month 0% interest promotional period for purchases and low intro APR on balance transfers. That makes it a good card for financing bigger purchases you might need a few months to pay off. Or for transferring the balance for something big you already bought. The balance transfer fee is 3%.
Earning rewards:
Every dollar spent on the card nets one and a half reward miles. All miles earned during the first year of card membership will be matched at the end of the year, provided you are a new cardmember. That means that you will earn 3 miles on all purchases in your first year. There’s no cap on how many miles you can earn, so the sky’s the limit. Miles don’t expire as long as you keep using your card and your account stays in good standing.
Redeeming rewards:
Reward miles aren’t really the traditional frequent flyer miles many travel credit cards offer. They are simply cashed in for travel credits at a rate of $100 per 10,000 miles. To cash in miles for a flight credit, all you do is buy your plane ticket with your Discover it® Miles card and then redeem your miles (starting at 1 mile) for travel purchases on your statement made within last 180 days. Your account will then be credited for the travel purchase. You can also redeem miles as cash. Redemption for cash will have the same value as travel redemption - $100 per 10,000 miles.
Benefits:
The biggest benefit of this card is the flexibility of its redemption options. When using reward miles toward travel, you can get credit for any travel purchase – not just air travel, like you would with a frequent flyer credit card. Car rentals, hotel rooms, airline tickets, online travel sites and commuter transportation are eligible for a travel credit using reward miles. There are no blackout dates or restrictions on brand of hotel or airline, so you have complete freedom to use the miles however you like. Another benefit is credit for in-flight Wi-Fi which you will be given each anniversary year. Discover will credit you for up to $30 in charges for in-flight Wi-Fi fees.
Considerations:
While this card may not offer the biggest redemption value out there, it also doesn’t have an annual fee. Most airline frequent flyer cards that give high-value rewards like free flights, companion tickets, free bag check or VIP lounge access (none of which are offered by this card) also come with steep annual fees. For a customer looking to carry a card that has flexible, easy-to-earn rewards and no annual fee, this card offers good value. This is a user-friendly card with a wide variety of reward options. For the casual traveler who wants flexible rewards and no annual fee, this card is hard to beat.
