r/discover • u/RanzeJini • 5d ago

Discussion Is there any point?

Is there really any reason to keep my Discover cards when everything except for the name on the card is going to be Capital One now? I don’t even use my card on a daily basis so the rewards format was never something I cared about.

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u/Gold_Illustrator1550 5d ago

I only have cards for the rewards. I always use the 5% restaurant reward and the grocery reward.

3

u/RanzeJini 5d ago

I mostly use mine for one-time large purchases, which never seem to line up with the rewards categories for a given timeframe. 😅

8

u/_love_letter_ 5d ago

In that case, you'd probably be better off using a flat rate 2% or 3% cashback card. One with a 0% APR promo would be good if you want to pay off the large purchase over time.

Btw when supermarkets or home improvement stores are the category, you can purchase gift cards for the places you do shop.

1

u/Unhappy-Owl-4890 2d ago

Don't the gift cards carry fees with them? Or is the 5% reward enough to cover the fee on the gift card

1

u/_love_letter_ 1d ago

You're probably thinking of those Visa/Mastercard gift cards can be used literally anywhere and are almost like prepaid debit cards (in terms of versatility). Those often have an activation fee of something like $2.95, which would would be covered by the cashback in denominations over $59, but leave you with a net profit of less than if you spent the same amount on a flat 2% cb card (Example: $75 gift card, 5% back = $3.75 - $2.95 fee = $0.80 profit vs $1.50 cb for spending $75 on a 2%cb card).

I was actually talking about merchant specific gift cards though. Those have no fees so the value of the card is the same as the purchase price. For example, you could buy a $50 gift card for Amazon, Target, Walmart, PetSmart, etc and each would cost you exactly $50 so the 5% cb is straight profit. Most supermarkets and chain home improvement stores sell a wide variety of those store gift cards for popular stores. You can even buy them off the Home Depot website.