Capital One Venture or Discover More Card?
I recently got the following email from a reader.
Marv Simpson wrote:
Hi there,
I’m torn between the Discover More Card and the Capital One Venture Card, two cards that I’ve read lots of great reviews about on other websites. Would you recommend either one of them for someone with a 750+ score on both Experian & Equifax who ONLY makes $25,000-$30,000 per year? I’m not sure if income has more weight than credit score when card issuers contemplate whom to issue cards to, and I’d like your advice.Thanks in advance,
I probed further with a couple of more questions.
The more important question is
1. how much would you charge to the card?
2. what rewards do you want?answer these and we will have a clearer picture.
In which she replied
Hi there,
$1,000+ per month, and I’m looking for the best cash back features between the two, or any other credit card you’d recommend.Thanks!
Answer – Mary – first off let me say that since you are looking for cash rewards and your spending is about $1000 a month, I think there are other cards that will better serve your purpose. Here’s why.
The Capital One Venture Card is more of a reward card in which you earn points. You could obviously exchange the points for cash rebates (but at best you earn 1%).
The Discover More Card is a great card. But it has a tier formula. You need to spend above $3,000 annually to get 1% cash rebates. They have a great shopping portal in which you could earn anywhere from 5% to 20% with their merchant partners. They also pay 5% rebates on categories like gas, home improvements which change (or rather rotate) on a quarterly basis. But because of the $3,000 tier you have to cross, I would suggest the following cards instead.
Why not consider the Chase Freedom® Visa® – $100 BOnus Cash Back? You earn 1% straight off on every dollar you spend on the card. Like the Discover Card, you can earn 5% rebates on rotating categories and also extra rebates on the Ultimate Rewards program shopping mall.
Another card to consider is the Citi® Dividend Platinum Select® Card. Like the Chase Freedom® Visa®, you earn 1% rebates for every dollar that you spend. But they also have a great online shopping portal called the Citi Bonus Cash Center where you can earn extra rebates with their online merchants. Unlike the Chase Freedom or the Discover More Card, there are no 5% rebates for rotating categories.
Given your spending level, my first choice would be the Chase Freedom® Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back. If you insist on Discover vs Capital One Venture, I’d go with Discover because of their great shopping portal and 5% rotating categories.
