Discover it Secured Cash Back
- Best for: People starting a credit history or rebuilding one who want cash back on a small refundable deposit
- What Sets It Apart: Rotating 5% categories and a first-year Cashback Match on a deposit as low as $49
- Cost: $0 annual fee; $49, $99, or $200 refundable deposit; 29.24% variable APR; no late fee the first time you pay late, then up to $41
- Features: Starting credit line of at least $200; 5% on up to $1,500 of activated category purchases a quarter; 1% on most other purchases; reports to all three credit bureaus; deposit refunded when Capital One moves you to the Discover it Cash Back
- Pros: No credit score needed to apply; first-year match doubles your cash back; credit line increases without another deposit
- Cons: No stated time frame for the upgrade; categories need activating every quarter; 1% on most purchases outside the categories after year one
Open the Discover it Secured Cash Back if you’re building or rebuilding credit and can spare a refundable deposit of up to $200. It has no annual fee, pays 5% on up to $1,500 a quarter in spending categories you activate, and matches your first-year cash back. Skip it if you qualify for a card with no deposit.
Capital One, which bought Discover in May 2025, now issues this card for anyone starting a credit history or rebuilding credit with a secured card. Your deposit will be $49, $99, or $200, set by your credit, and each opens a credit line of $200 or more.
Key Features
- Extra deposit within 35 days of approval, before you activate the card, raises the starting line, up to a cap Capital One sets between $1,000 and $3,000
- 5% cash back in categories that change each quarter, on up to $1,500 of purchases once you activate them, and 1% on most others
- Cashback Match doubles all the cash back you earn in your first year, added at the end of it, with no cap
- $0 annual fee and a 29.24% variable APR, the interest rate on balances you carry
- Account reported to all three major credit bureaus
Pros
- No credit score needed to apply
- In year one the match in effect pays 10% in the categories and 2% on most other purchases
- No late fee the first time you pay late
- Credit line increases possible without another deposit
- Deposit refunded as a credit on your statement when Capital One upgrades you to the Discover it Cash Back, which needs no deposit
Cons
- No stated time frame for the upgrade, while the Capital One Platinum Secured cites as little as six months
- Categories need activating every quarter
- After year one, 1% on most purchases outside the categories, against a flat 1.5% on the Capital One Quicksilver Secured, which needs a $200 minimum deposit
- Not open to anyone whose Capital One card was written off as unpaid in the past year, or with an unresolved bankruptcy
Anyone starting or rebuilding credit who can spare the deposit should pick it over the Platinum Secured, which asks the same $49, $99, or $200 and pays no rewards. If your credit already qualifies for a card that needs no deposit, skip this one and choose among the best cash back credit cards.
Learn more about the Discover it Secured Cash Back or see how it compares to the best secured credit cards.
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