Discover it Credit Card Review (No Credit History Required) (2026.5 Update: $200 Offer!)

physixfan 2026-05-23 2026-05-23

2026.5 Update: There’s a link with $200 offer, and the double cash back on the first year feature is also there.This is the best ever offer on this card! HT: DoC.

2022.3 Update: It seems the good grade reward is no longer available.

2021.9 Update: Some users are targeted to generate referral links with $100 welcome offer.The link we use on our site has $100 welcome offer.

Application Link

Discover it

Through this link, you might see the application page for either Discover it or Discover it for Students.Actually these two are equivalent: no matter which application page you use, if you choose “College Student” as employment status, you will get Discover it for Students; if you choose other employment status, you will get regular version Discover it.

Benefits

$200 offer: earn $200 statement credit after spending $500 within 3 months.
This is the best ever offer on this card.
Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter, 1% cash back on all other purchases.You need to activate the 5% cash back beforehand each quarter.New categories every quarter.The 5% bonus categories for 2021 are:
Double Cash Back: Double all cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year, including the 5% bonus category, and Discover Deals.
The double part will be credited to you after the first year.Starting from 2018, the sign-up bonus and referral bonus will be granted as statement credit instead of cash back, so they will not be doubled.
Good Grade Reward: Earn $20 each year when you get at least a 3.0 GPA, up to 5 years.Screenshot.[2022.3 update] It seems the good grade reward is no longer available.
No credit history needed.
Refer a friend: You can earn $50 for every approved account you refer, up to a maximum of 10 approved referrals ($500) per calendar year. The sign-up bonus from these referral links is $50.
No foreign transaction fee.
No annual fee.

Disadvantages

Only first $1,500 purchases per quarter on bonus categories can earn 5% cash back, after that you can only earn 1% cash back.
This is a Discover card, which is not as widely accepted as Visa or MasterCard.
Credit limit for Discover it for Students may be VERY low, and it’s hard to get the limit increased.
5% bonus categories may not be correctly identified abroad when using some partner networks like UnionPay.

Recommended Application Time

You can get approved even with no credit history at all! (SSN required)
You may get rejected if you have some credit history, we recommend you apply when you have a credit history of 6 months.
You must wait for a year before applying for a second Discover card.
You can only have at most 2 Discover credit cards.

Summary

This card is a no-brainer choice.

Everyone should get it for its 5% cash back in rotating categories and no annual fee.Besides, Discover Deals sometimes have pretty good discounts.

Historical Offers Chart

Note: Between 2015.6 and 2018.1, the $50 sign-up bonus is counted as cash back, thus is doubled to become $100 after one year.However, since 2018.1, the sign-up bonus is counted as statement credit, so it won’t be doubled any more.

Application Link

Discover it

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Frequently Asked Questions

Certainly. Unlike personal loans, you won't face any penalties for settling your balance ahead of schedule. However, it's crucial to keep in mind that if your credit card comes with a 0% introductory offer, it's essential to clear your balance completely before the 0% promotion expires and interest charges apply.

However, you can include additional cardholders, each with their own card. While sharing the single credit limit, the primary cardholder remains responsible for settling the debt.

Potentially, yes. Credit card APRs are typically variable, allowing lenders to change rates, impacting your monthly payments. Additionally, be mindful that introductory 0% offers can lead to higher interest rates once they expire. So, it's wise to clear your balance before that happens, if feasible.

Indeed, credit builder cards exist for those with less-than-ideal credit scores. These cards offer lower credit limits (typically £150 to £1,200) and higher interest rates. Responsible use, including full and on-time payments, can gradually boost your creditworthiness, potentially opening doors to better credit card offers down the line.