If you have a Discover cashback credit card, you may find it confusing when trying to determine what is eligible for the benefits. You may not know which stores to use this card at for maximum savings. Wonder no longer. We have done the research to answer this question for you.
Stand-alone grocery stores, which exist solely to provide grocery items, are eligible for Discover cashback. Big box stores, which provide groceries alongside an array of other items, typically do not qualify for Discover cashback.
So now you have a general idea of which stores to shop at with your credit card and which ones to avoid. However, there are a lot more details to discuss. You may have other related questions, too. Keep reading to learn more.
Where To Use Your Discover Card
Determining the best places to use your Discover card based on the reward program rules and time of year is crucial to getting the most kickbacks. We'll give you more detailed instructions here.
Stand-Alone Grocery Stores
Stand-alone grocery stores are the best places to use your Discover card in the first quarter of the year, when you can earn 5% of all purchases up to $1500 at grocery stores, fitness clubs, and gym memberships.
Stand-alone grocery stores are also referred to as "pure" grocery stores. They exist mainly to meet the grocery needs of customers. While they may carry some items not in this category, they primarily stock foodstuffs, home cleaning, and hygiene products.
Unfortunately, Discover does not provide a specified list of eligible grocery stores. However, Aldi, Dillon's, Hy-Vee, Trader Joe's, and Whole Foods would be a list of examples of "pure" grocery markets.
Big-Box Grocery Stores
What isn't eligible for the 5% cashback with Discover it, unless otherwise specified, are the big-box grocery stores. You may also refer to these types of grocery stores as supercenters.
While they do provide grocery products for customers, they do not exist solely to meet this demand. They are meant to serve as a one-stop-shop for all categories of items, such as technology, beauty, home improvement, auto, and more.
Because so many diverse purchases can be made at these stores, they do not qualify for the Discover 5% rewards. Sadly, Walmart and Target are considered ineligible in most circumstances.
However, you will find that in the second quarter of this calendar year, purchases made at Target supercenters will be eligible for the 5% Discover bonus.
Does Walmart Count As A Grocery Store For Discover 5%?
Unfortunately, it is doubtful that you will earn 5% cashback when spending at a Walmart. However, if you shop at a Walmart neighborhood market rather than a supercenter, this may be a loophole in which you can receive this reward.
Knowing The Calendar
You can know best where to use your card for the most rewards by being familiar with the Discover cashback calendar. Each calendar year is divided into quarters when it comes to the Discover program. Each quarter specifies different places to use your card for the highest benefits.
The first quarter of the year runs beginning the first day of January and running until the last day of March. This quarter, the places eligible for 5% cashback are grocery stores, fitness clubs, and gym memberships, just in time to kickstart your New Years' resolutions.
The second quarter of the year runs beginning the first day of April and ends on the last day of June. This quarter, the places eligible for 5% cashback are gas stations and Target. There's another exception to the exclusion of big-box grocery stores.
The third quarter of the year begins the first day of July and ends on the last day of September. During this quarter, you can earn 5% cash back at restaurants and purchases made through Paypal.
The fourth and last quarter of the year begins the first day of October and runs through the last day of December. At this time, you can use your card at Amazon.com and Digital wallets, such as Apple Pay, to earn 5% back. This will be great for stress-free holiday shopping!
How To Use Your Discover Card
Now that you have a better idea of where your use your Discover card, we thought we'd answer some questions on how to use this rewards program. We'll cover some of the most common inquiries.
How Much Cash Back Can I Get With Discover It?
Discover It is a wonderful rewards program because it doesn't limit the number of rewards you can receive. You can use your card anywhere for 1% cashback. This is for any store, online or in-person, in the United States, and the amount to be received is unlimited.
There is a limitation when it comes to the higher percentage of 5% cashback. A cardholder can only earn 5% back on purchases up to $1500. Using the 5% rewards alone, you could receive up to $75 deposited back into your account per quarter.
There's also a cash back match for a cardholder's first year. However much a cardholder earns in their first year with a Discover credit card, the bank will match that amount dollar for dollar.
So, for example, if you earned $300 cashback in your first year with Discover [the 5% cashback maximum], you will have an additional $300 deposited in your account at the end of the year by Discover. Talk about smart spending!
How Do I Pay My Discover Bill?
Discover makes it easy to pay your credit card bill by providing several methods to do so. The first of these, and possibly the most convenient, is to make a payment through a mobile app.
If you don't already have the app on your smartphone, you can text APP to DISCOV (347268) for a link and instructions to download the app to your phone.
The second option is to pay online through the Discover portal. You can do this on your smartphone, tablet, or computer.
Another great option to make a payment is through your bank's bill pay service. Discover accepts ACH payments, making it very easy for the bank to send the money and for Discover to receive it without incident.
Of course, Discover still sends paper statements to customers, and you can use the coupon attached to this statement to mail a check or money order.
Lastly, you can pay your bill easily over the phone using Discover's automated system. To do so, you can call 1-800-DISCOVER [1-800-347-2638] at any time of day.
What Is The Discover Minimum Payment?
If your account balance is below $35, the remaining balance is the minimum payment. However, if the account balance is over $35, the minimum payment will either be $35 or 2% of the remaining balance, whichever is the higher amount.
Keep in mind that if you have any past due amount, this will be added to the minimum payment for the month. The first missed payment will not acquire any penalty fees. If any other payments are not made in time, late fees could be added to the minimum payment amount.
In Conclusion
Credit cards are useful tools when used correctly, and a Discover credit card can be exceptionally helpful when taking advantage of its cashback bonus program. But you have to know where to shop to receive these benefits, including which grocery stores.
We concluded that, in most cases, the stand-alone grocery stores qualify for the 5% cashback bonus in the first quarter of the Discover calendar, while big-box stores do not. However, this isn't the case for the third quarter, when Target will be eligible.
We hope that we thoroughly answered your question and that you will be better equipped to get the most bang for your buck with your Discover card. Happy shopping!
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