Capital One Savor Student Cash Rewards vs. Discover it® Student Cash Back

The Savor Student Cash Rewards and Discover it® Student Cash Back both have a lot of potential to be lucrative rewards-earning cards. In the end, the card that pulls ahead for you will depend on how much you spend per month and what you spend your money on and how much attention you want to pay to your card.

That said, Discover it® Student Cash Back requires significantly more attention than the Savor Student card does, so the Savor pulls ahead in this category for us.

Sure, you can earn higher cash back rates in popular categories with the Discover it® card, but you have to remember to activate those quarterly categories and keep track of whether you’ve met the $1,500 spending cap. It’s a lot to think about for busy students.

The Capital One Savor Student Cash Rewards, on the other hand, offers a consistent 3 percent cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and groceries (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target), with no spending cap. You’ll also earn 5 percent cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 8 percent cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases and 1 percent cash back on all other purchases. Those are popular spending categories for many students, so there’s plenty of opportunity to rack up rewards. Plus you don’t have the stress of keeping up with activations or spending caps.