Wells Fargo Active Cash Card vs. Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card

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Cash back credit cards can help you get an edge over inflation. If you’re searching for a great cash back credit card, two contenders are the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card and the Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card. We compare these two cards in detail so you can choose the one that’s best for you.

Welcome Offer

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card: Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months. The amount you have to spend to get the offer is pretty achievable for most people, which makes this a nice boost to your bottom line.

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card doesn’t have a welcome offer. They do have a cash back match that you get at the end of the year, but we’ll get to that later. For now, the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is the clear winner in this category.

Cash Back Rewards

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card earns you an unlimited 2% cash back on purchases. There are no categories to remember or sign up for; just a simple cash back rewards structure.

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card takes a different approach. You get 5% cash back on select categories each quarter and an unlimited 1% cash back on everything else. The 5% cash back is limited to $1,500 in purchases per quarter. Rotating categories can include things like Amazon purchases, gas, and restaurants. The categories for April – June 2024 are gas stations and electric charging stations, home improvement stores and public transit. The categories for July – September will be announced on June 1st. Although it seems like it might be a giant pain to remember to activate categories, cardholders report that it’s actually really easy. Discover sends you an email, and you just click “activate.” You can activate it from the app as well.

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card doesn’t have a bonus, as we mentioned. What it does have is Cash Back Match. Whatever you earn in cash back over the course of the first year, Discover will match that amount. So, if you earn $150 in cash back, Discover can pay you another $150. You can take it as a statement credit or have it deposited into a checking account.

This comparison is tough because Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card does give you elevated rewards, but only in certain categories, and you are limited to $1,500 in purchases per quarter. Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card gives you an unlimited 2% on everything. The card that can reward you most will depend on your spending. For example, say you usually spend about $2,500 on your card on various purchases each month, then you likely can earn more rewards with the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card.

Here are the details for each card:

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card

Rewards:

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card

Rewards:

Rates and Fees

Both cards offer 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 months months. After the introductory period, your rate with Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card will be 20.24%, 25.24% or 29.99%, variable, depending on your creditworthiness.

After the introductory rate, Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card has a rate of 17.24% to 28.24% variable, depending on your creditworthiness.

Neither card has an annual fee.

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card doesn’t have foreign transaction fees. Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card has a foreign transaction fee of 3% of each transaction converted to U.S. dollars.. If you plan on traveling internationally, take the Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card because foreign transaction fees can really add up.

Who the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is Best For

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is a great card for anyone who wants a straightforward 2% cash back card. While many cards offer 2% cash back these days, some of them have extra steps or require you to have a checking account. While Wells Fargo would love to have you as a checking account customer, you don’t have to have one to redeem your rewards. You do, however, have to redeem your rewards in $25 increments.

Another great perk of this card is cell phone protection, up to $600 when you pay your wireless bill with your Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card. Not a lot of 2% cash back card offer cell phone protection, especially for no annual fee.

Who the Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card is Best For

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card is a great card because it offers elevated rewards on everyday categories. And with the Cash Back Match at the end of the first year, you’re essentially getting 10% cash back on those 5% purchases. It’s easy to activate your cash back category every quarter. Discover is often praised for its customer service, which is nice to know just in case you have an issue. If you usually spend less than $2,500 a month on your credit card and you don’t mind rotating categories, this may be the card for you. Especially if you travel outside the U.S. since there are no foreign transaction fees.

Does It Make Sense to Get Both Cards?

Yes! They complement each other very well. You can use the Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card for whatever categories earn the 5% and use the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card for everything else. That way you get 2% cash back on all your other purchases. You will also be able to take advantage of the welcome bonus from Wells Fargo and the Cash Back match from Discover, so you can get a bonus twice.

Approval Odds

The credit score data listed below comes from publicly available information in a number of forums. The accuracy of the information cannot be verified. Keep in mind that credit card issuers consider more than an applicant’s credit score and that underwriting standards change over time.

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card

Discover It® Cash Back Credit Card

Discover earned its reputation as a good first credit card or a card for those with slightly lower credit scores. Wells Fargo is more conservative and rewards excellent credit. You can always apply for both since neither card has an annual fee.