Discover it Student Cash Back
The it Student Cash Back is the same rotating 5% card as Discover's flagship it Cash Back, opened up to students with little or no credit history. You earn 5% on quarterly categories you activate, on up to $1,500 in purchases, and 1% on everything else, plus the unlimited Cashback Match that doubles your first year. For a student that match is the real draw, because a first year of doubled cash back arrives at the same time you are building the credit file that gets you better cards later. The intro APR is shorter than the consumer version (6 months rather than 15), so this is a rewards-and-credit-building card, not a financing tool.
Direct link to the issuer. We don't currently have an affiliate relationship for this card.
- Annual feeFree
- Welcome offerUnlimited Cashback MatchDiscover automatically matches all the cash back you earn at the end of your first year, dollar for dollar, with no limit and no minimum spend. New cardmembers only.
- Recommended credit640-720 (students; limited credit OK)Median 660. See why →
Earning rates
on Discover Cashback- 5xRotating QuarterlyUp to $1,500/qtr, activateCap $1,500
- 1xEverything else
Benefits and credits
Purchase and protection benefits
- $0 Fraud Liability Guarantee
financing
- 0% Intro APR for 6 Months
service
- Free FICO Credit Score
- Freeze It Account Freeze
Pricing and fees
Full Pricing and Terms- Purchase APR
- 16.49% to 25.49%
- Foreign tx
- None
- Penalty APR (cap)
- None
- Balance transfer
- 16.49% to 25.49%
- Fee 3.00%
- Cash advance
- 28.49%
- Fee $10 or 5.00%, whichever is greater
- Late / returned
- $41 · $30
Eligibility and application
- Card typeStudent card
- Pre-qualificationSoft-pull pre-qualification available
- Application inquiryHard credit inquiry on submission
- Approval bureauNot disclosed by issuer
- Authorized user feeNot disclosed
- Reports AU to bureausYesReports authorized-user activity to all three bureaus (issuer's own statement). No published age minimum.Issuer policy
How the recommended credit score is derived
Reported by users, not disclosed by the issuer. Synthesized from community-reported approval data points and cross-checked against industry editorial guidance for consensus.
- Community card reviews and reported approvals for the Discover it Student card
- Community Q&A on Discover student card requirements: no FICO history required, 640+ fine, must be an enrolled student
- Editorial guidance on the credit score needed for the Discover it Student Cash Back
- Community Q&A on minimum credit scores across Discover cards
-
Discover it Cash BackDiscoverThe it Cash Back is Discover's flagship rotating-category card, and the hook is two-sided.
$0 annual fee -
Chase Freedom FlexChase · MastercardThe Freedom Flex is Chase's rotating-category cash-back card, with no annual fee and 5% on a quarterly category that changes through the year.
$0 annual fee -
Blue Cash Everyday Card from American ExpressAmexBlue Cash Everyday is the no-annual-fee sibling in the Blue Cash line, earning 3% back on the same supermarket, online retail, and gas categories that the Preferred earns 6% on, though here the cap is a more modest $6,000 per category per year.
$0 annual fee
Sources
Affiliate disclosure
ccdeck may earn a commission from links on this page. This does not affect our editorial rankings, and we will say so when the card we get paid on is not the best pick for you.
Not financial advice
ccdeck is not a financial advisor. Information here is for educational purposes only. Confirm card terms with the issuer before applying.