What does a credit card with zero annual fee, guaranteed cash back rewards on all your food-related and entertainment purchases, and no foreign transaction make? A great option for foodies and entertainment lovers alike, that’s what!
Offering these perks and more, the newly rebranded Capital One Savor Card (which was previously the Capital One SavorOne) is currently one of the best credit cards for those who find themselves frequently ordering takeout while binge-watching their favorite shows or heading out to grab a quick bite. Here’s a detailed review of everything the Capital One Savor Card has to offer!
The Capital One Savor Card at a glance
Annual Fee: $0 | Rewards Rate: 1% – 8% |
Foreign Transaction Fees: $0 | Credit Score Needed: 690-850 (Good – Excellent) |
Intro APR: 0% for the first 15 months on purchases and balance transfers (the balance transfer fee still applies) | Ongoing APR: 19.74 – 29.74% variable APR |
Intro Bonus: $250 cash bonus if you spend $500 on purchases within the first 3 months of enrolling for the card |
A detailed review of the Capital One Savor Card
Here’s the lowdown on the Capital One Savor card’s perks.
Capital One Savor Card
Sign-up today to take advantage of the welcome offer and start earning cash-back today!
Welcome Offer
Credit cards typically give a welcome bonus for new users, and the Capital One Savor isn’t any different. You get a sign-up bonus of $250 once you use your Savor card to make purchases of $500 within the first 3 months of opening your account. You also get to enjoy 0% APR (Annual Percentage Rate, which is just the yearly interest) for the first 15 months on all purchases and balance transfers, which is pretty neat.
However, there’s a caveat. You’re eligible for these two benefits only if you have excellent credit, which means a score of 750 or above. So, what happens if you don’t have an excellent credit score? You can still get the Capital One Savor card, but you’ll be given a version that doesn’t come with the two welcome offers.
Rewards
The Capital One Savor card lets you earn cash backs of up to 8% on various purchases. The best part? There’s no limit to the amount of rewards you can earn. And they never expire, too!
8% cash back on entertainment purchases made through the Capital One Entertainment platform. This online portal is a ticketing platform that lets you book exclusive tickets to sports, music, and dining events. This includes meet-and-greets with athletes and artists, access to food festivals, and dinners prepared by Michelin-star chefs – all exclusive to cardholders only. Really want to grab a spot at a concert or event? The platform also lets cardholders book pre-sale tickets even before they become available to the general public!
5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel platform. You also get additional perks when you book through this portal. For instance, if you get a better price for your hotel room or rental car booking elsewhere within 24 hours, you’ll get a credit for the difference from Capital One Travel. This means that the prices they offer are hard to beat!
3% cash back on dining, qualified entertainment purchases, grocery store purchases, and popular streaming services. This means that whether you eat out or in, you’ll get a cash back.
According to Capital One, “dining out” involves restaurants, fast food chains, cafes, coffee shops, lounges, bakeries, bars, and nightclubs. In other words, the place you eat at should use a dining Merchant Category Code to be eligible for this 3% cash back.
Now, what’s a Merchant Category Code? It’s a 4-digit classification number assigned to businesses according to the kind of goods and services they provide. Credit card issuers, including Capital One, use these codes to determine cash back rewards and bonus points for cardholders.
Expert tip: Since there’s no foreign transaction fees, you’ll be able to enjoy 3% cash back when dining at restaurants abroad, too (as long as the places use a dining merchant code). This makes the Capital One Savor card quite valuable for globe-trotters as a dining credit card.
Any grocery store purchases also get you a 3% cash back. But, this doesn’t include superstores like Target and Walmart (yes, even if you only buy groceries here during your shopping run), grocery purchases made at gas stations, discount stores, convenience stores, or warehouse clubs, and is applicable only when you shop at normal grocery stores.
Capital One also has a definition for what qualifies as an “entertainment purchase.”
What’s a qualified entertainment purchase? Tickets purchased for a movie, concert, play, zoo, amusement park, sporting event, bowling alley, aquarium, tourist-y places, pool hall, record store, dance hall, or a video rental location. Any purchases made for digital streaming services don’t come under the entertainment category (since there’s a separate cash back offer for them).
Only the tickets bought for the above-mentioned events will get you that 3% cash back. This means you won’t earn any rewards for the following purchases 👇:
Non-qualifying entertainment purchases: Tickets (and subscription fees) for golf courses, country clubs, college sporting events, live entertainment hosted by non-profits, or any entertainment and resort packages that come under the “travel” or “hotel” category. You won’t get a cash back even for amusement park tickets if you purchase them through third-party sites!
For streaming services, Capital One simply defines it as “purchases made from eligible music and video streaming services, such as Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+.” This is very vague and is, by no means, an exhaustive list. The card issuer does explicitly mention that certain services, including Prime Video, Verizon FIOS On Demand, AT & T TV, and audiobook and fitness subscriptions are excluded.
1% cash back on all other purchases. Whenever you use your card to make a purchase that doesn’t fall under any of the above categories, you’ll receive 1% cash back for it.
Other benefits
- No foreign transaction fees. You can use this card on your international adventures without worrying about any fees. Combined with the no annual fee, this makes the Capital One Savor card a great choice for those who travel abroad frequently.
- Travel accident insurance. When you use your Capital One Savor card to pay for your trip’s fare, you (and your family members) will automatically be covered in case of any losses (such as loss of limbs, eyesight, severe injury, or death) due to accidents.
- Extended warranty. Bought a product (such as a TV, mobile phone, or an appliance) using your Savor card? You’ll automatically get extended warranty protection at no additional cost for these items (beyond what the manufacturer offers), but only if the manufacturer’s warranty lasts for 3 years or less. It’s worth noting that you’ll get this protection only for certain eligible items.
- Complimentary concierge service. Need help planning a trip, booking a ticket, or making a reservation at a restaurant? The Savor card’s concierge service is here to help! You can contact them anytime, any day (seriously. 24 hours, 365 days a year), and get help for free!
- 50% discount on handcrafted beverages purchased through Capital One Cafes all across the US.
- Fraud coverage. If your card gets stolen, you won’t be held responsible for any unauthorized purchases made using the card.
- Ability to combine rewards with other Capital One cards. While you can’t earn airline miles with the Capital One Savor card, you can transfer the rewards you earn to another Capital One card that earns Capital One miles, like the Capital One Venture X Card. You’ll get one mile for every cent. You can, then, use these miles to book award flights and hotels.
Pros and cons of the Capital One Savor Card
Pros | Cons |
No annual fee | No airline or hotel partners |
No foreign transaction fee | No welcome benefits unless you have excellent credit |
Unlimited cash back on everyday spending categories | High APR after the intro period |
Rewards never expire | Doesn’t earn airline miles |
No minimum amount needed to redeem rewards | |
Several other perks, including 24*7 free concierge service, extended warranty, and travel accident insurance | |
Ability to combine rewards with other Capital One cards and transfer them to hotel and airline partners |
Who will benefit from the Capital One Savor Card?
The Capital One Savor Card is a great credit card for:
- Beginners who want a simple no-frills cash back card to learn the ropes
- People whose largest spending categories are food and entertainment
- Those who don’t want to pay an annual fee for a credit card
- People who already have one of the Capital One Venture X cards, as this will allow them to maximize their benefits quickly
- Frequent travelers who want a credit card to use abroad without any foreign transaction fees
So, is the Capital One Savor Card worth it? Yes, definitely! It offers excellent benefits for a card with a zero annual fee, making it a great addition to anybody’s credit card rolodex.
Capital One Savor Card
Sign-up today to take advantage of the welcome offer and start earning cash-back today!