What credit score do you need for the Discover it Cash Back card?

The Discover it® Cash Back is one of the top cash back credit cards on the market — and an excellent choice for people who like rotating category cash back rewards.

You can earn 5 percent cash back on popular spending categories that rotate every quarter with the Discover it Cash Back card, up to $1,500 in purchases per quarter — all other purchases earn 1 percent cash back. As a new cardholder, Discover’s Cashback Match reward bonus will match all of the cash back you earn during your first year.

Plus, the Discover it Cash Back card is a no-annual-fee credit card. New cardholders can take advantage of 15 months of 0 percent intro APR on purchases and balance transfers, followed by a regular variable APR of 16.24 percent to 27.24 percent. That gives you over a year to pay off old balances, fund a large purchase or make day-to-day spending decisions without worrying about interest charges.

There are many good reasons to apply for the Discover it Cash Back card — but what credit score do you need to ensure your application gets approved? Here’s everything you need to know about the Discover it Cash Back credit card application, including what credit score you need for the card, how Discover calculates your creditworthiness and what you can do to improve your chances of approval.

What credit score do you need for the Discover it Cash Back card?

You are most likely to be approved for the Discover it Cash Back card if you have good or excellent credit, which is a credit score between 670 and 850.

How does Discover gauge your creditworthiness?

According to Discover, the Discover it Cash Back credit card is for people with established credit, which means it’s looking for people who have built a positive credit history. What does that mean? Essentially, Discover wants to make sure you practice responsible credit habits, such as making on-time payments every month and keeping your balances low.

In addition to evaluating your payment and balance history, Discover will also take a look at your length of credit history to ensure you have a long track record of using credit responsibly. Discover will also check to make sure you haven’t applied for a lot of new credit recently. Having a lot of recent credit card applications on your credit report suggests you might be preparing to take on a lot of new debt — and credit card issuers don’t want you to carry more debt than you can pay off.

When Discover evaluates your creditworthiness, it’s not only considering whether to accept you for a top cash back credit card like the Discover it Cash Back, it’s also determining what credit limit you’ll receive upon acceptance. Your Discover it Cash Back credit limit is based on your history of responsible credit use as well as your current income level compared to major monthly expenses, like rent or mortgage payments. People with incomes significantly higher than their mortgage or rent payments are more likely to receive higher credit limits, in part because they’re more likely to have the cash required to pay off those high-limit purchases.

How to increase your chance of approval

Before you apply, check your credit score. There are many ways to check your credit score online for free. In fact, Discover cardholders can use the Discover Credit Scorecard to get a FICO credit score for free.

Once you know your credit score, you’ll know whether or not it’s worth applying for the Discover it Cash Back credit card. Remember, Discover is looking for people who have established good credit, so you’re going to need a FICO credit score of 670 or higher. If you’re using the VantageScore credit scoring system, you’ll want a score of 700 or higher.

If your credit score isn’t quite there yet, it’s worth taking the time to improve your credit score before applying for the Discover it Cash Back credit card. The best way to improve your credit quickly is by paying off your outstanding balances, which reduces your credit utilization ratio and increases your credit score. You’ll also need to make on-time payments on your existing credit cards before you can qualify for the Discover it Cash Back card, so if you’re having trouble remembering when your credit card bill is due, consider signing up for credit card autopay to make sure you never miss a deadline.

If you don’t qualify yet, consider the Discover it Secured credit card

If you don’t have a good enough credit score for the Discover it Cash Back credit card, you might want to consider the Discover it® Secured credit card. Discover it Secured requires a security deposit of $200 to $2,500, which becomes your credit limit. If you use your Discover it Secured card responsibly, not only will you earn your security deposit back but you’ll also be able to graduate to an unsecured credit card. Plus, Discover it Secured cardholders earn cash back rewards on every purchase: 2 percent on restaurants and gas (for up to $1,000 in purchases per quarter) and 1 percent on all other purchases. New cardholders will get their first year of cash back doubled through Discover’s Cashback Match.

Bottom line

What credit score do you need for the Discover it Cash Back card? Your odds of approval will go up if you have good or excellent credit, so try to get your FICO credit score above 670 — or your VantageScore above 700 — before you apply. If you want to make sure you’re a good fit for the Discover it Cash Back card, use CreditCards.com’s CardMatch tool to see if you can prequalify for the card. There’s no impact on your credit score, and you’ll know within minutes whether your Discover it Cash Back application is likely to be approved.