Capital One Savor Rewards review: the cash back card for gourmets

Capital One Savor Rewards: Overview

APR

• Intro: N/A
• Purchase: 16.24%–22.24% Variable
• Balance transfer: 16.24%–22.24% Variable
• Cash advance: 29.24%
  • Cash advance fee: Either 3% of the advance amount or $3, whichever is greater
• Penalty: N/A

Annual fee: $95

Foreign transaction fee: None

Late payment fee: up to a $40

Offering up to 4% cash back on select purchases, the Capital One Savor Rewards card is a solid rewards card for those who spend significant amounts on entertainment and dining out. And unlike other cash-back cards, the Savor card doesn’t have a cap on how much you can earn in cash back rewards. 

The card does charge an annual fee, and it’s limited to those with excellent credit. But with no foreign transaction fees and several added purchase protections and travel benefits, this card could be valuable to those who travel often (so you can have your own Eat Pray Love tour and indulge in pasta).

Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card: Rewards 

With some cards, you earn a higher cash back rate on purchases in select categories that change quarterly. But the Savor card works differently; you earn pre-set cash back rates in specific categories that never change, and there are no caps on how much you can earn in rewards. 

With the Savor Rewards card, you can earn the following cash back rates: 

• 4% cash back on dining, which includes purchases at restaurants, cafes, bakeries and fast food chains
• 4% cash back on entertainment, including purchases at movie theaters, bowling alleys, sport events, amusement parks, tourist attractions and zoos. Notably, this category does not include transactions at golf courses, collegiate sporting events or amusement park tickets purchased from third-party sites. 
• 4% cash back on entertainment and select streaming services, including Disney+, Hulu, and Netflix. Services like Amazon Prime and audiobook subscriptions are excluded from this category. 
• 3% cash back at grocery stores , including supermarkets and specialty markets. Purchases made at superstores, such as Walmart and Target, are excluded from this category. 
• 1% cash back on everything else

You can also earn a higher cash back rate in select bonus categories: 

• 8% cash back on purchases made through the Capital One Entertainment ticketing platform
• 5% cash back hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel

And for a limited time, cardholders can earn 10% cash back on Uber rides and Uber Eats orders. This offer expires on November 14, 2024.

Does Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card offer a new customer bonus?

With the Savor Rewards card, cardholders earn a $300 bonus if you spend at least $3,000 on qualifying purchases within three months of opening an account.

That bonus is fairly easy to achieve, but its value is relatively low compared to other leading cards with similar annual fees. For example: 

• New customers of the American Express Green Card earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, earn 20 percent back on eligible travel and transit purchases made during your first six months of card membership, up to $200 back in the form of a statement credit. Although the bonus’ value varies based on redemption method, it’s generally worth about $600. 
• The Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders can earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
• With the Citi Premier Credit Card, new customers will earn 60,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Those bonus points are redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards.

All information about the American Express® Green Card has been collected independently by Fortune Recommends™.

How to redeem Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card rewards 

With the Capital One Savor Rewards card, your rewards are earned as cash, and you can redeem them in the following ways: 

Statement credits and checks

You can redeem your rewards for cash in two ways: 

• Statement credit: Redeem your cash back for a statement credit to reduce your balance. Unless the statement credit brings your balance to zero, you will still need to make the minimum monthly payment. 
• Check: You can ask Capital One to send you a check for the amount of your cash back rewards, and you can deposit that check into your checking or savings account. 

Gift cards

You can use your cash back to purchase gift cards from select retailers and restaurant chains. Typically, you’ll get the full value for your cash back, but there are occasionally special offers that give you more value. For example, you could purchase a $25 gift card with just $20 in cash back rewards. 

Redeem Through PayPal

You can use your rewards to pay for purchases through retailers that accept PayPal as a payment method. 

Redeem Through Amazon

If you regularly use Amazon, you can link your Amazon account with your Capital One information and use your cash back to cover some or all of your purchase. 

Additional benefits

The Capital One Savor Rewards card has a variety of valuable credit card benefits, including: 

• Capital One Dining: As a cardmember, you have access to exclusive reservations at select restaurants and special culinary experiences. 
• Capital One Shopping tool: The Capital One Shopping tool is a free plugin that automatically finds and applies coupon codes to your online purchases. 
• Concierge Service: Whether you need help securing dinner reservations in another city or recommendations for a show, the concierge is available 24 hours a day, 265 days a year. 
• Extended warranty: On eligible items with a warranty, extended warranty protection will give you additional coverage for up to one year. 
• Travel accident insurance: Use your card to purchase your travel fare and you’ll automatically get travel accident insurance. This policy pays a benefit to your beneficiaries if you are injured or killed in a covered accident. 
• Virtual account numbers from Eno: Protect yourself and keep your actual credit card number safe with Eno. Eno generates virtual, one-time account numbers you can use when making purchases online. 

Is Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card right for you?

The Capital One Savor Rewards card is best for those whose spending is in line with national averages for groceries and dining. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2022 Consumer Expenditures report, households spent an average of $9,343 on food: $5,703 on food consumed at home, and $3,639 on meals at restaurants, fast food chains and takeout. 

If your spending is in line with those amounts and you used the Capital One Savor Rewards card for your transactions, you’d earn 3% cash back on $5,703 spent on groceries and 4% cash back on $3,639 on meals at restaurants, giving you a total of $316.65 in cash back rewards. 

• 3% cash back on $5,703 spent on groceries: $171.09
• 4% cash back on $3,639 spent on dining at restaurants: $145.56

If you tend to spend less money on food and prefer to eat at home, the card may be less valuable to you, and you may find that other cards without annual fees and different rewards structures may give you more value. 

Credit cards similar to Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card

If the Savor card isn’t right for you, consider one of these alternatives:

Capital One SavorOne vs. Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card

Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is Capital One’s option for gourmets without an annual fee. With this card, you’ll earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services, and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®). Cardholders also earn 1% on all other purchases. That rate is lower than what the Savor Rewards card offers, but without the drawback of an annual fee. 

Chase Freedom Unlimited vs. Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card

Like the Savor Rewards card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card is a good option for foodies. It has no annual fee, and you’ll earn 3% on all eligible purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) including gas and grocery store purchases. After the first year or $20,000 spent, you earn 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3% cash back on dining, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 1.5% cash back on all eligible purchases. 

The Chase Freedom Unlimited card does charge foreign transaction fees, so the Savor Rewards card edges it out for convenience when traveling. But the Chase Freedom Unlimited card provides added travel benefits, such as trip interruption/cancellation coverage and auto rental collision damage waivers.  

Frequently asked questions

Is Capital One Savor Rewards worth it? 

If you tend to spend a substantial amount of money on dining, entertainment and streaming services, the Capital One Savor Rewards card may be a worthy option despite its annual fee. You’ll earn a higher-than-usual cash back rate on your dining and entertainment purchases, and you can redeem your rewards in a variety of ways.

Is the Capital One Savor Rewards card hard to get? 

Getting approved for the Capital One Savor Rewards card may be challenging. According to Capital One, only those with excellent credit will qualify. 

Typically, excellent credit means a credit score of 800 and up. Experian reported that just 21% of Americans have a credit score that high, so many people are unable to qualify for this card. 

How does the Capital One Savor $300 bonus work? 

To qualify for the $300 bonus, you must spend at least $3,000 on qualifying purchases within three months of opening an account. Only new customers are eligible; existing customers and those who received another new cardmember bonus from Capital One within the past 48 months cannot qualify for the bonus. 

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Please note that card details are accurate as of the publish date, but are subject to change at any time at the discretion of the issuer. Please contact the card issuer to verify rates, fees, and benefits before applying.