Capital One SavorOne Rewards Credit Card Review

This card is best for people with excellent credit who love experiencing life to the fullest—particularly through food and fun. The 3% cash-back rate on groceries, dining out, and entertainment purchases is an unusual combination, and if you spend less than $9,500 per year on these things, the SavorOne could be a great way to make your favorite activities a little more rewarding.

That said, if you spend more than $9,500 per year on groceries, dining, and entertainment ($792 per month), you might be better off with the similarly named Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card, which offers 4% cash-back on these categories, but with an annual fee of $95.

Pros Explained

• Generous cash-back rate on groceries, dining, and entertainment: The chance to earn 3% back on these categories together is pretty impressive, especially when there’s no annual fee. Some no-annual-fee cards pay the same rate at just restaurants (perhaps along with purchases on travel, gas, or other categories), but it’s hard to find this combination. Even the premium Chase Sapphire Reserve travel card, which carries an annual fee of $550, doesn’t offer such a combination. 
• Unlimited earning potential within rewards categories: It’s not unusual for credit cards to offer bigger cash-back rewards in specific categories. What is not as typical is for those rewards to be unlimited, meaning with no caps on how much of your spending qualifies for the higher rate.
• No foreign transaction or annual fees: If you’re into food and experiences, there’s a good chance you also love traveling abroad. In that case, this card might be especially valuable to you because you can rack up rewards without paying foreign transaction fees. Plus, no annual fee means there’s no extra cost to keep this card open year after year, which is good for strengthening your credit history.

Cons Explained

• Some exclusions on purchase categories may surprise you: What counts as a qualifying purchase in bonus categories isn’t always what you’d expect. For example, grocery purchases from superstores like Target or Walmart won't earn the full 3% cash back. And even though you might really enjoy playing golf with your buddies, that won’t count as an “entertainment” purchase. You’ll still earn cash back on these purchases, but at the lower 1% rate.

Bonus for New Cardholders

You can earn an extra $200 if you spend at least $500 within the first three months after you open the card. That means you need to spend only about $167 per month, on average, to earn this bonus. For most people, that’s probably an easy threshold to meet, especially if you’re putting all of your everyday spending on the card. 

For a card with no annual fee, this offer is a decent deal. It’s easy to find cash-back rewards cards with even higher bonuses, but you may have to spend more to earn it. For example, the Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card offers a higher bonus—$300—but you’ll need to spend $3,000 within the first three months to get it.

Earning Points and Rewards

The cash-back structure on this card is relatively straightforward. You’ll earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, streaming services, and grocery store purchases, and 1% cash back on everything else. 

While these are very respectable rates, especially as a package deal, the real question is whether you spend enough on these categories to make the Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card, which offers 4% back on dining and entertainment, a better deal. 

The average household in the U.S. spent more than $10,000 annually on groceries, dining out, and entertainment, so the higher-earning Savor Rewards Card might be the better option even with its annual fee. The point when the SavorOne card becomes less valuable is $9,500. At that point, SavorOne's 3% rewards will net $285, and at 4%, the Savor card will bring in $380. Subtract the $95 annual fee, and the Savor card's net return is the same $285.

Keep in mind that the way “dining,” “entertainment,” and “grocery” purchases are classified can get fuzzy. Like other card companies, Capital One uses merchant codes—codes used to classify each store that accepts credit cards—to identify your purchase, and they're not always straightforward.

Redeeming Rewards

Capital One allows you to redeem cash-back rewards any time you want, and for any amount. Your rewards never expire, though you’ll lose rewards left on the card if you close the account. You can redeem your cash back for the following:

• Check
• Statement credit
• Gift card
• Credit for previous purchases

You can even set up automatic redemption rules if you want a truly hands-off process. You can choose to redeem at certain times of the year or whenever you’ve reached certain dollar thresholds ($25, $50, $100, $200, $500, or $1,500).

How to Get the Most out of This Card

It doesn’t take much to earn the bonus for new cardholders, but monitor your spending in the first three months to make sure you use the card enough to take advantage of it. This should be your go-to card for all dining and entertainment purchases since you’re not apt to earn more with another card, and there’s no limit on how much cash back you can earn each year.

If you want to truly maximize your cash-back earning potential, consider pairing the SavorOne with a card such as the Citi Double Cash Card, which earns 2% cash back on all purchases. Use it for every purchase that doesn't earn at least 3% with the SavorOne.

Excellent Perks

The Capital One SavorOne Rewards Credit Card only offers a few perks that The Balance considers to rise above the more standard benefits offered by many. 

• Travel accident insurance: You’re eligible for compensation in case of death or disability while traveling on a fare bought with your card.

If you qualify for World Elite Mastercard benefits upon application (which is based on creditworthiness), you’ll also get access to:

• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: If you’ve charged the cost of a trip on your card and it’s interrupted or canceled due to circumstances beyond your control, you can be reimbursed for up to $1,500 worth of non-refundable expenses.
• Baggage delay insurance: If the airline misplaces your bag, you’ll receive $100 per day for up to three days.

Other Features

• Access to special events and dining experiences
• Extended warranties
• Concierge for booking event tickets, travel, and other services

World Elite cardholders also receive:

• Rental car collision insurance (secondary to your own policy) 
• Lowest advertised price match
• Travel advice plus medical referrals and consultations while traveling
• Roadside assistance hotline 

Customer Experience

J.D. Power ranked Capital One fifth out of 11 card issuers in its 2020 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study. 

One noteworthy feature is its CreditWise tool, which lets you view and monitor your VantageScore credit score for free. You also can text message Eno, a chatbot assistant, to check your balance or pay your bill.

Security Features

Most of Capital One’s security features are standard for the industry. But the company does stand out in a few ways. First of all, it provides you with a virtual credit card number to use when shopping online. And if you ever lose your card or if it’s stolen, you can lock your card so no one can use it. 

As part of CreditWise, you’ll get alerts from two credit bureaus whenever there are changes to your credit reports that could be a sign of fraud. CreditWise also tells you if your Social Security number is found on the dark web, where criminals exchange this information.

Fees

This card combines valuable cash-back rewards with no annual fee or foreign transaction fees. Otherwise, its fees are typical for cards of this type.