Maria Adams, Credit Cards Moderator
@m_adams
The Discover calendar shows what purchases qualify for Discover’s 5% cash back bonus rewards categories. Eligible cardholders can earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent per quarter in the purchase categories listed on Discover’s bonus rewards calendar, when they activate.
2025 Discover Calendar for 5% Rewards Categories:
| Dates | Bonus Categories |
| January - March | Restaurants, Home Improvement Stores, and Select Streaming Services |
| April – June | Grocery Stores and Wholesale Clubs |
| July – September | Gas Stations & EV Charging, Public Transit, and Utilities |
| October – December | Amazon.com and Drug Stores |
Discover’s 5% cash back calendar applies to three Discover credit cards: Discover it® Cash Back, Discover it® Student Cash Back and NHL® Discover it®. Cardholders must activate new bonus categories by the end of each quarter for purchases to qualify for the 5% rewards rate. And the bonus rate will apply only from the date of activation through the last day of the quarter. To activate a category, click the blue “Activate Now” link on the calendar.
Just bear in mind that there are exceptions to Discover’s calendar categories. For example, purchases at restaurants inside other locations – like hotels, convenience stores and grocery stores – are not eligible. Neither are restaurant delivery purchases. PayPal purchases using tap-and-pay, virtual wallets or similar technology may not qualify, either. Each category has a bit of fine print. Be sure to read it.
The NHL® Discover it® is not currently available on WalletHub and may be out of date.
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People also ask
How does the Discover cash back bonus work?
The Discover cash back bonus pays you back a certain percentage of the money you spend as a reward. The Discover cash back bonus can be redeemed at select merchants, for gift cards, charity, or cash. More specifically, there are three types of Discover cashback bonuses:
- 5% bonus rate: You earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined category spending per quarter in rotating bonus categories (which change every quarter and require activation), and 1% back on all other purchases. The Discover credit cards that offer this deal are the Discover it® Cash Back, the NHL® Discover it®, and the Discover it® Student Cash Back.
- Cash back in categories...
What are the Discover categories for credit card rewards?
The Discover categories for bonus credit card rewards are restaurants and gas stations, along with various rotating quarterly categories. When cardholders make purchases that qualify for their Discover card’s bonus categories, they earn extra rewards compared to the card’s base rewards rate. It is also worth noting that the bonus categories have quarterly limits, depending on the card.
Discover Credit Card Categories for Bonus Rewards
- Discover it® Cash Back: Rotating quarterly categories
- Discover it® Student Cash Back: Rotating...
What are some common cash back bonus categories?
Some of the most common cash back bonus categories for credit card rewards are supermarkets, gas stations, dining, and entertainment. You may also see streaming services, internet services, wholesale clubs, drugstores, or specific retailers such as Amazon, Walmart or Costco. How many of these you’ll see as bonus categories depends on the credit card, and whether or not it has rotating categories. They’re usually not all available at once, in one package, though.
Some...
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