Is the Capital One Savor Card Worth It? If You Value Experiences Then 100% Yes!

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INSIDER SECRET: Beyond an incredible 4% cash back return on dining and entertainment, the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card also offers exclusive experiences where cardholders can see their favorite team or artist. 

The Capital One Savor Rewards credit card was built for folks who like to eat and value experiences. The card earns cash back, which makes rewards easy to earn, and it has attractive returns on popular categories. You’ll earn 4% cash back on dining and entertainment. Because, really, who doesn’t love to dinner and a show?

The card’s current sign-up promotion offers a $300 cash bonus after you meet minimum spending requirements.

If you’re a foodie or like getting out and about, this card is probably a great pick for your wallet. We’ll help you decide if the Capital One Savor card is worth it for you.

The information for the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards card has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Is the Capital One Savor card worth its annual fee? 4% cash back on dining and entertainment can really add up. (Photo by 279photo Studio/Shutterstock)

Is the Capital One Savor Card Worth it?

Read our review of the Capital One Savor Rewards Card

With the Capital One Savor card, you’ll earn $300 cash back after you spend $3,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.

When considering whether a card is right for you, it’s important to understand the costs and benefits. In this case, let’s look at how the card will provide more value than the cost of the $95 annual fee. The Capital One Savor card’s current sign-up bonus of $300 will cover the annual fee more than three times over.

By just meeting the sign-up bonus there is innate value in the card, but that doesn’t count the other benefits. Earnings are ample on this card, with a whopping 4% cash back on dining and entertainment, 4% back on popular streaming services, 3% cash back on grocery store purchases (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target) and 1% back on everything else.

An 8% return on Vivid Seats purchases can be a valuable return if you like to splurge on sports, concerts and theater.

Other benefits like extended warranties on eligible purchases, travel accident insurance and NO foreign transaction fees help make the $95 annual fee minuscule in comparison to the value of the card.

Let’s take a look.

Earn Rewards Every Time You Dine

The Capital One Savor card puts food at the forefront of its priorities, offering 4% cash back on dining and 2% back at grocery stores.

Expensive taste can add up, but this card’s 4% cash back on dining will soften the blow. (Photo by W. Santos/Shutterstock)

Capital One counts dining as purchases made at “at restaurants, cafes, bars, lounges, fast-food chains and bakeries.” Pretty standard.

Grocery stores are considered to be “supermarket, meat locker, freezer, dairy product store and specialty market.” This category doesn’t stretch much further, though. Purchases from superstores like Walmart and Target won’t count.

Still, the category parameters ensure that you’ll get a reasonable return on your hunt for three square meals a day.

An Emphasis on Experiences, Including Exclusive Ones

Right beside that 4% cash back on dining is the 4% back on entertainment, categorized by Capital One as:

“Movie theaters, sports promoters (professional and semi-professional live events), theatrical promoters, amusement parks, tourist attractions, aquariums, zoos, dance halls, record stores, pool halls or bowling alleys.”

Whether you spend big bucks on taking your family to Disney or like to see movies on the weekend, this category gets you back some money on things you love.

4% back on entertainment can mean 4% back on Disney World and many other experiences. (Photo by Mia2you/Shutterstock)

Plus, Capital One’s partnership with Vivid Seats gives Savor Rewards cardholders a hefty 8% cash back on Vivid Seats ticket purchases. The platform has tickets to tons of events, so you will most likely be able to grab a seat at your favorite artist’s tour.

Capital One also offers exclusive access to dining, entertainment and sports events to cardholders who would love a VIP-only experience.

Simplicity With Cash Back Rewards

Understanding points systems, familiarizing yourself with valuations and securing a good redemption can be intimidating for the average credit card holder. Thankfully, the Capital One Savor card keeps it simple with its cash back categories. There’s no need to stress over maximizing your points. Plus, you can redeem what you’ve earned at any time, with no minimum redemption amount.

Other All-Around Useful Perks

The Capital One Savor card comes with a couple other benefits that can seriously come in handy. An extended warranty on eligible products will improve protection on purchases.

For frequent travelers, the travel accident insurance benefit allows for losses to be covered if the travel was purchased on the Capital One Savor card.

Another attractive add-on is the ability to use the card abroad at no added cost due to the card’s no foreign transaction fee benefit. This way, you can enjoy your Italian pasta in Italy with no extra cost. (Oh, and that nifty 4% cash back on dining.)

What About Other Capital One Cards?

Capital One has another card that’s comparable to the Capital One Savor Rewards card called the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. The most striking difference between the two is the SavorOne does not have an annual fee.

Both cards emphasize the same categories of spend, though the cash back percentages are slightly different. The SavorOne card offers 3% cash back on dining, entertainment and streaming services as opposed to the 4% cash back the Savor card offers for those categories. Besides that, all the other categories are the same – 8% back on Vivid Seats purchases, 3% back at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target) and 1% back on everything else.

The sign-up bonus is also different. The SavorOne card is currently offering $200 after you spend $500 within the first three months of holding the card. That’s less than the Savor Rewards card, which offers $300 after meeting the minimum spending requirements. (Because there’s no annual fee on the SavorOne card, however, the sign-up bonus increases the value of the card as long as the cardholder can reach the minimum spending threshold.)

Bottom Line

The sign-up bonus alone can cover the annual fee of the Capital One Savor card for a couple of years, but the great spending categories are what keep the earnings coming on this card. The 4% cash back category — tailored to foodies and adventurers — makes this card even more attractive. For most people, this card will be a valuable addition to their wallet.

If you’re still weighing your options, check out our related guides:

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Alyssa Cerchiai is a contributor to Million Mile Secrets, she covers topics on points and miles, credit cards, airlines, hotels, and general travel.

Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)

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