When it comes to building credit in college, students have traditionally had just one option - student credit cards. The Discover it Student Cash Back card is one example of a student credit card. It’s a better option than most, with no annual fee, a well-rated mobile app, and a pretty decent rewards program.

But even Discover has its drawbacks. As is the case with any traditional credit card, Discover checks your credit before giving you the card. And since college students usually have little to no credit history, it’s often difficult to get approved. Even if you have your own income, there’s no guarantee that Discover is going to want to give you a line of credit. You’ll often see applicants rejected with little explanation. Plus, this kind of credit check can hurt your credit score overall.

Fizz, on the other hand, won’t check your credit before giving you a card. You don’t need to prove that you have an income, because we want to help you no matter how you end up with money in your bank account. Getting a Fizz card is easier, worry free, and will help you build credit just the same as a student credit card. Let’s take a look at all the differences between Fizz and the Discover it Student Cash Back card.

Fees and interest

Beyond the normal $70 annual membership fee ($50 for students) Fizz doesn’t charge hidden fees or interest to college students, ever. Under any circumstances. End of story. If you have a Fizz card, you can rest easy knowing that you can use Fizz just how you use your current debit card. Credit shouldn’t have to be scary!

The Discover it Student Cash Back card, on the other hand, has fees and interest you should be wary of. While you won’t pay an annual fee, you’ll owe them $40 if you miss more than just one payment. Returned payments (if you try and pay but don’t have enough money in your account) also cost you $40.

With Discover, it’s easy to rack up credit card debt. Discover coaxes you into not paying off your purchases by letting you do so interest-free for six months after opening your account. But once that period is over, you can owe over 20% interest! For example, if you carry a balance of just $500 you could owe more than $100 in interest charges by the end of the year. While the specific rate changes, the higher limit is almost always above 20%. And since you’re a college student with limited credit history, you can bet that you’ll be on the hook for the highest rate Discover can charge.

Fizz doesn’t charge hidden fees or interest. Instead, we make money from and upfront membership fee and interchange fees charged to merchants when you swipe your card, and instead of encouraging you to overspend, Fizz won’t let you overspend at all. We link to your bank account and give you a spend limit that reflects what you have, and with features like daily Autopay and SafeFreeze, you won’t have to worry about going into debt or overspending.

Rewards

The Fizz rewards program is growing every day. Fizz offers rewards at popular local campus spots as well as more well-known merchants, like Nike, Chipotle, and Starbucks. Our list of partners and deals is ever growing, but it’ll never stop including spots that you love.

The Discover it Student Cash Back card has a pretty solid rewards program too. You’ll get 1% cash back on every dollar you spend, and 5% cash back on certain categories of purchases that rotate during the year if you remember to activate this feature every few months. Discover also matches all the cash back you earned at the end of your first year of having the card.

While Discover’s cash back program rewards you everywhere, Fizz’s cash back offers are typically more rewarding. Instead of 1% or 5%, some offers may be for 10% or 20% cash back at a specific store, restaurant, or cafe. And if you’re someone that gets coffee from the same place every day, those savings can add up quickly.

Credit and credit building

Fizz and Discover will help you build your credit just the same. They both report to credit bureaus and can help increase your score. The biggest difference is that Discover checks your credit before giving you a card, whereas Fizz does not.

The Discover it Student Cash Back card is a little more complicated to use. You’ll need to remember not to overspend, and you’ll get a bill to pay every month. You have to remember to activate your cash back earnings, and any screw ups could result in extra fees and interest payments.

Fizz, in comparison, is much simpler to use. You link your bank account so that you won’t spend more than you have. Plus, you don’t get a surprise bill at the end of the month. Your purchases are paid for on a daily basis from your connected bank account.

So - which makes more sense for you? We might be slightly biased, but Fizz is the best option for building your credit score as a college student.