As a Foodie Who Enjoys a Night Out On the Town, This Credit Card Gives Me Plenty to Savor

Our take

The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card* is a top no-annual-fee credit card for leisure spending. If you’re a foodie like me — and have the credit score to qualify (at least 670) — this card can be worth its weight in gold. 

The SavorOne offers 3% cash back on groceries, restaurants, entertainment and popular streaming services. Before I made the daring leap into annual-fee credit cards in 2021, this was my go-to credit card.

There’s also a lower credit score option that does not come with an intro bonus offer but has the same perks and bonus categories.

Who this card is best for

The SavorOne has a lot going for it, and it could be a good pick if you get a lot out of these perks.

• You frequently spend on food: This card offers unlimited 3% cash back on dining and grocery stores. If you’re often out and about tasting the local cuisine, you’ll find this card particularly rewarding.
• You spend a good amount on entertainment: You also get 3% on popular streaming services and entertainment. Capital One’s entertainment category is wide-ranging, from movie tickets and concerts to tourist attractions and zoos. Select purchases made through Capital One’s Entertainment portal also get you 8% back.
• You use ride-sharing services: You get 10% cash back at Uber and Uber Eats, and a complimentary Uber One membership (through Nov. 14, 2024). Remember to add it to your Uber account so you won’t miss out on any rewards.
• You like Capital One’s travel portal: You get 5% back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One’s internal travel portal. Even if you’re only able to book one of those things with Capital One, you’ll be well rewarded for the effort.
• You have another Capital One card: Pair this card with Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card* or the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card* to maximize rewards. The Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card* is a no-annual-fee alternative that offers 1.5% cash back on every purchase.  

Who is this card not good for

The SavorOne has impressive earning potential for a no-annual-fee card, but you may want to look elsewhere if any of these situations describe your credit card habits.

• You rarely dine out: If transportation and gas but not dining out constitute your main spending buckets, consider other cards like a flat-rate cash-back card or a rotating bonus category credit card to maximize points. 
• You earn higher rates on food with other cards: The Capital One SavorOne offers you great rewards on dining, takeout and grocery purchases, but there are some credit card options that give you more bang for your buck. For me, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and American Express® Gold Card are my cards of choice when dining out or buying groceries. Each also has great perks that help offset the cards’ respective $95 and $250 annual fees. 
• You can get more out of the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card*: Capital One offers an annual-fee version of its SavorOne Card. If your spending habits can justify a $95 annual fee, you can earn an unlimited 4% back on dining, popular streaming services and entertainment as well as 3% at grocery stores. 
• You’re unlikely to use Capital One’s travel portal: You can earn 5% cash back on hotel and rental car reservations on Capital One’s travel portal. But some customers don’t want to book travel arrangements in one place. 

Pros and cons of the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards

Rewards

The Capital One SavorOne offers unlimited 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Target and Walmart). For other purchases, you’ll earn 1%. You also earn 10% cash back on Uber and Uber Eats purchases.

Dining and grocery stores are a large part of most budgets, and 3% is a strong cash-back rate for any card or rewards category. With food prices still high, rewards earned in this category can be applied to future grocery store purchases. We like that you can earn an unlimited 3% on both groceries and dining (including takeout). Most rewards cards usually offer one or the other in this category. 

Entertainment is a more niche category, but it could be lucrative for the right cardholder. Entertainment purchases include movie theaters, sports (professional and semi-professional live events), amusement parks, tourist attractions, aquariums, zoos, dance halls, record stores, pool halls and bowling alleys.

And if you’re interested in earning rewards on streaming purchases, make sure your streaming subscriptions are included. While the SavorOne’s boosted streaming services rewards rate includes Netflix, Hulu and Disney, it excludes others, including Prime Video and audiobook subscriptions. See our picks for the best streaming services credit cards for a wider selection.

Capital One offers its own branded portals where you can book restaurant and travel experiences: Capital One Dining and Capital One Travel. Features and partners are still being rolled out with both programs, so options may be more limited than those of the competing American Express and Chase portals — but you can earn additional cash back if you can make use of its current offerings.

If you book a hotel or rental car through Capital One Travel, you’ll earn 5% cash back (terms apply). The same does not go for Capital One Dining, however. While you can book unique experiences through the platform, you won’t earn additional cash back. However, you can also earn extra cash back — a whopping 8% — on Capital One Entertainment purchases.

This card also offers a few other opportunities to earn boosted rewards rates, but they are less robust than these categories and come with stipulations. 

Read more: Don’t Let Inflation Ruin Your Fun. How to Save on Restaurants, Gas and Gadgets

Rewards redemption

The primary rewards redemption method with the Capital One SavorOne is for cash back in the form of a statement credit or check. You can schedule regular cash-back redemptions ahead of time through your online account, either on a certain day each calendar year or every time you reach a certain rewards threshold. We like that there is no minimum threshold for redeeming your rewards, while some card issuers require you to redeem rewards in certain increments, like $10 or $20. 

You can also redeem your rewards for previous purchases or gift cards, but redemption values may vary when doing so. If the cash-back options aren’t right for you, you can use your rewards when you check out with PayPal or at Amazon.com — you just have to have your card connected to the respective account. But your SavorOne rewards never expire as long as your account remains open.

Welcome offer

You can earn a $200 cash bonus when you spend at least $500 in the first three months of having the account. That only requires spending an average $167 each month. This is one of the best values on the market for a welcome bonus when compared to its spending threshold, although some of our best welcome bonuses are higher.

Introductory APR

The SavorOne card can suit multiple needs. You can use this card to earn rewards, finance a large purchase or transfer a balance from a high-interest credit card to save on interest and tackle debt more quickly.

It comes with a 0% introductory APR for 15 months on both purchases and balance transfers (19.99% to 29.99% variable APR thereafter). There is a 3% balance transfer fee on amounts transferred within the first 15 months or 4% at a promotional APR that Capital One may offer you at any other time (no fee for amounts transferred at the transfer APR). The new purchase and balance transfer offer is on par with others, but if you need more time, there are other balance transfer cards and 0% APR cards with longer introductory periods. 

Other perks and rewards

Like all other Capital One credit cards, the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card comes with no foreign transaction fees, making it an ideal card to pay for nights out abroad.

Comparable cards

Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card

The Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card is an upgrade from the basic SavorOne. While you’re on the hook for a $95 annual fee, you’ll net higher rewards rates and a better welcome bonus compared with the SavorOne. 

With the Cash Rewards card, you earn 4% on dining, entertainment and popular streaming services, 3% on grocery stores (excluding superstores such as Target and Walmart) and 1% on all other purchases. So if you’re a big spender on nightlife and food, this card may offer a better value. Like the SavorOne, you also have the opportunity to earn 8% cash back on entertainment bookings made through Capital One Entertainment, in addition to the extra cash-back opportunities that come with the SavorOne. 

You’ll have to spend a lot more to earn the Savor Cash welcome bonus ($3,000 within the first three months to earn $300). And if you need to take advantage of an introductory APR, the SavorOne is a better bet since the Savor Cash doesn’t currently have an offer.

U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card

The U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card offers the most similar spread of benefits to the SavorOne while maintaining no annual fee. 

You’ll earn more rewards on dining out, but less at groceries stores compared with the SavorOne. The Altitude Go offers 4x points on dining, takeout and restaurant delivery, 2x points on grocery stores, grocery delivery, streaming services, gas stations and EV charging stations and 1x point on all other eligible purchases. Points are generally worth 1 cent each when redeeming for a statement credit. 

You can also take advantage of the 0% introductory APR for 12 billing cycles for purchases and balance transfers (then a 20.24% to 29.24% variable APR) — which is approximately three months shorter than the SavorOne. And the welcome bonus offers 20,000 bonus points if you spend $1,000 in eligible purchases in the first 90 days from account opening — a lucrative offer that requires you to spend around $334 each month — nearly double what you will have to spend to reach the SavorOne welcome bonus.

How Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card compares to other cards

CNET’S PICK

7/10
CNET Rating

CNET rates credit cards by comparing their offers to those of their categorical competitors. Each card is individually evaluated through a formula which reflects the standards and expectations of the contemporary market. Credit card issuers have no say or influence in our ratings. How we rate credit cards

Intro Offer

$200

Earn a one-time $200 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening

Annual fee

$0

APR

19.99% – 29.99% (Variable)

Intro Purchase APR

0% intro on purchases for 15 months

Recommended Credit

A credit score is used to indicate an applicant’s credit worthiness and may provide guidance about account eligibility. It does not necessarily guarantee approval for any financial product.

Good – Excellent

Rewards rate

1%
– 8%

8% Cash Back on Capital One Entertainment purchases; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel (terms apply); 3% Cash Back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®); 1% Cash Back on all other purchases

7.5/10
CNET Rating

CNET rates credit cards by comparing their offers to those of their categorical competitors. Each card is individually evaluated through a formula which reflects the standards and expectations of the contemporary market. Credit card issuers have no say or influence in our ratings. How we rate credit cards

Intro Offer

$300

$300 after you spend $3,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening

Annual fee

$95

APR

20.99% – 28.99% Variable

Intro Purchase APR

N/A

Recommended Credit

A credit score is used to indicate an applicant’s credit worthiness and may provide guidance about account eligibility. It does not necessarily guarantee approval for any financial product.

Good – Excellent

Rewards rate

1%
– 4%

Earn unlimited 4% cash back on dining, entertainment and popular streaming services; Earn 3% at grocery stores; Earn 1% on all other purchases

U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card

9/10
CNET Rating

CNET rates credit cards by comparing their offers to those of their categorical competitors. Each card is individually evaluated through a formula which reflects the standards and expectations of the contemporary market. Credit card issuers have no say or influence in our ratings. How we rate credit cards

Intro Offer

20,000 points

Intro Offer: Earn 20,000 bonus points when you spend $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 90 days of account opening.

Annual fee

$0

APR

20.24% – 29.24% (Variable)

Intro Purchase APR

0% intro APR for 12 billing cycles on purchases

Recommended Credit

A credit score is used to indicate an applicant’s credit worthiness and may provide guidance about account eligibility. It does not necessarily guarantee approval for any financial product.

Excellent

Rewards rate

1x
– 4x

4X points on dining, takeout, and restaurant delivery.; 2X points on streaming services.; 2X points at grocery stores, grocery delivery, gas stations, and EV charging stations; 1X point on all other eligible purchases.

FAQs

Our methodology

CNET reviews credit cards by exhaustively comparing them across set criteria developed for each major category, including cash-back, welcome bonus, travel rewards and balance transfer. We take into consideration the typical spending behavior of a range of consumer profiles — with the understanding that everyone’s financial situation is different — and the designated function of a card.

*All information about the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card, Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card, Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by CNET and has not been reviewed by the issuer.