If this leads to CapitalOne switching my cards to Discover, I’ll be leaving CapitalOne. I don’t want to have to question if places I’m going will accept my card, or have to carry a backup Visa card.
I also can’t think about the Discover card without hearing Peter Griffin[1] in the back of my head.
I first signed up with them specifically to get a card for international travel. If that becomes less reliable, or I have to check a website before I go anywhere, the value proposition drops a lot.
I looked at their international site (linked from the one you posted). It says the place I’m going in a month has high acceptance, but other countries right next door do not (within the EU). There are also a lot of notes to just try it and see if it works. That implies I should have a backup and I won’t be able to tell before trying to buy something based on stickers at the register. If that’s the case, I’d rather make the backup my main card, so I don’t need to do that dance and get rejected.
In India it seemed like Mastercard was the most widely accepted, so even Visa wasn’t everywhere I want to be. But I think Visa, with a Mastercard backup, is probably the best bet for most of the world. Discover feels unnecessary. I’m not looking to have a ton of credit cards.
Make sure no foreign transaction fees for any cards. I haven’t had much luck with discover and international travel. I got one for 5% rotating rewards, no ^ fees, and rarely use it but kept it in case I need a credit score.
If you travel internationally you need both Visa and Mastercard, I agree.
Personally I feel everyone should have 3 cards, a Visa a Mastercard, and one other (any network). And make sure they are from at least two different banks, just in case a fraud alert on one card, shuts down the sibling card from the same bank.
For best safety keep the 3rd card at home, and rotate it every month or two (don't go over 3 months though) with one of the other cards - that way if your wallet is stolen you still have something available at home.
This completely ignores how businesses treat Discover & American Express card holders.
Sure, your average coffee shop with a square stand that pays an inflated flat percentage rate does not care what card you tap, but any small business that that is using a payment processor that provides interchange pricing or qualified pricing is directly affected by experiencing double the cost to process your average discover or American Express card, and many will happily tell you they much prefer you to pay with cash, failing that debit, then Visa or MasterCard credit, due to the cost of processing.
This merger also affects other oddball cards like JCB and Diners Club Card that ride on Discover's rails.
One other aspect of this is Visa and MasterCard have been getting crazy with the interchange fees on their most premium credit card types, making American Express and Discover's standard rates look reasonable in comparison: https://www.creditdonkey.com/interchange-rates.html#visa
> many will happily tell you they much prefer you to pay with cash, failing that debit, then Visa or MasterCard credit, due to the cost of processing
This has never happened to me. There have been places that don’t take Amex outright (not many these days) but none have ever said they prefer anything else, from huge big box stores to small farmers market merchants.
I also can’t think about the Discover card without hearing Peter Griffin[1] in the back of my head.
[1] https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EgZL27H_yxk