Discover credit card limits will always be at least $500, and there’s no disclosed maximum. How much you get is determined by your creditworthiness. The only exception is if you have Discover it® Secured Credit Card. In that case, your credit limit is the amount of money you put down as a security deposit, at least $200 and up to $2,500. But every other available Discover card has a credit limit of $500+.
Discover is actually really upfront about what goes into their determination of your credit limit. They name a bunch of different factors they consider. And while these might not be the only things they take into account, they’re certainly useful to keep in mind.
Here’s how your Discover credit card limit is determined:
- Payment history. If you haven’t missed bills in the past, it’s likely you’ll pay on time in the future. And Discover will reward people who pay on time with higher credit lines because they’re more trustworthy.
- Utilization. How much of your credit limit do you typically use on any other cards you have? If the answer is more than 30%, you should probably think about cutting back. You’re more likely to get a higher credit line when you have lower utilization rates, because issuers know you won’t use it all up.
- Credit history length. If you’re new to credit, you’re probably not going to get the biggest credit line to start off. But if you have an established history and multiple accounts in good standing, you’re more eligible for high credit lines.
- Expenses vs. income. Every month you both earn and owe money. What Discover wants to see is an applicant who earns a lot more than they owe. That type of person has more to spend on a higher credit line.
- Inquiries. Applying to a lot of places at once will raise red flags on your credit report. To issuers, it looks like you’re desperate for credit. So even if you’re approved you probably won’t get a big credit line.
Keep these areas in mind and you should be able to improve your chances of getting a higher credit line. But you’ll always be guaranteed $500. Plus, don’t forget that you can always ask for a credit limit increase in the future (but wait at least 6 months of paying on time).
Ultimately, $500 is definitely not an unusual minimum limit to have, but it pales in comparison to minimum limits of $5,000 for cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. At the same time, there are several cards, offered by other issuers, with minimum limits of $300 or less, like the Capital One Platinum Credit Card and the Credit One Bank® Platinum Visa® for Rebuilding Credit.
This answer was first published on 11/19/17 and it was last updated on 01/15/24. For the most current information about a financial product, you should always check and confirm accuracy with the offering financial institution. Editorial and user-generated content is not provided, reviewed or endorsed by any company.
