Visa is, and has been, at the top of the credit card heap for quite awhile, while Discover? Yes, Discover is always behind Visa, MasterCard, and American Express. How far behind? Well, the 2006 Nilson Report figures show Visa with 44% of the US credit card market and Discover with 5%. MasterCard and American Express were in the middle—as usual—with 31% and 20% respectively. So why wouldn't you just go with the leader? Here are some comparisons that might help in your considerations of Visa vs. Discover.

Historical Background

Discover was a relative late-comer to the credit card scene. Visa (by another name) was on the scene from the word go. Visa grew out of the BankAmericard that was first offered in 1958 by Bank of America. Discover, on the other hand, was introduced by Sears in 1985. And it came out of the gate with some innovations:

• Discover was unusual in that it didn't charge an annual fee.
• Discover was willing to offer consumers higher credit limits than other cards.
• Discover was a pioneer in cashback bonuses to cardholders based on their purchases.
• Discover was accepted by the US Customs service (while the other cards weren't).
• Discover was (and is) accepted by and payable at local Sears stores and credited immediately, giving cardholders a back-up for payments.

Visa, in the meantime, had launched a global ATM network. It went on to offer Visa TravelMoney, the world's first international prepaid card, and build a European market.

Scope

Discover Network's business is focused in the Americas. It has over 4 million merchant locations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Central America, and the Caribbean. Visa, on the other hand, is a global organization. Visa Europe has 4,600 member banks, and while Discover was just getting geared up, Visa, in the meantime, had launched a global ATM network. It went on to offer Visa TravelMoney, the world's first international prepaid card.

Services

Discover continues to offer cards with cashback bonuses, as well as miles. Specialized cards cater to college students and small businesses. Prepaid cards are also available. Visa's offerings are a bit different. It has standard credit cards with no added frills, rewards credit cards, and premium rewards cards. Its rewards cards have a cashback option. Special cards cater to college students, small businesses, mid-size to large companies, and government agencies. They also offer prepaid cards.

As of 2006, Discover has added debit cards to its array of services. Visa also offers debit cards. It is interesting to note that in 2004, two years before Discover had a debit card, Visa's debit volume, globally speaking, surpassed its credit volume. By 2006, Visa had a 48% market share in the US debit card market.

Customer Satisfaction

In the customer satisfaction survey conducted by J.D. Powers and Associates in October of 2007, American Express came tops with 735 out of 1000 possible points. Second was (surprise!) Discover with 728 points. The top organization offering a Visa card (and the third place finisher) was Citi Cards, which was considerably less appreciated by customers, with a rank of 652.

And this was not a fluke, In September, 2008, when J.D. Powers and Associates repeated the survey (same scale), American Express was again first with 783 points; Discover was second with 751. The third-ranked entity, National City, which does in fact offer Visa cards, received 721 points for customer satisfaction. Fourth place, with 719 went to Chase.

This data suggests that, despite its late entry to the credit card business and its currently lower market share, Discover may have something to offer, even in comparison with Visa.