Wells Fargo Active Cash Card Review: Fixed Cashback & No Annual Fees | money up to 30 (2023)

For and against

Advantages

• Flat rate cashback— 2% off everything, it's pretty competitive.
• No annual fee- You can use cashback without paying the integrated fee.
• registration bonus- Cash bonus of $200 if you spend $500 in the first three months
• Introduction in April- 0% on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months
• Phone protection“It's great to have free insurance for one of your most valuable items.

Inconveniences

• No accelerated cashback- You can't earn extra money on big budget purchases like groceries or restaurants.
• Foreign Transaction Fees- This 3% fee adds up quickly when you travel outside of the US.
• Limited consumer benefits- No Purchase Protection or Extended Warranty.
• High spending requirements for bonuses- Other cards have a lower spending threshold to get the same signup bonus.

Key Facts/Overview

• best for- Pairing with other credit cards
• annual fee– 0 $
• welcome offer- Additional $200 cashback on purchases of $1,000 in the first three months
• Cash back- 2% on all purchases (unlimited)
• Introduction in April- 0% on purchases and balance transfers in the first 15 months
• Other properties- $600 cell phone damage or theft insurance if you pay your phone bill with a card

depth analysis

High fixed cashback rate; No accelerated categories

Real talk: 2% off everything really isn't a mockery. For most no-annual fee cards, the maximum cashback rate (on all purchases) is 1%.

However, the 2% rate is not a competitive rate for large categories of high-volume purchases, such as groceries, where you can do better (see Wells Fargo Active Cash Card Comparison section below). For more information on the different types of cashback cards available, check out our article on choosing a cashback credit card.

Redemption options

The cashback you receive can be used in a number of ways:

• Credit to a Wells Fargo account (credit card, checking account or mortgage)
• Credit on your account statement to settle your card balance
• Withdrawing cash from a Wells Fargo ATM using a WF debit card
• Gift Cards (minimum cashback of $25 required)

No annual fee

This is more important than it seems. Since the card comes with no annual fee, you can add it to your credit card offering and guarantee that you get at least 2% off any purchase at no extra cost (assuming you pay the balance). full).

welcome offer

New cardholders can receive a $200 bonus if they make $1,000 worth of purchases within the first three months of receiving the card. This should be a fairly easy spending goal for most, but it's not as easy as some competing cards offer.

APR and fees

You will get 15 months of inductionAPRILfrom 0% on purchases andBalance transfers. After 15 months, the APR of your purchase and transfer of funds will increase based on your account balancecreditworthiness.

For balance transfers to qualify for the introductory 0% rate, transfers must be completed within 120 days of account opening. These balance transfers incur a fee of $5 or 3% of the transfer amount (whichever is greater). A 5% fee will be charged for balance transfers after 120 days.

Travelers should be aware that the card charges a 3% foreign transaction fee. Some competitive cashback cards with no annual fee charge no foreign transaction fee, which is one of the best ways to save money when traveling abroad.

Other noteworthy benefits

Aside from cashback and APR, the only noteworthy feature of the Wells Fargo active cash card is mobile phone insurance. Pay your cell phone bill with your card and you'll be protected against cell phone damage or theft up to $600 per claim. This feature replaces buying an a la carte insurance policy from your phone retailer or wireless service provider, saving you a lot of money when you decide to buy a new phone in the near future.

The service is limited to two claims or $1,200 a month, which is more than other cards.

Read more: Is it worth buying a credit card just for the insurance benefits?

Comparison of active Wells Fargo cash cards

Capital One SavorOne credit card with cash rewards

TheCapital One SavorOne credit card with cash rewardshas a lower fixed cashback rate (1%) than the Active Cash Card. But where it outperforms an active cash card, they are in terms of accelerated cashback. You'll get 3% back in four specific spend categories, two of which - restaurants and grocery stores (excluding supermarkets like Walmart® and Target®) - are likely to account for a large portion of your spending.

For those traveling abroad, another advantage of the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards credit card is that it waives international transaction fees (the Active Cash card has a 3% fee).

If you want the best of both worlds - i.e., H. Maximize the cash back you can earn on groceries and restaurants + keep a high flat rate on everything else + save on overseas purchases - consider signing up for a Capital One credit card SavorOne Cash Rewards *and* an active Wells Fargo Cash Card.

Citi® Dual Cash Card

If one of the key selling points of the Active Cash Card is the introductory APR for you, here are some things to considerCiti® Dual Cash CardInstead. It offers a longer promotional period compared to Wells Fargo's 15 months. However, please note that the Citi® Double Cash Card only offers this initial 0% period for funds transfers, not for purchases.

Like the Active Cash card, the Citi® Double Cash card is free of annual fees and has a high, fixed cash return rate of 2%. However, the cashback is a little different than most cards: 1% on the first purchase and 1% on the subsequent repayment of the purchase.

The disadvantages of the Citi® Double Cash Card include the lack of an accelerated cashback category (all purchases receive the same cashback amount) and a foreign transaction fee.

Card information has been independently collected by MoneyUnder30 to allow consumers to better compare cards. The financial institution did not provide or approve the card details.

Should you get an active Wells Fargo Cash Card?

Wells Fargo Active Cash Card is likely to be a good fit for you if at least one of the following matches your profile:

• Your spending is spread fairly evenly across multiple purchase categories.
• You already have another credit card that provides accelerated cashback in selected categories and you are looking for something to complement it.
• You do not have insurance for your mobile phone.
• You can easily meet the $1,000 spend requirement to receive your cash welcome bonus.

However, you should reconsider if any of the following apply to you:

• You have applied for another Wells Fargo card within the last six months (in which case Wells Fargo is unlikely to approve your application).
• You spend a large portion of your money on one or two specific shopping categories, such as groceries, gas, or restaurants (there are better options for that).
• You are looking for the best possible deal for transferring funds (there are better options in this case too).

summary

The Wells Fargo Active Cash Card is good for anyone who wants cash back on anything they buy with little maintenance. But it doesn't necessarily cover all your bases and is best suited as a companion card to fill the gaps with one or more other credit cards that offer accelerated cashback levels and waive foreign transaction fees.

Using two or more cards at once is not a solution for everyone, but it is one of the best strategies worth trying if you want to get the most money back from retailers.