Wells Fargo Active Cash Credit Card Review

The Wells Fargo Active Cash^SM Credit Card is a flat-rate cash-back credit card that earns unlimited 2% cash rewards on all eligible purchases. Its other notable benefits include an attractive sign-up bonus for new account holders, no annual fee, and a 15-month 0% APR introductory promotion on both purchases and balance transfers.

If you prefer not to deal with arbitrary caps on rewards-earning potential or spending categories that may or may not change by the month, quarter, or year, you’re a good fit for the Wells Fargo Active Cash card and its no-nonsense rewards program. The closest comparison is the Citi Double Cash Card, which earns unlimited 2% cash back when you pay your balance in full — 1% when you make a purchase and 1% when you make a payment.

What Sets the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card Apart

The Wells Fargo Active Cash Card isn’t a groundbreaking product by any means, but it does have some selling points that many other cash-back credit cards can’t (or don’t) match:

• Solid Sign-up Bonus. Wells Fargo Active Cash has an above-average spend-based sign-up bonus that should be within reach of most applicants. It’s likely to be a key factor in your decision to apply, if not the deciding one.
• 2% Cash Back Across the Board. Confusing spending tiers. Caps on cash-back earnings. Rotating cash-back categories. You don’t need any of that — or at least, if you’re seriously considering Wells Fargo Active Cash, you don’t want any of it. Here, you get unlimited 2% cash back across the board, with none of the fluff.
• Long 0% APR Intro Promotion. At 15 months on purchases and eligible balance transfers, Wells Fargo Active Cash’s 0% APR intro promotion matches other top cash-back credit cards.

Key Features of the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card

Here’s what to expect from the Wells Fargo Active Cash card.

Sign-Up Bonus

Earning Cash-Back Rewards

Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on eligible purchases, with no caps or restrictions on how much you can earn. There are no spending tiers or bonus categories to worry about here.

Redeeming Cash-Back Rewards

You can redeem earned rewards for:

• A statement credit against a prior purchase, provided the purchase is at least $1 and your rewards balance is sufficient to offset the full amount of the purchase.
• A credit or direct deposit to a qualifying Wells Fargo credit card, checking account, or mortgage.
• Cash at an ATM when you use your Wells Fargo ATM or debit card.
• Gift cards from participating retailers.

The minimum redemption threshold and increment for account credits is $25. The minimum ATM redemption amount and increment is $20. Guidelines for other redemption options may vary.

Cellphone Protection (Cellphone Insurance)

Enjoy complimentary cellphone protection against damage or theft. Claim up to $600 per covered event, less a $25 deductible. You must pay your monthly cellphone bill with your Wells Fargo Active Cash card to qualify.

Contactless Payment

Use your Wells Fargo Active Cash card to make purchases at contactless card readers — wherever you see the contactless payment symbol.

Visa Signature Benefits

Wells Fargo Active Cash is a premium Visa card with some notable Visa Signature benefits:

• 24/7 concierge service for travel, dining, and entertainment needs
• Special benefits at participating properties in the Luxury Hotels Collection (see Visa Signature Hotels for more information)

Introductory APR Promotion

Enjoy 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months from your account opening date. To qualify, balance transfers must be made within the first 120 days.

Following the end of the promotional period, variable regular APR applies. Your rate depends on your personal creditworthiness and other factors.

Important Fees

This card has no annual fee. The foreign transaction fee is 3% of the transaction value denominated in non-U.S. currency.

Credit Required

This card requires good to excellent credit. If your credit score isn’t where you’d like it to be, consider putting off your application and working to raise your score instead.

Advantages of the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card

The Wells Fargo Active Cash Card has a lot going for it. These are the top highlights.

• No Annual Fee. You’ll never pay an annual fee to keep your Wells Fargo Active Cash card around. That’s a nice perk if you don’t plan to spend fast enough to offset a recurring charge — or just don’t like annual fees.
• Unlimited 2% Cash Rewards on All Eligible Purchases. Wells Fargo Active Cash earns a flat, unlimited 2% cash rewards rate on all eligible purchases. That’s comfortably above competing flat-rate cards that pay 1.5% cash back, like the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card.
• No Rotating Categories or Spending Tiers. As a flat-rate cash-back card, Active Cash keeps your rewards simple. You won’t have to worry about rotating purchase categories or confusing spending tiers here.
• Long 0% APR Introductory Promotion on Purchases and Balance Transfers. The Wells Fargo Active Cash card has an unusually long 0% APR introductory promotion. For 15 months after opening your account, you won’t pay interest on purchases or balance transfers (although you’ll need to make qualifying balance transfers within 120 days of account opening). Although this isn’t quite the longest 0% APR promotion in the cash-back category, it’s close, and certainly long enough to pay down significant purchases or transfers.
• Above-Average Sign-Up Bonus. Active Cash’s sign-up bonus promises $200 bonus cash rewards after you spend $1,000 during the first 3 months your account is open. That’s a nice, easily attainable addition to your rewards balance right out of the gate.

Disadvantages of the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card

Consider these drawbacks before applying for the Wells Fargo Active Cash card. 

• Rewards Rate Capped at 2%. Try as you might, you won’t earn more than 2% cash back with the Wells Fargo Active Cash card. That’s not a terrible rate of return, mind you, but it’s lower than category-specific returns offered by many competitors. For a better return on restaurant or drugstore spending, you might turn to the Chase Freedom Unlimited Credit Card, for example.
• Balance Restrictions on Certain Cash Rewards Redemptions. You’ll need to wait until you’ve accumulated at least $20 in cash rewards to redeem for cash at an ATM, $25 in cash rewards to redeem for a statement or account credit, and the full value of the purchase to redeem against a specific prior purchase. Many competing cash-back cards allow redemptions in any amount.
• Has a Foreign Transaction Fee. Traveling abroad or making a foreign-denominated purchase with an online vendor based overseas? Be prepared to pay a 3% surcharge if you use your Wells Fargo Active Cash card. You might look instead for a credit card without foreign transaction fees that’s ideal for international commerce.

How the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card Stacks Up

The world of 2% cash-back credit cards has expanded quite a bit in recent years. 2% is now the reference point for flat-rate cash-back cards. If you’re not raking in 2% on eligible purchases, you’re not doing right by your money.

So let’s see how Wells Fargo Active Cash compares to one of the first 2% cash-back cards to hit the market: the Citi Double Cash Card.

Final Word

The Wells Fargo Active Cash^SM Credit Card is an ideal everyday spending card for people who don’t like spending tiers or purchase categories and aren’t obsessive about maximizing returns on spending on any particular type of outlay. Its simple, flat, unlimited 2% return on spending leads the flat-rate cash-back credit card pack, at least among national credit card issuers.

Active Cash isn’t just a one-trick pony. Its introductory APR promotion is among the best in the category, and its sign-up bonus is nothing to sneeze at either. Oh, and it’s annual-fee-free. If you’re in the market for a new cash-back credit card, do yourself a favor and give Active Cash a closer look.