Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card review: One of the best flat-rate cash back cards

When it comes to choosing a cash back rewards card, it’s hard to beat the flexibility of a flat-rate rewards card since you’ll earn unlimited rewards on purchases without worrying about bonus categories or spending limits.

The Wells Fargo Active Cash is one of the most well-rounded cards of its kind because its rewards experience is simple and it provides intro APR periods for purchases and balance transfers.

Rewards: Top-notch flat cash rewards rate

Many cash rewards cards that provide a flat rate on all purchases only earn up to 1.5 percent, or place restrictions on how you earn and redeem rewards. Although other flat-rate cards can earn 2 percent cash rewards, the Active Cash is one of the few that wipes away caveats and spending caps while keeping valuable features, such as a welcome bonus. 

For example, the Citi Double Cash card only earns up to 2 percent on all purchases once you pay your statement balance. You earn 1 percent when you buy and another 1 percent when you pay off the purchase. Several other competing cards with similar rates, like the Upgrade Cash Rewards Elite Visa® or Paypal Cashback Mastercard, require you to join a specific financial institution, manage multiple accounts or hold specific memberships to be eligible to reap the most benefits. The Wells Fargo Active Cash earns 2 percent cash rewards back for purchases, no matter when you pay your statement balance or where you bank.

Compared to other cash rewards cards, the Active Cash also gives you an impressive variety of redemption options. You can redeem your cash rewards as statement credits for as little as $1, physical cash in $20 increments at Wells Fargo ATMs, direct deposits into Wells Fargo savings or checking accounts, gift cards or travel via Wells Fargo Rewards. You can even redeem as credit for your mortgage toward your principal balance if you hold a qualifying mortgage account with Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo is one of the only issuers that lets you redeem cash rewards at ATMs, and many competing cards don’t allow you to redeem cash rewards for direct deposits.

Welcome offer: Quality cash rewards bonus

The Active Cash card’s $200 cash rewards bonus is solid for a no-annual-fee cash rewards card, and the $500 spending requirement in the first three months is quite low for the payoff. A few other cash rewards cards’ welcome bonuses require you to spend at least twice as much to earn the same bonus, so this is one of the more attainable welcome offers we’ve seen.

However, it’s worth noting that you won’t be able to sign up for the Active Cash card or be eligible for its welcome bonus if you’ve opened a Wells Fargo credit card in the past six months. This buffer is standard for Wells Fargo credit cards, and several other issuers —  like Capital One — require you to wait between credit card applications for just as long. 

Rates and fees: No annual fee to undermine rewards

Part of what makes the Wells Fargo Active Cash so enticing is its low ongoing cost, which makes it easy to fit into your rewards strategy. You won’t need to shift your spending much or worry about earning enough rewards to offset an annual fee. There’s also no penalty APR to worry about, although there is an up to $40 late payment fee. 

Just keep in mind there’s an intro 3 percent balance transfer fee ($5 minimum), which might impact how much you save on interest with a transfer. It’s also worth being aware of the 3 percent foreign currency conversion fee if you plan to travel with your card. 

0% intro APR offer: Solid intro offers to pay off purchases and balance transfers

The Active Cash card’s 15-month intro APR offers make it a good option if you want to transfer a qualifying balance to a Wells Fargo card or if you have big purchases coming up. The card’s ongoing APR (20.24 percent, 25.24 percent or 29.99 percent variable APR) holds steady with the current average interest rate. 

Although the intro APR offers and ongoing interest rates aren’t the best available on a credit card, they are typical for a rewards card. Its combination of intro APR periods and rewards should still make the Active Cash a more enticing option than low-interest flat-rate rewards cards that lack intro APR offers or have a lower rewards rate. 

While the Wells Fargo Active Cash is a top-tier flat-rate cash rewards card, it has some disadvantages you might consider.

Perks: Better benefits available on competing cards

The Wells Fargo Active Cash carries a decent portfolio of benefits as a Visa Signature® credit card. It will also cover your cellphone against damage or theft for up to $600 per claim (subject to a $25 deductible, per claim) each month you pay your cellphone bill with the card. 

Visa Signature perks, however, are common on no-annual-fee cash rewards cards and match perks that Capital One and Discover offer with rival cards. Plus, the Active Cash card benefits aren’t as strong as those you’ll find on some other cash rewards cards. For example, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express offers valuable monthly credits for select streaming service payments and the Chase Freedom Unlimited® features coveted travel protections, like trip cancellation/interruption insurance, plus partner perks with rideshare and delivery services.

Rewards value: Limited potential

The Active Cash rewards work like other cash rewards programs: Each percentage point of cash rewards is worth 1 cent. Every purchase earns 2 percent cash rewards back, which equates to 2 cents per dollar. If you spend $1,000 with your card, you’ll earn $20 back in cash rewards.

Cash back cards with tiered rewards can earn more cash back if you spend reliably in eligible categories. Commonly boosted categories include gas, groceries and dining. For example, if you spend $1,000 at grocery stores and earn cash back at a rate of 3 percent, you’ll earn $30, which outpaces what the Active Cash offers. However, if you spend $1,000 on purchases outside of popular spending categories, the tiered rewards card may only offer 1 percent. Meanwhile, the Active Cash will effectively double that rate.

Our credit card expert, Re’Dreyona Walker, applied for the Active Cash card when opening her first credit card account. The Active Cash card’s simple cash rewards program and generous intro APR offer are two features that made this card stand out for her as a first-time cardholder.

This card’s application was very simple since I’m already a Wells Fargo customer, so it was a great choice as my first credit card. My favorite feature is its high flat-rate cash rewards toward purchases because no matter what I buy, I can earn rewards for future expenses. Though I only use this card for emergencies and purchases that I would prefer to pay over time, such as travel booking fees or auto maintenance costs, it is quite useful for those situations. The card’s intro APR period was also a decent length and gave me enough time to save on interest while paying off my balance.

— Re'Dreyona Walker Editor, Credit Cards

The Wells Fargo Active Cash is an excellent cash rewards option for people looking for a no-annual-fee card with a generous welcome bonus and a simple rewards structure. However, you may find it lacks benefits typically found on other top cash back cards. 

The beauty of flat-rate cash rewards cards is that they pair well with almost any card you might already use. The best way to maximize your flat-rate cash back card is to pair it with a card that earns a higher rewards rate on your most significant spending categories, such as groceries, dining or gas. Then, use the Wells Fargo Active Cash card to earn more rewards on spending outside those categories or on categories that have reached their spending cap.

If you need help finding cards that match your spending habits, you can try Bankrate's Spender Type tool to see which cards might be the best fit for you. 

*The information about the Chase Freedom Flex has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.

The Wells Fargo Active Cash could be a great addition to your overall cash back- or rewards-earning strategy whether you prefer simplicity or strategizing. It's also a great choice for credit card newbies.

The Wells Fargo Active Cash Card remains one of the market's best flat-rate cash rewards credit cards because it’s a low-maintenance option that provides top-rate rewards and redemption options. The Active Cash card’s versatility helps the card fit into almost any rewards strategy.

Our proprietary card rating system takes into account a mix of factors when scoring balance transfer and low-interest cards, including each card’s introductory APR, intro APR period length, ongoing APR, balance transfer fee, perks and more.

While balance transfer and low-interest cards share a similar ratings rubric, we weigh features differently based on how a card is categorized. We categorize cards that carry an especially long intro APR offer on balance transfers as dedicated balance transfer cards, while cards that offer an especially low ongoing APR are considered general low-interest cards. 

Based on its features, we assigned this card a primary category of balance transfer and tailored our ratings accordingly. 

We analyzed over 100 of the most popular balance transfer and low-interest cards and scored each based on how its key features stacked up against those of other cards in its category. 

Here’s a breakdown of what gave this card its score: