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With this offer, the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card is an ideal card for those who spend heavily across several categories.
By signing up for this card, you can earn 20K bonus points when you use your new card to make $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months!
With this card, you can earn 3X points for eating out and ordering in, 3X points for gas stations, ride-shares and transit, 3X points for travel including flights, hotels, home stays and car rentals, and 1X points for other purchases!
What makes this card even more appealing is that there is no annual fee and you’ll get a 0% Intro APR for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers. After that your variable APR will be 15.49% to 27.49%.
Definitely consider this card if you’re a heavy spender in the gas and restaurant category!
Table of Contents
- 1 Wells Fargo Propel Amex Card Summary
- 2 Editor’s Alternate Pick
- 3 Wells Fargo Bonus Points
- 4 What are Wells Fargo Propel Card Points Worth?
- 5 Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card Benefits
- 6 Wells Fargo Propel Top Features
- 7 Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card Pitfalls
- 8 Earning Points
- 9 Redeeming Rewards
- 10 Cell Phone Protection
- 11 Alternative Options
- 12 All Year Round Rewards Card
- 13 Who’s the Competition?
Wells Fargo Propel Amex Card Summary
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| Bonus Available | Get 20,000 bonus points when you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. |
| *Bonus Value | $200 |
| Ongoing Rewards/Benefits | Earn 3 points for every $1 spent on travel, gas, dining and eligible streaming services. Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
Cell phone protection of up to $600 (minus a $25 deductible). |
| Foreign Transaction Fees | No |
| Annual Fee | $0 |
Recommended Free Credit Score (Get Free Score)
690 – 850 (Good – Excellent)
PROS
- No annual fee
- Bonus points
- High earning potential
- Flexible rewards
- Cell phone protection
- No foreign transaction fees
CONS
- Good-Excellent credit needed to qualify
- Redemption increments
- Limited Amex acceptance worldwide
Editor’s Alternate Pick
 The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®! You'll earn 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide; 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases. And when you redeem your points for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards, you'll get 25% more value! |
Wells Fargo Bonus Points
The most prominent and salient feature of the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card is the bonus points that you can earn on every purchase.
Not only will you have the opportunity to score 20K bonus points when you use your new card to make $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months, you’ll be able to earn 3X points on your purchases!
Plus, the 3X points-earning categories are common categories that people use every day, so it should be easy to rack up those points in no time.
No matter what you decide to use this card to purchase, you’ll be earning rewards nonetheless.
With features like this, bonus points, no annual fee, and more, it’s a win-win situation for all consumers and is hard not to appreciate.
Here are some ideas on meeting the spending requirements:
| • Plastiq - Using Plastiq allows you to pay for your personal expenses such as rent, tuition, mortgage, auto lease etc. Although they charge a 2.5% processing fee for using your credit card, this will contribute to the card bonus that you will receive. There is also a referral program that allows you to earn "Free-Free Dollars" that goes towards processing fees as well. |
| • Funding Checking Accounts - When it comes to funding a checking account, opening your initial deposit with a credit card is the usual way to go about it. However, if you want to have more opportunities, you should open a checking account that offers a sign-up bonus. This allows you to work towards bonuses from not one but two different sources instead. Banks like Chase, Huntington Bank, TD Bank and BBVA offers credit card funding, and for your opening deposit, you can often fund anywhere from $50-$1000 with a credit card, depending on the bank. |
| • Gift Card Purchases With Using a Credit Card - Another way to acquire the bonus is using your credit card to purchase gift cards. Buying a a gift card or an individual merchant card typically do not require a purchase fee and are used towards leisure, so gift cards are ideal. However, gift cards such as a Visa or American Express do incur purchase fees because they can be spent anywhere, but gift cards that are specifically for a certain online shopping site such as Amazon or eBay don't. |
| As for a Citi Credit Card, you should call customer service and ask them to lower your Cash Advance limit to $0 before making any purchases because Citi tends to read gift card purchases as a Cash Advance. Ideally, you should do this with any card just to be safe. Lastly, there is such thing as a discounted gift card which can be purchased on Raise or eBay. If you use a credit card often for everyday purchases, it can build your credit score that will contribute towards paying for things such as bills and taxes. |
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What are Wells Fargo Propel Card Points Worth?
Your points’ worth depends on how you use them, the average value of a Propel point is around $0.01. But if you pair it with the Wells Fargo Visa Signature card and redeem it for travel, Propel point Propel points can be worth 1.75 cents each.
- $0.01 per point for most redemption
- $0.015 per point when you transfer them to the Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card and redeem them for airfare through the Wells Fargo Go Far Rewards portal.
- $0.0175 per point when you transfer them to the Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card, redeem them for airfare through the Wells Fargo Go Far Rewards portal and spend at least $50,000 per year on the Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card.
You can use your Propel points for:
- Cash back (at $20 increments)
- Statement credits (at $25 increments)
- Travel via Go Far Rewards
- Gift cards
- Merchandise
- Charity donations
Go Far Rewards travel offer the best value for your points.
Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card Benefits
The Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card is the go-to card for these reasons:
- 20K bonus points. You’ll earn 20K bonus points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months.
- Solid cash back. Earn 3X points on eating out and ordering in, gas stations, ride-shares, and transit flights, hotels, home-stays, and car rentals, eligible streaming services, and 1X point on other purchases.The bonus categories equate to 3% and 1% cash back respectively, considering that Propel points are worth a cent each. There’s no limit to the amount of points you can earn, no blackout dates, and points don’t expire as long as your account remains open.You can use your points on travel, gift cards, cash, merchandise, and more. In addition, you have the ability to transfer your points to other Wells Fargo cards.
- No annual fee. Enjoy earning your points and rewards without worrying about paying an annual fee.
- No foreign transaction fee. Take this card with you to make your purchases without paying any fees when you travel outside of the U.S.
- Cell phone protection. As a Wells Fargo card perk, you get up to $600 protection on your cell phone, subject to a $25 deductible, against covered damage or theft when you pay your monthly cellular telephone bill with your Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card. This benefit does not cover cell phones that are lost. Other exclusions apply.
- Taste from American Express Invites. This unique American Express program serves up over 400 specially selected restaurants around the world with outstanding food. Every time you visit one of them, you can enjoy a special something on the house, such as 20% off the food bill, an appetizer or even a complimentary bottle of wine.
- Amex Offers. If you’ve been following HMB for a while, you’ve probably seen tons of Amex Offers you could receive. If you open a Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card, you’ll be eligible for Amex Offers, which give you a series of targeted discounts and boosted earning rates across select merchants. Just check your account weekly and add your desired available offers to your card, and you’re on your way to saving hundreds of dollars and earning tons of extra Membership Rewards points.
- Early entertainment access. Get access to concert, theater, and special event tickets before they go on sale to the public with American Express Presale Tickets. These are valid in select cities and your tickets must be purchased with your American Express Card.
- Travel and purchase perks. Get up to $150,000 in travel accident insurance, free roadside assistance, a number of emergency services (medical, legal and travel assistance), secondary auto rental collision damage waiver with up to $50,000 in rental car insurance, up to $1,000 in coverage per trip for lost luggage insurance, return protection of up to $300 per item, up to $1,000 per year, extended warranty on most items for up to 12 months, and retail protection of up to $1,000 per loss, up to $50,000 in claims per year if an item you purchased is damaged or stolen within 90 days of purchase.
Wells Fargo Propel Top Features
Propel offers cell phone protection if you pay your monthly bill with your card.
For a $25 deductible, you’ll get up to $600 in protection against damage or theft. This is an unusual offering for a no-annual-fee card.
Make purchases abroad without worrying about foreign transaction fees with the Wells Fargo Propel card.
Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card Pitfalls
You may not like the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card due to these reasons:
- A balance transfer fee. During your first 120 days, you’ll be charged 3% of the amount of each balance transfer, whichever is greater. After that, up to 5% for each balance transfer, with a minimum of $5.
- Not widely accepted. Like any American Express card, it’s important to remember that the card isn’t accepted as commonly as Visa or Mastercard, especially outside of the U.S. Thus, you may want to make sure you have another card handy if you decide to apply for this American Express card.
- Flights must be redeemed through Go Far Rewards. Go Far Rewards is Wells Fargo’s rewards program. The minimum amount required to redeem for airline tickets is around 2,500. Unfortunately, you can’t transfer your points to outside loyalty programs.
- Minimum of good credit. You’ll need good or excellent credit to qualify for the Wells Fargo Propel Card.
Earning Points
With the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card, you’ll earn 3X bonus points on travel, including flights, hotels, taxis, ride-sharing and car rentals among others, dining, gas stations and popular streaming services, and 1X points back on other purchases.
A plus for Wells Fargo here is that they’ve given each of these categories broad definitions — “travel” means more than just flights booked directly with the airline and “dining” includes restaurants, in addition to fast food and places that only serve drinks, like Starbucks.
Since all these bonus categories earn the same uncapped 3X points, or 3% cash back, you can basically have the Propel as your primary card to carry alongside with you with a competitive rewards structure that doesn’t require you to keep up with rotating bonus categories or worry about paying annual fees.
Redeeming Rewards
Your points earned with the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card are worth 1 cent each. You can redeem your points for travel, gift cards, charity donations, or cash back. However, you probably won’t get more than 1 cent per point for your redemptions no matter what you do.
Though, this may be beneficial to you if you don’t like taking the time to look over award charts, award availability, and stress out about getting the best redemption value for your points.
You can pool your points with your Wells Fargo cards if you plan to get other ones. In fact, you have the ability to earn a higher value with your points this way.
If you have the Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card that lets you redeem for airfare via its portal at a rate of 1.5 cents per point. If you spend $50,000 or more per year with this card, it increases to 1.75 cents per point.
Buy combining the two cards, you can get 4.5% – 5.25% back depending on your spending patterns. Better yet, the Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card does not have an annual fee, so you won’t need to calculate a break-even point.
Cell Phone Protection
Available to all Wells Fargo cardholders, Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card users receive cell phone protection. If you pay your cell phone bill with this card or any other Wells Fargo card and your phone is damaged or stolen, you’ll be covered for up to $600 per occurrence.
The policy is subject to a $25 deductible and a maximum of 2 claims per 12 month period.
This is definitely a great card benefit, since it could potentially give you some well needed savings. It makes this card worth considering if you don’t have another of the issuer’s cards and you may need to take advantage of this deal if you tend to have phone accidents.
However, the cell phone coverage isn’t all-inclusive. The coverage is only for theft or damage, not for phone accessories, pre-paid phones, cosmetic damage, and a few other exclusions.
If you lose your phone, or it’s damaged while under the care of a common carrier, such as the Postal Service, you shouldn’t expect to receive compensation.
In addition, you must file a claim within 60 days of damage or theft or you will be denied. You will then be asked for requested documentation that must be sent in within 90 days from the date of damage or theft of the cell phone to avoid claim denial.
The maximum benefit limit is $600 per claim and $1,800 per 12-month period. You will be reimbursed up to $600 or the price of the new phone, whichever is less.
Alternative Options
Here are some alternatives for the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card.
 The Chase Freedom® Card offers a $150 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. You'll earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate and an unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases. You cash back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open and there is no minimum to redeem for cash back. This card has no annual fee and you'll get a free credit score that's updated weekly with Credit JourneySM. |
Compared to the Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card, the Chase Freedom® Card offers 5% cash back on rotating categories and 1% cash back on everything else. Both cards offer unlimited cash back or points. If you like keeping up with rotating categories each quarter and earning the extra cash back, you may be into the Chase Freedom® Card. Unfortunately, the Freedom charges a foreign transaction fee if you plan to travel outside the U.S.
 The Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Card offers a one-time bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $1,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel. You'll earn 1.25X miles on every purchase, every day and pay no annual fee. Plus earn 10X miles on thousands of hotels, through January 2020; learn more at hotels.com/venture. This card comes with no annual fees and no foreign transaction fees which is a great choice as your go-to travel card! |
The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Card gives you 2X miles all your purchases. You will also earn 10X miles on prepaid hotels booked through Hotels.com/Venture. You can redeem your miles by crediting your account for travel-related expenses. There are no hotel or airline or other restrictions. It charges a $95 annual fee, but it is waived for the first year. There are no foreign transaction fees and you will be eligible for up to $100 statement credit every four years as a reimbursement for your Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®! You'll earn 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide; 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases. And when you redeem your points for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards, you'll get 25% more value! |
The Barclaycard Arrival® Plus World Elite Mastercard® is another premium travel rewards card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It offers you an unlimited 2X miles for every purchase. Plus, you get 5% of your miles back each time you redeem to use on a future redemption. The Barclaycard Arrival® Plus World Elite Mastercard® charges an $89 annual fee, which is not waived the first year. Once again, you won’t pay foreign transaction fees with this card.
All Year Round Rewards Card
This Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card is no doubt a great card for those that spend heavily across several categories. With this card, you won’t have to worry about any sort of annual fee.
With the points you earn, you can redeem it for exclusive offers on airline tickets, hotels, car rentals, and cruises through the Go Far Rewards portal! Another reason I find this card appealing is that the rewards is year-round and not segmented into quarters and rotations.
If you’re still using your debit card to conduct your purchases, definitely reconsider and apply for this card so you can reap the benefits and earn 3X points! If this card isn’t for you, no worries.
See our complete list of credit card bonus promotions to find the ideal card for you!
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The information related to Wells Fargo Propel card has been collected by Hustlermoneyblog and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer or provider of this product or service.
Editorial Note: The editorial content on this page is not provided by any bank, credit card issuer, airline, or hotel chain, and has not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the bank, credit card issuer, airline, or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Who’s the Competition?
No-Annual-Fee Travel Cards
Good examples include the following: Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, Hilton Honors American Express Card.
The Capital One® VentureOne® Rewards Card offers a one-time bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $1,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $200 in travel. You'll earn 1.25X miles on every purchase, every day and pay no annual fee. Plus earn 10X miles on thousands of hotels, through January 2020; learn more at hotels.com/venture. This card comes with no annual fees and no foreign transaction fees which is a great choice as your go-to travel card! |
 The Hilton Honors American Express Card offers offers 75,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points with the Hilton Honors American Express Card after you use your new Card to make $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months of Card Membership. You'll have the opportunity to earn 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Honors portfolio of brands., 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations, & 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card. This card comes with annual fee and no foreign transaction fees, so you can enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad. |
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