Examined Sep 25, 2026 Paid in cash rewards No annual fee Wells Fargo Active Cash pays $100 for $500 of purchases in 3 months, and nothing to anyone who has held the card in the last 48 months, even a closed one.
This is the open offer on Wells Fargo's own card page. There is no referral program for this card and no invitation, so nobody can hand you a better version of it, and the page says: “Offers may differ from time to time and depend on the marketing channel.” The ongoing rate is 2% cash rewards on net purchases, with no categories and no cap, and no annual fee. Rewards redeem to an eligible Wells Fargo checking or savings account, to a qualifying Wells Fargo credit product, or as gift cards from over 250 merchants, with e-gift cards from $10.
What pays what
| You, a new applicant, $500 in net purchases posted within 3 months of opening | $100 cash rewards |
|---|---|
| Every net purchase after that, with no annual fee | 2%, no categories, no cap |
| Had this card, or opened one, within the last 48 months, closed or not | $0 |
| Opened any Wells Fargo consumer credit card in the last 4 months | Possibly no card at all |
| Switching an existing Wells Fargo Visa to Active Cash instead of applying | $0, and no intro APR |
| $500 reached with cash advances, balance transfers, gift cards, money orders or fees | $0 |
| Closing your last Wells Fargo rewards card with the $100 still unredeemed | $0 |
If you have closed all your Rewards-eligible Credit Cards: You give up any pending or active Rewards that exist on the date that the Account closes. The only exceptions are what may exist in the Terms.
The summary adds one exception of its own, for New York: if the card tied to a New York account holder's rewards account is closed for any reason except fraud or misuse, Wells Fargo issues a check for the cash value of the balance.
Do this, in this order
- Count back 48 months on this card and 4 months on any Wells Fargo card. If you opened an Active Cash at any point in the last four years, closed or open, assume no bonus and no intro APR. If you opened any Wells Fargo consumer credit card in the last four months, assume the application itself may fail.
- Apply new, from the page that shows the $100. Do not switch. An existing Wells Fargo Visa holder can move to Active Cash without a new application or credit check, and the page is blunt about the cost: “Note that if you switch products, you will not receive a new rewards bonus offer or new introductory annual percentage rates.” The offer is not a guarantee of credit, and the minimum credit limit is $1,000.
- Post $500 in net purchases within 3 months of the opening date. Net means purchases minus returns and credits, so a $600 spend with a $150 return is $450 and no bonus. Cash advances, balance transfers, prepaid gift cards, money orders, person-to-person transfers, digital currencies, gambling, fees and interest do not count. Purchases must post, not just be made, inside the window.
- Look for the $100 within 60 days, then redeem it. The product page says: “The bonus cash rewards will show as redeemable within 60 days after they are earned.” The rewards summary says the bonus posts within one to two billing periods. Cash rewards do not expire while the account is open, but see the next step.
- Never close your only Wells Fargo rewards card with a balance of rewards on it. The quoted clause above forfeits pending and active rewards on the closing date, and a pending $100 bonus is exactly that. The terms also let Wells Fargo change, suspend or cancel the program: “If we cancel the Program, then you must redeem your Rewards within three months from the date we notify you of this change. After this period, you lose any unredeemed Rewards.”
- Treat the intro APR as 12 months, and pay on time. 0% on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months from opening, then 18.74%, 24.74% or 28.74% depending on creditworthiness. A balance transfer must be requested within 120 days to get the intro rate, and costs $5 or 3% until then, then up to 5% with a $5 minimum. Cash advances run at 29.74%. A late payment costs up to $40; a foreign transaction costs 3%.
Where Wells Fargo's pages disagree, and what they do not say
When the $100 arrives. The product page says it shows as redeemable within 60 days after it is earned. The rewards summary on the terms page says your cash rewards bonus posts to your account within one to two billing periods after you earn it. Both are Wells Fargo's words; plan on the 60 days.
The full terms behind the summary. Part 2 of the terms page is headed as a summary of the Rewards Program terms and the Active Cash addendum, effective December 30, 2025, and says the full terms come once you are approved. Both full documents are public on Wells Fargo's rewards site. The Active Cash addendum says: “If You close Your Credit Card account, or if it is closed for any reason, You will forfeit Your Cash Rewards and any Pending Cash Rewards the day Your Credit Card account is closed, except as provided for in the Wells Fargo Rewards Program Terms and Conditions.” Those Program Terms, effective March 17, 2026, give three exceptions: your rewards stay if another Wells Fargo card remains in the same rewards account, a check is issued if the card closes because the cardholder died and the estate tells Wells Fargo within one year, and New York holders get a check unless the closure was for fraud or misuse. They also list “Multiple Credit Card account applications and openings” as misuse that can get you disqualified.
No end date, and no fixed offer. Nothing on either page says when the $100 ends. The page says offers depend on the marketing channel, so a different route to the same card may show different terms.
Two smaller things worth knowing. Returning a purchase later takes its rewards back and can leave a negative rewards balance. And the card carries cell phone protection of up to $600 per claim, two claims per 12 months, with a $25 deductible, when the phone bill is paid with the card.
Is it worth your time?
As a card, it makes sense for someone who wants 2% on everything with no fee and no categories to track; the $100 is a small extra for spending you would have done anyway, and it arrives within about two months of the $500 posting. Keep the card open, or at least another Wells Fargo rewards card, until the $100 is redeemed.
As a bonus to chase, skip it. Chase and Capital One pay $200 for the same $500 of spending on cards with no annual fee, and a credit application is the same effort either way. If you have held an Active Cash in the last four years, or opened any Wells Fargo card in the last four months, there is nothing here for you at all.
