Pros
- No membership fees
- 0% intro APR on purchases
- 0% intro APR on balance transfers
- Reports to the three major credit bureaus
Cons
- No rewards
- No rewards bonus
- Balance transfer fee
- Foreign fee
Wells Fargo Platinum Review Summary
The Wells Fargo Platinum card is one of the best 0% intro credit cards on the market. It offers 0% introductory APRs on both purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 18 months, trouncing the market averages in those categories.
Wells Fargo Platinum’s balance transfer fee is above average, too, however. Its regular APR could also be above the 23.24% average among credit cards for people with good credit (which you need for approval). So you may want to think twice about transferring existing debt or carrying a balance from month to month once the 0% intro rates have come and gone.
At the end of the day, the Wells Fargo Platinum card should be a finalist for anyone with good or excellent credit who wants to save money on interest. But it’s not the best choice for people who plan to pay their bills in full every month, as it offers no rewards.
Wells Fargo Platinum card
Transfer Fee: 3% intro for 120 days, then up to 5% (min $5)
Additional Info
- 0% intro APR for 18 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, then a 16.49% to 24.49% variable APR; balance transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate and fee of 3% then a BT fee of up to 5%, min: $5
- $0 Annual Fee.
- Get up to $600 protection on your cell phone (subject to $25 deductible) against covered damage or theft when you pay your monthly cellular telephone bill with your Wells Fargo Platinum card
- Easy access to your FICO® Credit Score with Wells Fargo Online®
- Monitor your spending, purchases and any suspicious activity with text and email alerts and notifications
- Convenient tools to help create a budget and manage your spending with My Money Map
- More Details & Reviews About Wells Fargo Platinum card
Wells Fargo Platinum Highlights
$0 Annual Fee
With no annual fee, the Wells Fargo Platinum is $21.65 per year cheaper than the average credit card. You could probably name at least 20 things that cost $21.65 or more that you’d like to buy right now.
0% intro on Purchases for 18 Months
If you have big-ticket purchases in your near future, being able to say bye-bye to finance charges for a year and a half could save you a bundle. You’ll even save a lot compared to someone with the average 0% credit card, which only provides a 11-month respite from interest.
0% intro on Qualifying Balance Transfers for 18 Months
The APR side of the Platinum card’s balance transfer offer is outstanding, giving you roughly five more interest-free months than the average 0% balance transfer credit card. But Wells Fargo Platinum transfers aren’t free and only transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate. So you’ll need to crunch the numbers with a balance transfer calculator to make sure it’s the right choice.
Cell Phone Protection
If you pay your monthly cell phone bill with Wells Fargo Platinum, you’ll receive up to $600 in coverage for damage to or theft of your device. So you might not have to pay for a separate protection plan.
With that being said, using the Wells Fargo Platinum to pay your cell phone bill means sacrificing the ability to earn rewards on an expense that should be affordable without taking on (more) debt.
Wells Fargo Platinum Lowlights
3%+ Balance Transfer Fee
Wells Fargo Platinum offers a 3% introductory balance transfer fee for the first 120 days your account is open. Transfers made after that will be subject to up to 5% fee. The market-average transfer fee is 2.55%.
No Rewards
Wells Fargo Platinum is great for paying down balances over 18 months or less. But if you pay your bill in full every month, it won’t do anything for you. Interest rates matter in that situation, and the Platinum card doesn’t offer rewards of any kind.
Fortunately, there’s no rule against having more than one credit card. So you could always get the Wells Fargo Platinum for purchases that will take a while to pay off and one of the best rewards credit cards for everyday spending.
Other Things to Consider About Wells Fargo Platinum
Good credit or better required
This shouldn’t be a surprise, considering the card’s excellent terms. But you may want to check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub – the only site with daily updates – before submitting an application.
3% Foreign Fee
You probably aren’t going to make any international transactions with your 0% credit card, so this shouldn’t matter. But in case such purchases are in your plans, watch out. There are plenty of no foreign transaction fee credit cards to use for international spending.
Wells Fargo Platinum vs. The Competition
You can’t really make a ruling on a credit card offer until you know what else is out there. Below, you can see how the Wells Fargo Platinum compares to its top competition: the rest of 2023’s best 0% credit cards.
Info | Wells Fargo Platinum card | Citi Simplicity® Card | U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card |
---|---|---|---|
Annual Fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Bonus Offer | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Rewards Rate | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Purchase Intro APR | 0% for 18 months | 0% for 12 months | 0% for 18 billing cycles |
Transfer Intro APR | 0% for 18 months on qualifying balance transfers Transfer Fee: 3% intro for 120 days, then up to 5% (min $5) | 0% for 21 months Transfer Fee: 3% intro fee ($5 min) for each transfer in first 4 months, and 5% ($5 min) for each transfer after that | 0% for 18 billing cycles Transfer Fee: 3% (min $5) |
Regular APR | 16.49% - 24.49% Variable | 18.99% - 29.74% (V) | 19.49% - 29.49% (V) |
Editors' Rating | 4.6 | 3.7 | 4.8 |
Details, Rates & Fees | Learn More | Learn More | Learn More |
Ask the Experts: Wells Fargo Platinum
To learn more about the Wells Fargo Platinum card, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on some of the card’s key features as well as its place in the market and how that might change moving forward. See who they are and what they had to say below.
- Do you think any credit cards will be offering 0% introductory APRs for over a year in 18 months from now?
- How should credit card shoppers value secondary benefits such as up to $600 in cell phone protection (against damage/theft) for cardholders who pay their monthly cell phone bill with their card?
- Should people worry about rewards when shopping for a 0% APR credit card?
Ask the Experts
Ph.D., Associate Professor of Marketing, Austin E. Cofrin School of Business, University of Wisconsin- Green Bay
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Adjunct Professor, Lorry I. Lokey School of Business and Public Policy, Mills College
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Ph.D. – Professor of Marketing at Winthrop University
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