Great Card If
- You travel often and want a card that rewards you for these purchases
- You value flexible redemption options and access to transfer partners
Don’t Get If
- You don’t travel much
- You prefer a card with simple bonus categories
Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card — Is It Worth It?
The Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card is well worth it for those seeking a solid all-around travel rewards credit card.
It’s an excellent option for earning rewards on hotels and airfare purchases. Unlike many competing cards, earning bonus points for travel on the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card doesn’t require making travel purchases through the Wells Fargo travel portal. Plus, you’ll earn rewards on other travel and dining purchases.
Previously, rewards earned from the Wells Fargo Autograph cards were limited to redemptions with the Wells Fargo travel portal, cash-back, or gift cards. Now, you are able to transfer your rewards to a variety of transfer partners — significantly increasing the potential value of your rewards.
Additionally, the card offers perks, including a $50 annual statement credit with $50 minimum airline purchase, cell phone protection, travel accident insurance, lost baggage reimbursement, trip cancellation and interruption protection, auto rental collision damage waiver, and no foreign transaction fees (rates & fees).
What Benefits Do You Get With the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card?
Annual Airfare Credit
To help offset the card’s annual fee, each year, you’ll earn a $50 annual statement credit with $50 minimum airline purchase.
This credit can be used on your ticket, not just airline incidentals like some other travel cards with airline credits. You can book directly with the airline and still receive your $50 credit. This is great because booking directly with the airline preserves flexibility for rebooking or refunds if your flight is canceled or significantly delayed, which can be a bit of a hassle when you book through a third-party platform.
Travel Protections
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver — Primary rental car insurance that provides up to $50,000 in coverage toward accidental damage or theft of your rental car.
- Lost Baggage Reimbursement — The costs you incur to repair or replace checked or carry-on baggage due to physical loss, theft, or damage are covered up to a maximum of $3,000 per person.
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Protection — If you need to cancel a trip due to illness, severe weather, or any other covered circumstance, you’ll receive a reimbursement of up to $15,000 per person. You’ll get reimbursed for up to $20,000 per trip in non-refundable travel expenses if you need to end your trip early.
- Travel Accident Insurance — In the case of accidental death or loss of speech, sight, or hearing during your travels, you can receive up to $1,000,000 when the incident happens on a common carrier, such as an airline or cruise ship.
Cell Phone Protection
The Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card provides up to $1,000 worth of coverage toward accidental damage or theft to your cell phone, provided that you pay your monthly cell phone bill with your card.
There is a $25 deductible per claim and a maximum of 2 claims, totaling up to $2,000 in coverage, per rolling 12-months.
Autograph Card Exclusives
Cardholders have exclusive access to select live entertainment events featuring big-name artists in small venues that are only available to Wells Fargo Autograph credit cardholders.
Who Is the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card For?
The ideal cardholder for the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card is a frequent traveler who wants to earn as many points as possible on their travel expenses.
With 5x points on hotels, 4x points on airfare, and 3x points on all other travel and restaurant purchases, it’s easy to see how you can earn points rather quickly using the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card compared to many other travel rewards cards.
Additionally, the card is a great option for those who value elite status within certain airline and/or hotel programs, as the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card does not require you to book through the bank’s own travel portal to earn bonus rewards on these purchases.
In addition to earning points, when you factor in the card’s other benefits like cell phone protection, an annual statement credit, and soon, access to airline and hotel transfer partners, it’s easy to see why the card can be valuable to travelers.
Best Ways To Earn and Redeem Your Wells Fargo Rewards
To earn as many points as possible with your Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card, you’ll want to make it your go-to card for purchases that fall within all of the card’s bonus categories, which are hotels, airfare, travel, and dining.
Once you’ve built up a large stash of points and are ready to redeem your Wells Fargo Rewards, you can redeem them at a rate of 1 cent per point for travel purchases through the Wells Fargo travel portal or cash-back and gift cards at a rate of 1 cent per point. Soon, you’ll be able to transfer your Wells Fargo Rewards to select airline and hotel transfer partners, which will likely offer the highest redemption values for award travelers.
Alternative Cards to the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
One of the most popular starter travel rewards cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, is another card option that those with their eye on the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Card should consider.
With it, you’ll earn 5x points on travel purchases made through Chase Travel, 3x points on dining, online grocery purchases, and select streaming services, and 2x points on all other travel purchases.
Plus, the card offers a $50 annual hotel credit, great travel protections, flexible redemption options, and an impressive list of Chase transfer partners.
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Another worthwhile option to consider is the Capital One Venture Rewards card. The card earns 5x miles on hotels and rental cars purchased through Capital One Travel, plus an unlimited 2x miles on all other purchases.
Additionally, the card offers perks like a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit, Hertz Five Star status, and access to Capital One transfer partners.
UP’s Card Review Methodology
Every card we review is assigned a “U.P. Rating” – our star-based system that encompasses all the key details to showcase a card’s standout features, where it falls short, and how it stacks up for travelers to maximize rewards.
These ratings range from 0 to 5 stars and are determined by carefully weighing crucial factors like:
- Bonus categories
- Benefits and perks
- Quality of associated loyalty programs
- Annual fees and other costs
- Size of the welcome bonus (and relative to the annual fee)
- And several more
You can learn more about how Upgraded Points reviews and rates credit cards.
The information regarding the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
