Wells Fargo One Key™ Mastercard Review (2024)

Wells Fargo made a lot of headlines last year with the release of the Autograph Journey card and the concomitant launch of the Wells Fargo Rewards transferable currency program. Wells has now backed off from adding more co-branded cards following Bilt’s weak revenue generation, likely wanting to focus on its own transferable cards. However, there was another co-branded offering in the works: One Key.

One Key is the shared rewards program between Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo, and now runs on the OneKeyCash currency, which acts like cash when booking through any of the three platforms. While the $99-per-year One Key+ card is a relatively attractive card for people who regularly use one or all three platforms, I’m not sure how this one stacks up in comparison.

Wells Fargo One Key Mastercard Welcome Offer

Wells Fargo One Key Mastercard Review

I don’t really see why someone who wants a OneKey credit card would choose this one over the One Key+. The One Key+ has an annual fee, but it also earns $100 in annual OneKeyCash that more or less offsets it. You’ll save $99 on the first-year annual fee with the regular One Key Mastercard, but you’ll get a smaller welcome offer, 25% less earning everywhere, and Silver elite status instead of Gold. If you use One Key enough that a card is desirable in the first place, I’d pass on this one and go with the big brother.

• Annual Fee: None
  • Annual Authorized User Fee: Free
• Foreign transaction fees: None
• How much are the points worth: The One Key+ card earns you OneKeyCash. You can use it to book on Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo. $1 in OneKeyCash is worth $1 toward a booking on any of these platforms, but since it can’t be used outside of them, we value it at just under its face value, which is 0.9 cents each.
• Better use of points:OneKeyCash is flexible in that you can use it like cash for almost anything that can be booked through Expedia, Hotels.com, or Vrbo. It’s worth noting that you’ll miss out on any rewards you could have earned by charging these charges to a credit card.

• Income categories:
  • 3% back at Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants and food delivery
  • 1.5% return everywhere else
• Benefits:
  • One Key Silver Status – 3% back on Hotels.com and Expedia with savings of 15% or more on over 10,000 hotels worldwide, perks and upgrades, and properties with VIP access
• Travel protections:
  • Car Rental Coverage: Primary CDW (collision damage waiver) car rental insurance. Provides theft and collision reimbursement for rental cars in the United States and abroad up to $50,000 maximum.
  • Travel accident insurance:Valid up to $1,000,000 for accidental loss of life, limb, sight, speech or hearing.
  • Trip cancellation/interruption insurance:Up to $5,000 for common carrier tickets if trip is cancelled for a covered reason.

• Purchase Protections:
  • Mobile phone coverage: $25 deductible, $1,000 maximum per claim, maximum 2 claims per year (you must pay your cell phone bill with a card).

• Who is this card for? People who regularly use the included platforms and are too put off by the annual fee to get the OneKey+ card.
• Is the Wells Fargo One Key Mastercard a safe bet? Since there is no annual fee and you get Silver status, I guess there is no reason not to. But the OneKey+ card has much better benefits and effectively has no net annual fee. I would choose that one as a storage unit instead.

Pros and Cons of the Wells Fargo One Key Mastercard

Benefits

• 1.5x earning on all purchases
• 3x on gas, groceries and dining is a great combination
• No annual fees
• Earnings are flexible when redeemed through any of the three OneKey platforms
• Primary car rental insurance on a card with no annual fee is a nice perk

To swindle

• Rewards can only be used on Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo
• No transferable partners
• The welcome offer is relatively modest

Related maps

Card offer and details
$600 OneKeyCash after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months$99 annual fee FM Mini Review: Good bonus categories, especially when combined with the base 2x earning. The birthday bonus more or less offsets the annual fee and the ability to combine the primary car rental insurance with the 9x earning at Expedia might be useful for some. Win rate: 3% at Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo and at gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, food delivery ✦ 2X everywhere else Card information: Mastercard World Elite issued by Wells. This card does not incur any foreign currency conversion fees. Notable advantages: Automatic Gold Status ✦ $100 OneKeyCash Birthday Bonus ✦ $100 Annual Global Entry/TSA Precheck Credit ✦ Travel Insurance ✦ Primary Rental Car Insurance ✦ Cell Phone Protection ($25 deductible, $1,000 maximum per claim)
$400 OneKeyCash after $1,000 spent in the first 3 monthsNo annual fees FM Mini Review: Good rewards categories for a no annual fee card. Might be a good idea for people who frequently use Expedia, Hotels.com, and/or Vrbo Win rate: 3% at Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo and at gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, food delivery ✦ 1.5X everywhere else Card information: Mastercard World Elite issued by Wells. This card does not incur any foreign currency conversion fees. Notable advantages: Automatic Money Status ✦ Cell Phone Protection ($25 deductible, $1,000 maximum per claim) ✦ Travel Insurance ✦ Primary Rental Car Insurance

Tips for Applying to Wells Fargo

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