Wells Fargo Autograph vs. Autograph Journey: Should you pay an annual fee for more benefits?

The Wells Fargo Autograph Journey℠ Card (see rates and fees), with its $95 annual fee, acts as an upgraded version of the no-annual-fee Wells Fargo Autograph® Card (see rates and fees). Many of the cards' perks and earning rates overlap, though the Autograph Journey has a leg up in a few areas.

Is the Autograph Journey worth its $95 yearly price tag, or are you better off with the Autograph? Here's what to know.

Wells Fargo Autograph vs. Wells Fargo Autograph Journey comparison

Wells Fargo Autograph vs. Wells Fargo Autograph Journey welcome offer

The Autograph card currently offers 20,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 in the first three months of account opening. This is a step up from its usual welcome offer. These points are worth 1 cent apiece, so this bonus is worth $200.

The Autograph Journey, meanwhile, comes with an introductory offer of 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. Thanks to the option to transfer these points to hotel and airline partners, TPG values these points at 1.6 cents each, making this bonus worth $960.

Winner: Autograph Journey. Not only does it offer more points, but its points are worth more than what you earn with the Autograph.

Related: Here are the best credit card welcome offers this month

Wells Fargo Autograph vs. Wells Fargo Autograph Journey benefits

Because the Autograph card is a Visa Signature card, you'll enjoy a few nice built-in benefits.

First is access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection, which gives you elitelike benefits on hotel bookings through its program. You'll get things like room upgrades on arrival (when available), a $25 food and beverage credit at the property, VIP guest status and complimentary breakfast for two each day.

You'll also get access to the Visa Signature Concierge Service, which can help you with travel bookings, restaurant recommendations and reservations, and booking tickets to an event.

Daily Newsletter

Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter

Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts

Email address

Sign up

By signing up, you will receive newsletters and promotional content and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Lastly, you'll get perks like cellphone protection, secondary auto rental collision damage waiver on rentals, 24-hour roadside dispatch, travel and emergency services assistance, and free access to your FICO credit score.

The Autograph Journey is also a Visa Signature card and comes with these same benefits. Additionally, it comes with cellphone protection and a $50 annual statement credit for airline purchases with $50 minimum airline purchase. There's also a new benefit called "Autograph Card Exclusives," which offers access to concerts showing "big-name artists in small venues."

Winner: Autograph Journey. It has more perks than the Autograph, and its $50 annual statement credit effectively reduces the card's annual fee to $45.

Earning miles on the Wells Fargo Autograph vs. the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey

The Autograph card earns 3 points per dollar spent on a variety of spending categories: dining (including restaurants, takeout, catering and food delivery services), travel, gas stations, transit, eligible streaming services and phone plans. You'll also get 1 point per dollar spent on other purchases.

The Autograph Journey earns more points on a narrower range of bonus categories. With it, you'll get 5 points per dollar spent on hotels, 4 points per dollar spent on airlines, 3 points per dollar spent on other travel and dining and 1 point per dollar spent on other purchases.

Winner: Autograph Journey. While it depends on how much you spend in each category, earning more on large travel purchases definitely gives the Autograph Journey the edge.

Related: The best rewards credit cards for each bonus category

Redeeming miles on the Wells Fargo Autograph vs. the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey

With the Autograph card, you can redeem your points at a value of 1 cent apiece as a statement credit, for gift cards (in $25 increments) or to book travel.

You also can redeem points as a credit to a qualifying Wells Fargo credit card, checking account or mortgage. Additionally, you can pay with points at participating merchants, including PayPal.

Meanwhile, the Autograph Journey also allows cardholders to transfer points to five airline programs:

• Air France-KLM Flying Blue
• Avianca LifeMiles
• British Airways Executive Club, Aer Lingus AerClub and Iberia Plus (all using Avios)

You can also transfer to one hotel program, Choice Privileges. That's a small list of transfer partners at launch, but Wells Fargo has said that more partners will be added throughout the year.

Winner: Autograph Journey. As the Wells Fargo program continues to expand, look for the Autograph Journey to widen the gap here.

Related: Wells Fargo transfer partners: How to use Go Far Rewards points

Should I get the Wells Fargo Autograph or the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey?

The Autograph card is a compelling option if you want a solid travel card with no annual fee. It has valuable earning rates and travel benefits at a low price tag.

If you want some boosted earning rates and more redemption options, the Autograph Journey is a strong option — especially since its $50 annual travel credit effectively reduces the annual fee to just $45.

Bottom line

While they have some notable differences, the Autograph and the Autograph Journey cards are excellent travel rewards cards that pack great value into their meager annual fees.

The Autograph is an established player in the no-annual-fee field, but the Autograph Journey offers plenty of value, too — especially if its list of benefits and partners continues to grow.

Read our full reviews of the Autograph and the Autograph Journey for additional details.

Apply here: Wells Fargo Autograph

Apply here: Wells Fargo Autograph Journey