How to do a balance transfer with Wells Fargo

A balance transfer credit card is an excellent way to consolidate your debt and pay off outstanding credit card balances. The top cards in this space offer lengthy, introductory 0 percent APR periods that can help you pay off your transferred balances without accruing interest charges.

In this guide, we show you how to initiate a balance transfer with Wells Fargo, and we look at top Wells Fargo credit cards for balance transfers, helping you to understand what to do after your transfer is complete.

How to do a balance transfer with Wells Fargo

If you are applying for a new Wells Fargo balance transfer card, you must first be approved before you can transfer a balance. Then you can complete your balance transfer in one of three ways:

In each case, you’ll need to provide the number of the credit card you’re transferring the balance from, as well as the total balance you’d like to transfer to your new Wells Fargo card.

If you want to do the balance transfer online, log in to your Wells Fargo account and select “Account Management” followed by “Request Balance Transfer.” If you want to do it over the phone, call the number on the back of your credit card. You can also visit a Wells Fargo banking location to learn more about your balance transfer options.

Here are some additional tips and tricks to help you through the process:

Approval odds for a balance transfer card and 0% intro offer

There are some restrictions on who can get a Wells Fargo credit card or complete a balance transfer. Both will depend on your creditworthiness, but in most cases, you’ll need to have a good to excellent credit score and a debt-to-income ratio of less than 36 percent. Debt-to-income ratio (DTI) is calculated by taking your total monthly debt payments and dividing that by your total gross monthly income.

It’s also important to note that if you already took advantage of a Wells Fargo welcome offer in the past 15 months — either a sign-up bonus or an introductory APR — you might not be eligible for an introductory APR offer on a new Wells Fargo card.

Make your balance transfer within 120 days

If you want to take advantage of your Wells Fargo balance transfer card’s introductory APR rate, you’ll typically need to make your balance transfer within the first 120 days of opening your account.

You can also save money on balance transfer fees by making your balance transfer early. Some Wells Fargo cards include a 3 percent fee ($5 minimum) on qualifying balances when you complete a balance transfer within the first 120 days, but increase that to an up to 5 percent balance transfer fee ($5 minimum) after 120 days.

Have a plan to pay off your transferred balance

Completing a balance transfer is only the first step in getting rid of credit card debt. You also need to pay off your entire transferred balance — ideally before your introductory APR period ends. With that in mind, you’ll want to make a plan to consolidate debt.

If you want to pay off your balance before the low intro APR period expires, you’ll need to start by determining how much your monthly payment needs to be. Bankrate’s balance transfer calculator can help you to plan ahead and make smart monthly payments that allow you to pay off your balance before it starts accruing interest.

You should also think about whether you can afford to put that much money toward your debt payoff every month, or if you’ll need to cut back on other types of spending to make the payments. It might be helpful to create a budget that allows you to prioritize your balance payoff without falling behind on any of your other financial obligations.

What to know after completing a balance transfer with Wells Fargo

There are a few other things you should know about Wells Fargo credit card balance transfers:

• The process is easy to initiate. It takes only a few steps to request a balance transfer with Wells Fargo.
• Balance transfers take time. A Wells Fargo transfer may take up to 14 days to complete.
• You must make payments on your old cards until complete. Missing credit card payments during the balance transfer process could hurt your credit score.
• You may still owe money on your old card after the transfer is complete. This may happen if only part of your balance was approved for transfer or if residual interest is billed after your balance is transferred. Carefully read your credit card statements, and make sure to pay off any balances or final interest charges.

How to check the status of your Wells Fargo balance transfer

Log in to your Wells Fargo account to check your balance transfer status. You can view your current balance to see if it includes the money you transferred from another credit card. If it does, then your balance transfer is complete.

If your Wells Fargo account does not yet reflect your transferred balance, contact your credit card issuer to learn more about the status. However, it’s a good idea to wait at least 14 days before requesting a status update.

Best Wells Fargo balance transfer credit cards for 2023

Wells Fargo Reflect

The Wells Fargo Reflect® Card offers one of the longest 0 percent intro APR periods of all Wells Fargo cards — you’ll get 0% intro APR for 21 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers (18.24%, 24.74%, or 29.99% variable APR thereafter). Any approved balance transfers made within 120 days of account opening will qualify for the intro APR offer, but they will still have a balance transfer fee of either 5 percent or a minimum of $5.

You won’t earn any cash rewards with the Wells Fargo Reflect, but you will get one of the best intro APR periods currently on the market. So if you’re looking for a balance transfer credit card that gives you plenty of time to pay off your transferred balances, keep the Wells Fargo Reflect in mind.

Wells Fargo Active Cash Card

If you like flat-rate cash rewards credit cards, consider the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card. The Active Cash’s intro APR period is a few months shorter than the Reflect’s. It offers 0 percent intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, then a 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable APR. Balance transfers must be made within 120 days to qualify for the intro APR and the intro balance transfer fee of 3 percent ($5 minimum). After that, the balance transfer fee rises to 5 percent with a $5 minimum. The Active Cash also offers an unlimited 2 percent cash rewards rate on purchases and a first-year welcome bonus offer.

If you want a card that’s going to be valuable long after your balance transfer is paid off, the Wells Fargo Active Cash could be a good choice.

FAQs for Wells Fargo balance transfers

• Can you do a balance transfer with Wells Fargo online?

  Yes, you can complete a Wells Fargo balance transfer online. Log in to your Wells Fargo account and select Account Management, followed by Request Balance Transfer to begin the process of transferring a balance to your Wells Fargo credit card.

• Is there a Wells Fargo balance transfer limit?

  Yes, the balance cannot be more than the total available credit you’re approved for. If you try to transfer a balance that’s greater than your available credit limit on your Wells Fargo card, Wells Fargo will either approve a smaller amount than requested or deny the transfer. Knowing your balance transfer credit limit will help you decide which balances to transfer onto your card. For example, if you can only transfer some of your outstanding credit card debt onto your Wells Fargo balance transfer card, you might want to transfer the card debt with the highest interest rate.

• Can you transfer a balance from one Wells Fargo card to another?

  No, you cannot transfer a balance from one Wells Fargo credit card to another Wells Fargo card. As a general rule, you can only transfer a balance from one credit card issuer to another credit card issuer. For example, you could transfer a Chase credit card balance to a Wells Fargo credit card, but you can’t transfer it to another Chase card.

• How do you transfer a balance from a Wells Fargo credit card?

  If you want to transfer money from a Wells Fargo credit card to a credit card from another issuer with a 0 percent intro APR offer, simply choose a top balance transfer credit card from a different issuer. Then, apply for that card and follow that issuer’s steps to transfer your Wells Fargo credit card balance to your new card.

The bottom line

Completing a balance transfer with Wells Fargo is relatively easy and can be completed online, over the phone or via balance transfer checks. The best Wells Fargo balance transfer cards offer an intro APR, giving you well over a year to pay off your transferred balances.

Before you request a Wells Fargo transfer, establish a plan to pay off your transferred balances and any additional purchases you make on the card before the intro APR period is up. Otherwise, you could end up with new credit card debt.