You want rewards, but don’t want the hassle of dealing with different categories. You’ve got a Fidelity retirement account and would like to put a little more into your nest egg each month. Sound familiar? If you answered yes, you might find the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card to be a perfect fit for your wallet.

However, if you’re not interested in putting your rewards into a Fidelity account, you might prefer a competing flat-rate card like the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card. We’ll evaluate both cards below.

• Flat-rate rewards on every purchase

  Earn unlimited 2% cash back on everyday purchases. For consumers who don’t want to have to worry about activating rotating categories or earning a higher rate on some purchases and a subpar one on others, a flat-rate rewards card like this one is a great choice.

  There’s a minimum redemption amount of 2,500 points (worth $25 when redeemed to Fidelity accounts), and you can easily set up automatic redemptions to Fidelity accounts such as an IRA, HSA or college savings plan. In addition, other ways you can redeem points include travel, merchandise, gift cards and statement credits — but be aware that the value you’ll get per point is different than what you’ll get if you put your rewards into an eligible Fidelity account.

• Chance to earn a sign-up bonus

  Receive 10,000 bonus points — which equals $100 cash back, when deposited into an eligible Fidelity account — after making at least $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 90 days of account opening. Spending about $334 per month can get you to that target.

• No annual fee to carry the card

  The Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card has a $0 annual fee, so all the rewards you earn are net money in your Fidelity account (as long as you don’t incur other fees or interest charges).

• Low ongoing interest rate

  At 16.24% variable, the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card‘s APR is very reasonable — many rewards cards charge APRs upwards of 20%. However, we still recommend not carrying a balance and instead paying off your card in full every month so as to avoid incurring interest charges.

• Must redeem to a Fidelity account for max value

  Though this card is marketed as earning unlimited 2% cash back on everyday purchases, rewards are earned in the form of points. When you redeem points to an eligible Fidelity account (such as a Roth IRA, traditional IRA or 529 college savings plan), it’s true that the value you get shakes out to 2% cash back per $1 spent. But you’ll get a value of about half that if you choose other redemption options.

  If you’re saving for your own retirement, or perhaps for your child’s college expenses, you might be happy to deposit your rewards into an eligible Fidelity account. But if that’s not how you’re looking to use your credit card rewards, consider a card like the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card instead.

• There's a foreign transaction fee

  When traveling abroad, be prepared for a foreign transaction fee of up to 1% of each foreign transaction amount. While this isn’t as bad as the 3% foreign transaction fee some cards charge, you might still wish to leave this card at home and instead take one with no foreign transaction fee.

• No introductory APR periods

  If you’re looking to make a big purchase and pay it off over time without incurring interest charges, or transfer debt from another card and take advantage of an interest-free period to pay that debt down, this isn’t the card for you. Consider a different card with a 0% intro APR offer instead.

 

Like the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card, cardholders with the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases. There’s also a more lucrative sign-up bonus with the latter card, where you can earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months.

Unlike the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card, the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card offers intro APR periods on purchases and balance transfers. Enjoy a 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening, after which a 17.99%, 22.99%, or 27.99% variable apr applies. You’ll also get a 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on qualifying balance transfers, after which a 17.99%, 22.99%, or 27.99% variable apr applies.

The Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card‘s annual fee is $0 and the foreign transaction fee is 3%. There’s a reasonable balance transfer fee of 3% intro for 120 days from account opening, then up to 5%; min: $5.

Though both are flat-rate cards, where consumers without a Fidelity account may prefer the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card over the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card is in the redemption options it offers:

• Use cash back to cover recent eligible purchases
• Get a credit to a qualifying Wells Fargo credit card, checking account or mortgage
• Withdraw cash in $20 increments (requires a Wells Fargo debit or ATM card)
• Get gift cards from a variety of retailers

For consumers with an eligible Fidelity account, the Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card offers a great way to top off your savings. It earns a top-of-the-line rewards rate on every purchase — plus, you can even set up automatic redemptions to your account, so you’re not tempted to use your rewards for something else.

However, if you don’t have a Fidelity account and don’t intend to set one up, or you’re simply looking for more flexibility in redeeming your rewards, there are other cashback cards that earn the same flat rate and might suit you better. Consider options like the Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card and the Citi® Double Cash Card .