Offer has been extended to 2/25/25
Update 11/13/24: Extended to January 7, 2025
Offer extended to 11/12/24
Update 8/21/24: Extended until October 1, 2024
Update 7/10/24: Extended until August 20, 2024
Update 5/22/24: Extended until July 9, 2024.
Update 4/10/24: Extended through 5/21/24
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $325
- Availability: Nationwide
- Direct deposit required: Yes, $1,000+
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Mixed reports, likely doesn’t pull
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: $10, avoidable
- Early account termination fee: None, don’t close account straight away please
- Household limit: None
- Expiration date:
January 6, 2023February 27, 2023 April 10, 2023 August 21, 2023October 10, 2023April 9, 2024May 21, 2024
Contents
The Offer
- Wells Fargo is offering a $325 bonus when you open a new Everyday Checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Receive a total of $1,000 or more in qualifying direct deposits to the new checking account within 90 calendar days from account opening (the qualification period)
The Fine Print
Eligibility Requirements:
- This offer is for new checking customers only. All Wells Fargo consumer checking accounts are eligible for this offer with the exception of checking accounts offered by Wells Fargo Private Bank.
- You must use your bonus offer code at account opening when you apply for a new eligible Wells Fargo checking account.
- You are not eligible for this offer if:
- You are a current owner of a Wells Fargo consumer checking account
- You have received a bonus for opening a Wells Fargo consumer checking account within the past 12 months
- You are a Wells Fargo employee
Bonus Requirements:
- Open a new Wells Fargo consumer checking account with a minimum opening deposit of $25 by January 6, 2023. All account applications are subject to approval.
- Within 90 calendar days of account opening (the “qualification period”), receive a total of $1,000 or more in qualifying direct deposits to your new checking account.
- A qualifying direct deposit is an ACH (Automated Clearing House) automatic electronic deposit of your salary, pension, Social Security, or other regular income into your bank account. Confirm with your employer or the agency or company making these payments that they use the ACH network.
- Transfers from one account to another, mobile deposits, or deposits made at a branch, or ATM don’t qualify as a direct deposit.
- A direct deposit made available early with Early Pay Day does not count toward the bonus requirements until it posts to your account and is no longer pending (e.g. the pay date scheduled by your payor).
Bonus Payment:
- Once the 90-day qualification period has elapsed, we will determine if you have met the offer requirements, and will deposit any earned bonus into your new checking account within 30 days.
- The new checking account must remain open throughout the 90-day qualification period and at the time we attempt to deposit any earned bonus payment. Please note that an account with a zero balance may be closed by us without prior notice, as further described in the Deposit Account Agreement.
- You are responsible for any federal, state, or local taxes due on the bonus and we will report as income to the tax authorities if required by applicable law. Consult your tax advisor.
Additional Terms and Conditions:
- Offer expires January 6, 2023. However, offer may be discontinued or changed at any time prior to the expiration date without notice.
- Offer cannot be:
- Paid without a valid U.S. Taxpayer Identification Number (Form W-9 for U.S. persons including a resident alien). Non-resident aliens, signing Form W-8 are not eligible for the offer.
- Combined with any other consumer deposit offer (limit one bonus per customer/account).
- Reproduced, purchased, sold, transferred, or traded.
- The actions required to earn this bonus are separate and distinct from the options available to you to avoid any applicable monthly service fee for the checking account you opened.Talk with a banker or see the “Consumer Account Fee and Information Schedule and Deposit Account Agreement” for complete checking account details, including the applicable monthly service fee and options to avoid it.
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
The Everyday Checking account comes with a $10 monthly fee. Get the fee waived with one of the following:
- $500 minimum daily balance
- $500 or more in total qualifying electronic deposits1
- Primary account owner is 17-24 years old2
- A linked Wells Fargo Campus ATM Card or Campus Debit Card3
- A qualifying monthly non-civilian military direct deposit with the Wells Fargo Worldwide Military Banking program4
If you have a Wells mortgage, you might be able to get a higher-level account with no fees.
Early Account Termination Fee
There is no early account termination fee.
Our Verdict
This isn’t as good as the $400 bonus we last saw in 2020, but it is better than the $300 bonuses we have recently seen. I don’t think that $400 bonus will come back any time soon, but some might prefer to wait for it. I will add this to our best bank account bonuses.
Hat tip to reader Paul K
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
Post History:
- Update 2/26/24: Extended through 4/9/24 (ht Jeremy)
- Update 1/17/24: Extended until February 23, 2024.
- Update 11/14/23: Extended until January 16, 2024.
- Update 10/11/23: Extended until November 13, 2023.
- Update 8/22/23: Extended through October 10th
- Update 7/5/23: Offer is back through August 21, 2023; Update 5/23/23: Extended through July 3, 2023. Update 4/11/23: Extended through May 22, 2023. Update 2/28/23: Deal is back/extended through 4/10/23 (ht 14lopeza and Dan) Update 2/27/23: Today is the final day for the $325 deal. There’s a new $300 link valid through March 28, 2023. (ht ReedMuller) Update 1/17/23: Deal is back and valid until February 27, 2023.
View Comments (3379)
107 Days no bonus yet…
Account opened 10/21
Venmo 10/22 $500
Venmo 11/4 $500
Venmo 11/25 $500
Venmo 12/4 $280
Venmo 12/17 $200
Chase $300 12/18
All coded as DD
Didn’t realize first 60 days are fee
The only thing I can think might be holding me up is not sending 1k in 1 push.
P2’s DPs are similar and also haven’t received the bonus.
I know they’re separate departments, but I figured having strong relationships with their investment brokers over the decades would count for something. Guess I’ll finally pull the trigger and move my accounts over to our main WF broker’s new firm.
I’m still going to close and try again if they really don’t pay out this time. I wonder what we did wrong. We haven’t had this problem with any other bonuses.
My account was open on 11/1/24 and did all the requirements with Payroll DD and I'm still waiting. Im on day 96....
Bonus usually posts around day 100... sometimes later. Deep breath... take it easy. @guest_1998415
So you have 60 days where you don't have to worry about the $10 fee?
Yes, the fee is waived for at least the first 64 days. See #1712913 @guest_1998214
I'm super new to this. Made a $1,005 transfer from Schwab Brokerage to WF. It's still pending but says "MoneyLink Transfer" in the description on both accounts. Would this trigger the bonus? Or should I try pushing from a different account?
See #1526269 on how to tell if a DD counts as a Direct Deposit at WF… @guest_1997920
Also, welcome to the game!
It should work. MoneyLink is just what Schwab labels there EFT transfer service. Wells Fargo bonus terms are very lax.
Your transfer would fall under "(1) a direct deposit made through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network". Any incoming ACH transaction is a direct deposit, and WF doesn't restrict it any further.
I'm super new to this. Made a $1,0005 transfer from Schwab Brokerage to WF checking. It is still pending but says "MoneyLink Transfer" in the description for both accounts. Would this still trigger the bonus? Or should I try pushing from a different account?
03/21/2022: Original account opened online for $300 bonus.
06/21/2022: $300 bonus paid.
Mid June 2023: Original account closed.
06/23/2023: Churn account #1 opened in branch (after being denied online) for $325 bonus.
10/17/2023: $325 bonus posts as “Promotion Bonus – II”.
Early October 2024: Churn account #1 closed.
10/21/2024: Churn account #2 opened online for $325 bonus.
10/31/2024: Employer DD
01/24/2025: $325 bonus posts as "Promotion Bonus".
DP for churning mentioned in the Savings post as well: I churned and received this bonus while I churned and received the $525 Savings bonus, so it appears they don't affect each other for eligibility.
it's been 12+ months since i last opened a WF account but less then 12 months since i got a bonus from them. can i churn, or do i wait?
You wait until 12 months + 1 day since last bonus posted.
@guest_1995199,
To add to @guest_1984034's response, make sure that your old account is closed before you apply for the new one!
Oct 29, 2024: Opened account. Immediate approval.
Oct 29: $1,001 push from Fidelity Brokerage
Oct 30: $1,001 in account
Nov 2: Debit card arrived
Nov 4: PIN arrived
Jan 14, 2025: $1,002 RTP from Chase Bank
Jan 31: $325 “Promotion Bonus”
Terms state: "After the 90-day qualification period, if you have met all requirements, we will deposit the bonus into your new account within 30 calendar days."
10/25/24 opened in branch, made sure that the banker applied the code while opening
10/29/24 $1,000 Fidelity CMA
11/9/24 pulled that $1,000 back to my fidelity account
1/28/25 $325 bonus posted.
You didn't get any $10 monthly fees?
They were waived because of my age
10/24 opened Everyday Checking
11/08 real DD $250
11/22 real DD $250
12/06 real DD $250
12/20 real DD $250
01/03 real DD $250 (fee avoidance)
01/17 real DD $250 (fee avoidance)
01/27 bonus $325 (day 95)
I automatically pulled the $250 out to my hub account as soon as it hit every two weeks, making sure to leave $5 in there as a minimum to keep it from getting shut down. Never got hit with any fees.
I'm ready to close but I'm thinking about applying for one or more of their credit cards and I hear that approval odds are much better if I have deposits with them. I also have a pretty big chunk in their savings account (working that bonus as well). Should I leave this account open too or should the savings account be good enough to help with getting the card?
P2 DP
10/25/24 - checking opened
11/5/24 - $1k Ally ACH push
1/28/25 - $325 bonus posted