Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus vs Wells Fargo Autograph: Which Is Better In 2025?

Wells Fargo Autograph Breakdown

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Why We Like It

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Here’s a closer look at why we’re fans of the Wells Fargo Autograph Card.

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• The card offers generous rewards on a broad range of everyday spending categories, including dining, travel, gas, and popular streaming services.
• With no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees, it's a cost-effective option for use at home and abroad.
• Because there is no annual fee to offset, you begin to see value from your rewards with your very first purchase (publisher-formulated estimate).

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Pros

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• Earns bonus points across a wide variety of popular spending categories, with no cap on the rewards you can accumulate.
• A rare feature for a no-annual-fee card, it allows you to transfer points to several airline and hotel partners.
• Includes valuable built-in protections like cell phone coverage against damage or theft when you pay your bill with the card.

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Cons

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• It lacks premium travel benefits like airport lounge access or annual travel credits, which some reviews note are available on competing travel cards.
• The list of airline and hotel transfer partners is less extensive than what's offered by other major rewards programs.
• Cardholders must keep track of bonus spending categories to maximize their earnings, unlike with simpler flat-rate cards.

Wells Fargo Autograph vs Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus

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Categories

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Deciding which is better, the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus or Wells Fargo Autograph, depends entirely on your spending habits and travel goals. Each card caters to a different type of consumer, offering distinct advantages.

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• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is tailored for travelers loyal to Southwest Airlines. It is best for those who fly the airline multiple times per year and want to earn airline-specific perks, including progress toward the valuable Companion Pass.
• Wells Fargo Autograph® Card is a versatile option for earning rewards across a broad range of everyday spending categories like dining, gas, and transit. This card is ideal for individuals who want flexible rewards without being tied to a specific airline.

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Redemption

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Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card: Points earned with this card are redeemed directly through the Southwest Rapid Rewards program, primarily for flights on Southwest Airlines. Your rewards are best used to book travel and work toward elite status benefits with the airline.

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Wells Fargo Autograph® Card: This card offers more flexible redemption options, allowing you to use your points for cash back, travel bookings through the Wells Fargo portal, gift cards, and more. The rewards are not tied to a single airline or hotel brand, giving you broader choices.

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Travel Perks

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• Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card: The travel ecosystem for this card is exclusively focused on Southwest Airlines. It comes with a foreign transaction fee, making it less suitable for international travel. Its main perks are designed to enhance the Southwest flying experience rather than offering broad travel benefits.
• Wells Fargo Autograph® Card: This card offers a more flexible travel ecosystem with no foreign transaction fees, a significant advantage for use abroad. Points can be redeemed for various travel options through the Wells Fargo portal, not locking you into a single airline or hotel brand.

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Compare Top Rated Credit Cards with Kudos

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For those looking to simplify the decision-making process, a tool like Kudos can help you compare thousands of cards and personalize recommendations based on your actual spending.

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• Test Drive Cards: The platform’s Test Drive feature allows you to simulate how much you could earn with a new card by analyzing your real transaction history, all without a hard credit pull.
• Personalized Recommendations: Instead of generic suggestions, Kudos matches you with cards based on your unique spending patterns to maximize your rewards.
• Financial Hub: You can manage multiple credit cards, monitor your credit score, and track spending all in one place.
• Boosted Rewards: Earn extra rewards, called Kudos Boost, on top of your regular card rewards when shopping at participating stores.
• Welcome Offer Guarantee: If you find a better public welcome offer for a card you got through Kudos within three months, the platform will match it.

Who Should Choose the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus?

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The Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card is tailor-made for occasional Southwest flyers, budget-conscious travelers, and those just starting with travel rewards. It serves as a strategic tool for customers working toward the valuable Southwest Companion Pass, since all points earned contribute to the qualification threshold. As detailed in this complete 2025 guide, the card's lower annual fee and anniversary bonus points make it a smart pick even for infrequent flyers loyal to the airline.

Who Should Choose the Wells Fargo Autograph?

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The Wells Fargo Autograph® Card is an excellent choice for consumers who want to earn significant rewards on their daily purchases without the burden of an annual fee. It particularly suits those who frequently spend on dining, travel, gas, transit, streaming services, and phone plans, as it offers unlimited 3X points in these popular categories. Furthermore, cardholders who value flexibility will appreciate the ability to redeem points for travel or transfer them to various airline and hotel partners, a feature highlighted in a NerdWallet review.

Alternatives to Consider

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If neither card in our Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus vs Wells Fargo Autograph comparison feels like the right choice, other options are available. Consider these alternatives that offer different rewards structures or benefits tailored to your lifestyle.

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_{Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.}

Tips for Application Success

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Before You Apply

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• Check your credit score: Most rewards cards require a good to excellent credit history for approval.
• Plan your spending: Make sure you can naturally meet the minimum spend required for the welcome offer.
• Research the rewards: Understand if the card's points are best for a specific airline or for transferring to multiple partners.

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Application Strategy

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• Time your application: Apply before a large planned purchase to help meet the spending requirement naturally.
• Research issuer-specific policies: Be aware of rules like Chase's 5/24, which can impact your eligibility for cards like the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card.
• Consider the entire card family: If a premium card's spending goal is too high, an issuer may offer a no-annual-fee alternative, such as the choice between the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey℠ Card and the Wells Fargo Autograph® Card.

Our Methodology

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We evaluate nearly 3,000 credit cards across the U.S. market — far more than the ~150 cards commonly featured on sites that focus only on products tied to affiliate commissions. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive, unbiased view of the credit card landscape so you can make confident, data-driven decisions.

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Our editorial team combines deep industry experience with rigorous verification standards. While our experts surface the most relevant recommendations in our guides, you can also explore the full dataset yourself through our card explorer tool, which includes thousands of cards — more than 95% of which do not provide us with commissions.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Which card is better for someone new to travel rewards?

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The Wells Fargo Autograph Card is often a better starting point due to its straightforward rewards on broad categories like dining and gas. The Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Card is more specialized and best suited for those who are already frequent flyers with Southwest Airlines.

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Can I use Wells Fargo Autograph points for Southwest flights?

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While you cannot directly transfer Wells Fargo Rewards points to a Southwest Rapid Rewards account, you can redeem them for Southwest flights through the Wells Fargo travel portal. This provides flexibility, but you won't get the benefits of booking directly with Rapid Rewards points, such as progress toward the Companion Pass.

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Is the annual fee on the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Card worth it?

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The value of the annual fee depends entirely on your travel habits and loyalty to Southwest. If you fly with the airline at least a couple of times per year and can use the anniversary bonus points, the fee can easily pay for itself.

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