Credit One Bank® Wander® American Express Card review

If you only have fair or average credit but still want a chance to earn cash back or travel rewards, the Credit One Wander card may be worth a look. Though the card comes with a $95 annual fee, it earns at an impressive rate on a wide variety of eligible travel spending, as well as on dining and gas purchases, making it almost tailor-made to fit road trippers and families on the go.

However, given its high cost and minimal perks, the card is hard to recommend purely as a travel rewards card. Instead, this card is best seen as a credit-building option for domestic travelers.

Earning rewards

Given it’s available with fair credit, the Credit One Bank Wander Card offers a relatively generous rewards program. The card’s most lucrative categories should be an especially good fit if you do a lot of traveling and dining out since it offers 10X points on eligible hotels and car rentals booked through the Credit One Bank travel partner, 5X points on eligible travel, dining and gas, and 1x points on all other purchases.  Those rates rival some of the rewards rates you’ll find on the best travel cards on the market and it’s pretty remarkable that you can get access to them with only a fair credit score.

Redeeming rewards

You can redeem cash back rewards as a statement credit and for gift cards, merchandise and travel. Points are worth 1 cent apiece when redeemed for cash back, but vary in value for other redemption methods. Unfortunately, you can only redeem cash back in increments of 1,000 points, with points worth 1 cent apiece, so you’ll need to earn at least $10 worth of cash back rewards before you can redeem. Travel redemptions carry restrictions, too, as you can only redeem for travel through Credit One Bank’s own travel portal.

Card rates and fees

The most obvious downside of the Credit One Wander card is its $95 annual fee, which is far higher than the fee you typically find on a card with fair or average credit and is more in line with the fee you’d find on either a card designed for someone with bad credit or a mid-tier rewards card that carries better perks and bonuses. The card also charges a relatively high APR regardless of your credit history.

Card perks

It may come as no surprise given the card is available with fair or average credit, but the Credit One Bank Wander Card doesn’t offer much in the way of cardholder perks. You can enjoy some bonus rewards with select retailers via the card’s More Cash Rewards card-linked offer program and enjoy peace of mind with zero fraud liability.

How the Credit One Bank Wander Card compares to other credit cards for fair credit

While the Credit One Bank Wander Card may make sense for cardholders with fair credit who want to work on their score while earning rewards on travel, you’ll almost certainly be able to find a lower-cost option at this credit level, which could help you improve your score and eventually move up to a more lucrative travel rewards card. Here are a few alternatives to consider:

Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card	Capital One Platinum Credit Card	Petal® 1 "No Annual Fee" Visa® Credit Card
Rewards rate Earn unlimited 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options. Terms apply Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, every day	Rewards rate None	Rewards rate None
Credit limit See terms	Credit limit See terms	Credit limit $300-$5,000
Annual fee $39	Annual fee $0	Annual fee $0
Other things to know Account reviewed for possible credit limit increase after 6 months of on-time payments and responsible use Automatic cash back redemption available No foreign transaction fees	Other things to know No foreign transaction fee and no security deposit required Account reviewed for possible credit limit increase after 6 months of on-time payment and responsible use	Other things to know No foreign transaction fee and no security deposit required Issuer may consider alternative credit data (like income and bill payment history) when evaluating applications, not just credit score Includes money-management tools and free credit reporting

Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card
Not only does the card charge an annual fee of just $39 (versus $95 with the Credit One Wander card), but it also offers unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, which will help offset the card’s cost even further and give it great long-term value. Plus, once your score improves, you may be able to upgrade to a more lucrative travel or cash back card from Capital One.

Capital One Platinum Credit Card
If you want to avoid an annual fee and have at least fair credit, the Capital One Platinum card is one of our top picks. It’s far from the flashiest card, offering next to nothing in the way of perks, but it carries a $0 annual fee, requires no security deposit and gives you a chance at a credit limit increase after six months of on-time payments and responsible use. If building credit is your top priority, it’s hard to go wrong with this streamlined card.

Petal® 1 "No Annual Fee" Visa® Credit Card
The Petal 1 card (issued by WebBank) is a terrific option for credit-builders since it’s available even with limited credit, charges no annual fee and offers a minimum starting credit limit of $300 (up to $5,000). The card is also notable for its flexible approvals process: The issuer can consider more than just your credit score when you apply and may take into account other financial data like your bill payment history. This will be a big help if you’ve had some credit missteps in the past but are otherwise on solid financial ground.

Is the Credit One Bank Wander Card worth it?

While the Credit One Bank Wander Card may be worth it for cardholders who want to earn rewards on eligible travel while building credit, the $95 annual fee is tough to justify beyond the first year. You’ll likely be better off going with a lower-cost credit-building card, working on your score and then upgrading to an inexpensive and more rewarding travel card.