[Expired] Wells Fargo $250 Checking Bonus Available Online – Direct Deposit Not Required

Update: There is a new offer with targeted language, found here.

Deal has unfortunately expired. You can view the best checking bonuses by clicking here.

Offer at a glance

• Maximum bonus amount: $250
• Availability: Nationwide
• Direct deposit required: No
• Additional requirements: 10 debit card transactions
• Hard/soft pull: Soft
• Chexsystems: Mixed reports
• Credit card funding: Can fund up to $50 online
• Monthly fees: $10, waivable 
• Early account termination fee: None
• Household limit: None listed
• Expiration Date: February 17th, 2017 March 3rd, 2017 March 24th, 2017.

The Offer

Direct link to offer

• Open a new Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account with a minimum deposit of $25 and receive a bonus of $250 when you do the following:
  • Make 10 debit card purchases/payments [Read: How To Meet Minimum Debit & Credit Transaction Requirements]

The Fine Print

• Eligibility:
  • All consumer checking accounts, including non-interest-earning checking accounts (except Teen Checking^SM) are eligible for the bonus of $250. The prepaid Wells Fargo EasyPay^® Card is not eligible.
  • You cannot be:
    • A current owner on a Wells Fargo consumer checking account
    • A Wells Fargo team member
    • A recipient of a consumer checking bonus in the past 12 months (limit 1 bonus per customer)
• Bonus Qualifications:
  • Open a new, eligible consumer checking account with a minimum opening deposit of $25 (not including the bonus) by February 17, 2017 March 3rd, 2017 March 24th, 2017
  • Within 60 days of account opening, either make 10 purchases/payments with your Wells Fargo Debit Card or establish a qualifying Direct Deposit of an accumulated $500 or more to the consumer checking account opened for this bonus offer.
    • The 10 debit card purchases/payments must be from the primary linked consumer checking account opened for this offer.
    • A qualifying Direct Deposit is your salary, pension, Social Security, or other regular recurring monthly income, electronically deposited to your consumer checking account by your employer or an outside agency. Transfers from one account to another or deposits made at a banking location or ATM do not qualify as a Direct Deposit.
  • Offer available in all Wells Fargo branches or online at wellsfargo.com/250offer.
  • Offer cannot be:
    • Paid without a valid U.S. taxpayer ID
    • Combined with any other consumer deposit offer
    • Reproduced, purchased, sold, transferred, or traded

  Bonus Payment:

  • We will deposit the bonus into your new consumer checking account within 45 days after eligibility and qualifications have been met.
  • You are responsible for any federal, state, or local taxes due on your bonus and we will report as income to the tax authorities if required by applicable law. Consult your tax advisor.

Avoiding Fees

Monthly Fee

The Everyday Checking account comes with a $10 monthly fee. Get the fee waived with one of the following:

• 10 debit card purchases and/or payments each statement cycle from this checking account, OR
• Direct deposits totaling $500 or more each statement cycle, OR
• Maintain a $1,500 minimum daily balance, OR
• Link checking account to a Wells Fargo Campus ATM or Campus Debit Card

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.

Updates

Update 4: New offer doesn’t contain the targeted language, but it is now online only and valid until March 24th, 2017.

Update 3: Another DP of somebody getting the bonus without being targeted after the new language was added. Because of that we’ve removed the targeted portion of the title. As always YMMV.

Update 2: This DP shows somebody getting the bonus without being targeted. They did apply in branch.

Update: Wells Fargo have made additional changes to the fine print on this offer, it now says:

This is an exclusive, nontransferable offer, available to those who received our direct mail or e-mail offer.

Previously it didn’t include the ‘available to those who received our direct mail or e-mail offer’. I believe this was added sometime on January 31st, but it might have been added sooner. Looks like they might be enforcing the targeted nature of this promo again.

We are reposting this because multiple readers have reported getting the bonus without being targeted, because of that I now think this offer should be open to everybody but YMMV. We first posted this on January 5th.

Our Verdict

This is easily the best bank account bonus currently available, it’s extremely easy to trigger the bonus with only 10 debit card transactions required (read this post to get some ideas) and it’s not particularly difficult to keep the account fee free either. The fact that you can open it online makes it all the sweeter.

Previously the best Wells Fargo checking offer we’ve seen is $150, normally $100 is standard. Looks like they are getting desperate for new account openings after their recent scandal.

Big thanks to reader Max for sending this through.

Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:

• A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
• 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