Business cards that pay for the business, not the brochure.
We modeled $120,000 of typical small-business spend across ads, shipping, software, travel, and supplies against every major business card. The picks below win on net first-year value after fees and signup bonuses. Pick one, pay the statement in full, and let it run in the background.
Business card snapshot
Reviewed weeklyThe business cards we recommend right now
Ranked by net rewards on $120,000 of typical small-business spend after fees, signup bonuses, and APR risk.
Ink Business Preferred Credit Card
Bonus: 100,000 bonus points after $8,000 in spend
- +3x points on first $150,000 combined per year in travel, shipping, internet, cable, phone, and advertising purchases
- +100,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 in first 3 months
- +Points worth 1.25 cents each in Chase Travel portal or transfer to 14 airline and hotel partners at 1:1
Ink Business Cash Credit Card
Bonus: $750 bonus cash back after $6,000 in spend
- +5% cash back on first $25K/year at office supply stores and internet/cable/phone services
- +2% cash back on first $25K/year at gas stations and restaurants
- +0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases
American Express Business Gold Card
Bonus: 70,000 Membership Rewards points after $10,000 in spend
- +4x Membership Rewards points in your top 2 eligible categories each billing cycle (from: advertising, gas, dining, transit, tech providers, shipping, and other eligible U.S. purchases)
- +4x capped at $150,000 in combined purchases per year
- +No foreign transaction fees
Brex Business Credit Card
Bonus: 75,000 bonus points after $9,000 in spend
- +7x points on rideshare
- +4x points on Brex Travel bookings
- +3x points on dining
Spark Cash Plus for Business
Bonus: $1,200 cash bonus after $30,000 in spend
- +Unlimited 2% cash back on every purchase
- +5% on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel
- +$1,200 cash bonus: $500 after $5,000 in first 3 months plus $700 after $50,000 in first 6 months
Business Advantage Cash Rewards Mastercard
Bonus: $300 statement credit after $3,000 in spend
- +3% cash back in your chosen category (gas, office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom, business consulting, or computer services)
- +2% cash back on dining
- +1% cash back on all other purchases
Wyndham Rewards Earner Business Card
Bonus: 45,000 bonus points after $2,000 in spend
- +8x points on Wyndham hotel purchases and gas
- +5x points on marketing and utility purchases
- +1x points on all other eligible purchases
Operator value, not affiliate value.
Three filters separate cards built for real businesses from cards built for sponsored review sites.
We model real business spend, not theoretical category rates
Every pick was tested against a realistic small-business spending mix: 30% digital ads, 20% software and subscriptions, 15% travel, 15% shipping, 10% client meals, and 10% supplies. We add the first-year signup bonus and subtract the annual fee to get net first-year value. The cards above all clear $1,500 in net value year one.
We weight expense management, not just rewards
Free employee cards, automatic categorization, accounting software exports, and spending controls all matter when you have to close the books at month-end. Cards that integrate cleanly with QuickBooks and Xero score higher. A 5x category rate is worth less if your bookkeeper has to clean every transaction by hand.
We test the fine print, including reporting practices
Foreign transaction fees, balance transfer fees, late fees, and APR ranges all factor into the score. We also flag whether the issuer reports activity to personal credit bureaus. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau publishes guidance on credit card disclosures that we cross-check against issuer terms before scoring.
Personal guarantees, EINs, and the 5/24 rule.
The three things every applicant should know before pressing submit.
Personal guarantee is the default
On nearly every business card, the owner signs a personal guarantee. That means you are personally responsible for the balance even if the business closes. The protection that an LLC normally provides does not extend to credit card debt you guaranteed. Brex, Ramp, and a few corporate cards skip the guarantee, but they require business bank balances or revenue thresholds most small operators do not have.
EIN vs SSN at application time
Sole proprietors can apply using only a Social Security number. The business name is your legal name, and the issuer pulls personal credit. If you have an EIN, list it. Either way, your personal credit history is the primary input for approval on any new business with a thin commercial credit file.
Chase 5/24 still applies to business products
Chase will deny most applications, including business cards, if you have opened five or more cards across all issuers in the prior 24 months. Personal Chase cards count toward 5/24 because they show on personal credit. Business cards from Chase do not count toward 5/24, but they are still subject to the rule on the application side.
Three pitfalls that quietly drain business cards.
Carrying a balance to chase rewards
Every business pick above carries APRs above 19%. Carrying $10,000 from month to month wipes out a full year of category rewards in a quarter. If cash is tight, switch to a low-APR card or a working capital line and stop chasing points.
Mixing personal and business spend
Running personal purchases through a business card complicates bookkeeping, can pierce LLC liability protection, and may trigger issuer reviews. Keep two cards: one for the business, one for personal life.
Stretching for the signup bonus
A 100,000-point bonus that requires $8,000 in three months is only valuable if you would have spent that money anyway. Pulling forward purchases to hit the threshold is fine. Inventing spend you do not need is not.
Run the numbers, then keep exploring.
Common questions about business cards.
Do I need an LLC or EIN to apply for a business credit card?
No. Sole proprietors can apply using a Social Security number and report income from the business. Issuers ask for the legal business name, but a sole proprietor can list their personal name. An EIN is required only if you have employees or operate a multi-member entity.
Will a business card show up on my personal credit report?
Most major issuers (Chase, Amex, Capital One) report business cards to commercial bureaus only, not personal credit bureaus, unless the account becomes seriously delinquent. Capital One is the exception: it reports business card activity to personal credit. The hard inquiry from the application will hit your personal credit either way.
What credit score do I need for a top business card?
Issuers typically want a personal FICO score of 700 or higher for premium business cards like Ink Business Preferred or Business Gold. The Ink Business Cash and Blue Business Plus are slightly more flexible. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau guidance reminds applicants that business credit decisions still rely heavily on personal credit history for new businesses.
Can I deduct credit card rewards as taxable income?
No. The IRS treats credit card rewards earned on business spending as a rebate that reduces the deductible expense, not income. So if you buy $1,000 in office supplies and earn $20 cash back, you deduct $980. Sign-up bonuses tied to a spending requirement are generally treated the same way.
Are personal guarantees required on business cards?
Almost always, yes. Even when the card is in the business name, the owner usually signs a personal guarantee, which means you are personally on the hook if the business cannot pay. Pure corporate cards without a personal guarantee exist (Brex, Ramp), but they generally require significant business cash reserves to qualify.
How many business cards should I have?
Two or three works for most businesses. Pair a category multiplier card (Ink Preferred or Business Gold) with a flat-rate card (Spark Cash Plus or Blue Business Plus) so every dollar of spending earns at the highest possible rate. Add a no-fee fallback for cycles when budgets tighten.
See what your business spending is worth in points.
Plug in monthly ad, software, and travel spend. We will show year-one value.