Whether you've got a simple side hustle or are the CEO of a major company, having a business credit card is be a great way to manage your expenses and extend your company's purchasing power – all while earning valuable points and miles in the process to fuel your work (or personal) travels.
Not sure if you're eligible for business credit cards? You might be surprised to find out just what the banks consider a small business .
Just like with personal cards, getting ahead with a business credit card is all about timing: Getting a new card when the welcome bonus is at its highest is what it's all about. If you're in the market for a business credit card, this is the place to start.
When it comes to picking out a new business card there are plenty of options to choose from. In order to help with your decision we've assembled a list of the absolute best business card offers available right now. A handful of banks are out with some eye-popping bonuses on their best business cards this month – some are mainstays while others are only available for a limited time and won't last much longer.
But remember: Credit cards are serious business . You should never apply for a credit card if you're already in debt, and never charge more to a credit card than you can afford to pay off immediately. However many points and miles you can earn, they're not worth it.
For more information on the best current offers, make sure to head to our Top Credit Cards Page .
1. The Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
Current Offer
The *chase ink preferred* is currently offering 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $8,000 in the first three months of card membership. These points are worth a minimum of $1,250 for future travel – if not much, much more.
Annual Fee: $95
Learn more about the *chase ink preferred*
Why This Offer Makes the List
The Chase Ink Preferred has long been one of the best business cards for big spenders, but its mouth-watering welcome bonus offer used to require a huge chunk of spending. Well, you can kiss those days goodbye: Chase recently slashed the spending requirement in half, opening the door for far more small business owners to get the Ink Preferred and earn a juicy welcome offer.
So what makes this card so special? Think of it as the business version of the longtime-favorite *csp* .
First off, the card is a good one for racking up Chase Ultimate Rewards points well beyond the initial welcome offer. It earns bonus points in several key business categories such as travel, shipping expenses, phone & internet bills, and online advertising.
On top of that, it offers some rock-solid travel benefits and other protections for your business. And when it comes time to reap your rewards, the Ink Preferred allows you to redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards in a variety of ways.
You can use them to book travel at 1.25 cents per point in the Chase travel portal , or they can be transferred at a 1:1 ratio to any of Chase’s travel partners . That means if you use them towards travel, this huge 100,000-point offer is worth a minimum of $1,250. If travel isn’t your goal, Ultimate Rewards can also be cashed at a rate of 1 cent per point: applied to your bill as a statement credit, or even used for gift cards.
The lucrative point earning opportunities, versatility when redeeming rewards, and a low annual fee are just some of what make this card so valuable and worthy of our top spot.
Check out our full review of the Chase Ink Preferred for a complete card breakdown!
2. The Business Platinum® Card from American Express
Current Offer
*biz platinum* has a standard welcome offer of 120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with your card within the first three months of card membership.
While this is a fantastic offer on its own, there is currently a referral offer going around for a whopping 150,000 Membership Rewards after spending $15,000 in the first three months. If you have a friend or know someone who currently has the Business Platinum Card and can send you one of these links, it would make sense to go that route instead. We've seen even bigger targeted offers for as much as 200,000 Amex points.
Annual Fee: $695 (see rates & fees )
Learn more about *biz platinum*
Why This Offer Makes the List
Beyond the initial welcome offer of 120,000 Membership Rewards points, the Business Platinum is a great card to use when purchasing flights. If your business spends a lot on airfare, this card will pay for itself time and time again – due to the unprecedented 5x Membership Rewards points earning on flights purchased directly with the airlines , as well as prepaid flights and hotels booked through Amex Travel.
On top of earning additional points for flights, Business Platinum cardholders will also earn an extra .5x Membership Rewards on purchases made in select business categories and large purchases with any merchant over $5,000 (up to $2 million in purchases each year). The categories where you'll earn points at a rate of 1.5x per dollar spent are electronic goods retailers, software and cloud service providers, U.S. construction materials, hardware supplies, and shipping providers.
Alright, enough about earning points. Let's get to the real reasons you should have this card: Travel perks and business credits.
Much like *amex platinum* , the Business Platinum comes packed with travel perks, benefits, and credits that make it a mainstay in many business owner's wallets. Seriously, this card comes with so many statement credits for different travel and business related expenses that you might need to hire another employee just to manage it all. And if you do, be on the lookout for an opportunity to earn additional Membership Rewards for adding them as an authorized user !
By simply using this card for your expenses, you can earn over $1,400 each year in statement credits for different business and travel related purchases . Here's how it shakes out: You'll get up to $200 per calendar year for airline incidental fees at one airline of your choosing, up to $189 annually for CLEAR Plus enrollment, up to $400 annually (up to $200 twice per year) for U.S. purchases at Dell, up to $10 per month ($120 per year) to spend with U.S. wireless telephone providers, up to $360 annually ($90 per quarter) to spend on Indeed hiring and recruiting products, and $150 each year to spend on select Adobe purchases.
And then there are all the travel perks that you get with this card. I'm talking about things like airport lounge access, car rental elite status, and hotel elite status . In fact, this card is widely considered the best credit card for airport lounge access because it'll get you into Amex Centurion Lounges , Delta Sky Clubs (when flying Delta), Escape Lounges , and a membership in the Priority Pass Select program.
When it comes time to use your points, you've got some great options. For starters, you can send them to the excellent stable of Amex transfer partners . But there's also arguably the card's best perk of all : Book travel through the Amex Travel portal using points, and you'll get 35% of your points back for any first or business class flights – plus all flights booked with one airline you choose.
While the card's annual fee might seem high at first glance, it's easy to come out ahead with this one … even if you only use half of the card's statement credits each year.
Read more: Earn 120K Membership Rewards with the Business Platinum Card® from American Express
3. The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
Current Offer
*hilton business* is currently offering 150,000 Hilton Honors bonus points plus a free night reward after you spend $4,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors Business Card within the first three months of card membership. But you'll have to hurry: T his offer ends July 19.
Annual Fee: $95 (see rates & fees )
Learn more about *hilton business*
Why This Offer Makes the List
Through July 19, the card has an awesome welcome offer of 150,000 Hilton Honors points plus a free night reward after you spend $4,000 in purchases in the first three months. That amount of points alone should be worth enough to get a few free nights at some really nice Hilton properties.
But that Hilton free night certificate has the potential to be worth much more. How much more? Well, considering it can be used at nearly any Hilton property with standard room award availability, the potential value is quite high.
Lately, we've seen great standard award availability at tremendous properties like the Conrad Bora Bora Nui or the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island . Those resorts typically cost $1,000 or more a night, making either of them an excellent way to use the Hilton free night certificates that come with this welcome offer. Unlike other hotel chains, Hilton doesn't cap these certificates: So long as you can find standard award availability, you can book it with a certificate.
The Conrad Bora Bora, photo courtesy of Hilton Hotels
If you're looking to stay a little closer to home, a personal favorite of the team here at Thrifty Traveler is the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Here in the states, the Conrad New York Midtown in New York City stands out, too.
Given the incredible value that these free night certificates provide, you shouldn't have trouble putting them to good use no matter where you stay. If you're still having trouble deciding where to go, be sure to check out our guide for the best ways to maximize a Hilton free night award .
On the earning side of things, *hilton business* is a surprisingly well-rounded option and could be a good choice for your everyday business spending. The card earns 12x Hilton Honors points at participating hotels in the Hilton portfolio, 6x points at U.S. gas stations, on U.S. purchases for shipping, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers, on flights booked directly with airlines or with Amex Travel, on car rentals booked directly from select rental car companies, and at U.S. restaurants. Every other purchase will earn you a flat 3x Hilton Honors points per dollar spent.
The card comes with automatic Hilton Gold elite status and gives you the opportunity to bump that up to top-tier Diamond elite status with $60,000 in annual spending on the card. You'll also get another annual free night reward when you spend $15,000 on the card in a calendar year – and second free night if you get to $60,000 in spending during the same year.
Lastly, you'll get 10 free airport lounge visits through Priority Pass Select each year just for being a cardmember. While this works differently than the typical Priority Pass Select membership, it can be a great perk for infrequent travelers or as a way to guest in employees or other business associates while traveling together for work.
Read more: Earn up to 150K Points + a Free Night Award With These New Hilton Honors Credit Card Offers !
4. The Chase Ink Business Unlimited® and Cash® Cards
Current Offer
The *chase ink unlimited* and the *chase ink cash* both allow new applicants to earn $750 bonus cash back (75,000 Ultimate Rewards) after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Even though these cards earn cash back, it's actually rewarded in the form of Chase Ultimate Rewards points. This means you can be combine your cash back with the Ultimate Rewards earned from one of Chase's premium cards like the *chase ink preferred* or the *csp* in order to transfer them to travel partners or redeem them through the Chase Travel Portal at a rate of 1.25 cents per point.
Annual Fee: None
Learn more about the *chase ink unlimited*
Learn more about the *chase ink cash*
Why This Offer Makes the List
With an identical 75,000 Ultimate Rewards point sign-up bonus on both of the no-annual fee Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited cards, business owners will have to look beyond the welcome offer when deciding which of these two cards to pick up. The good news is that if both of these cards seem to be a good fit for your business, you don't actually have to choose at all – one business can have all of the Ink cards at the same time without issue.
But if you aren't planning to get both cards right of way, you'll likely want to pick the one that best fits your business' spending pattern in order to maximize your ongoing earning potential.
The Chase Ink Cash Card is perfect for any business that spends a lot at office supply stores and on internet, cable, or phone service. In these categories, you'll earn 5% cash back (5x Chase Ultimate Rewards) for your purchases up to the first $25,000 in combined spending each year. You'll also earn 2% cash back (2x Chase Ultimate Rewards) at gas stations and restaurants , up to $25,000 in combined spending each year. All other purchases will earn you an unlimited 1% cash back (1x Chase Ultimate Rewards).
With the Chase Ink Unlimited Card, you'll earn a flat 1.5% cash back (1.5x Chase Ultimate Rewards) on every purchase . There is no cap on your earnings with this card so if your business doesn't spend a lot in a bonus category, this can be a really good option for ensuring you're getting a good return on all purchases.
Both of these cards allow you to add additional employee cards without a fee, which can help you streamline your business spending and allow you to earn rewards even faster.
Having trouble deciding which card is right? Read our comparison of the Ink Business Cash vs the Ink Business Unlimited .
5. The American Express® Business Gold Card
Current Offer
The *biz gold* currently has a welcome offer of 70,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $10,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Gold Card within the first three months of card membership.
Annual Fee: $250 (see rates & fees )
Learn more about the *biz gold*
Why This Offer Makes the List
The 70,000 Membership Rewards point welcome offer is a great reason to get the *biz gold* , but you may want to keep it year after year due to it's ongoing point earning potential. Seriously: You'll be hard-pressed to find a more rewarding business credit card than the Amex Business Gold Card.
With this card, you'll earn 4x Membership Rewards points in your top two spending categories each billing cycle , up to a combined $150,000 in spending across all categories each year. All other purchases outside of your top two categories and after the reaching $150,000 in combined spending will earn unlimited 1x points.
Here's a look at the eligible spending categories for 4x Membership Rewards Point Earning
Airfare purchased directly from the airlines
U.S. purchases at gas stations
U.S. purchases at restaurants, including take out and delivery
U.S. purchases for shipping
U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
U.S. purchases made directly from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions
If your business spends a lot in any of those six categories, you can earn up to 600,000 Membership Rewards points each year with the Amex Business Gold Card. And just like the Membership Rewards earned with the Business Platinum Card, these points are super valuable and can be used in a variety of ways, including transfers to travel partners for award bookings .
Bottom Line
The banks are out with some truly show-stopping welcome offers their best business credit cards right now. Having one of these cards can be a great way to manage your business expenses, all while earning a ton of points and miles in the process.
If you're interested in opening one of these cards but unsure if your small business or side-hustle qualifies, be sure to check out our guide to determining business eligibility beforehand.
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