Best Business Credit Cards of 2016

You don’t need to have 1,000 employees and a mahogany-walled board room to reap the rewards from business credit cards this year. Small businesses with few employees, sole proprietors, and independent contractors can all use business credit cards to manage cash flow and earn rewards on their spending.

In fact, even if you don’t have a business set up, you can reap the benefits of the best business credit cards. Yes, that means freelancers, financial advisors, and others who use credit cards for business expenses may qualify for a business card.

I have been self-employed the majority of my working career consulting and freelancing, and I always use a credit card to keep track of my expenses. I started with a personal credit card, but recently upgraded to the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card card for my LLC. I found several benefits after switching from a personal credit card to Chase Ink®.

In the process of selecting these cards for my business, I buried myself in small business credit card research. This guide details my selections for the top business cards on the market today and explains how I arrived at my decision.

No matter what your revenue level is, you can use one of the best business credit cards on this list to boost cash flow and earn top-notch rewards to use how you like.

The Simple Dollar’s Top Picks

Here are the 8 best business credit cards of 2016:

• Ink Plus® Business Credit Card
• Ink Cash® Business Credit Card
• The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN
• SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express
• Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® Credit Card
• Bank of America® WorldPoints® Travel Rewards for Business Visa® Credit Card
• Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express OPEN
• The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN

Which is the Better Rewards Platform: Chase or Amex?

I’ve personally used two cards on this list for businesses I’ve been a part of — The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN, and most recently, the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card.

These cards are comparable in many ways, like their rewards programs and bonus rewards categories. I have always wanted to use American Express because of the prestige the brand carries, but I’ve just never been able to find the right level of value for my lifestyle.

However, the signup bonus for the two cards is vastly different: 25,000 points for The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN and 60,000 for the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card. Amex Gold carries a $175 annual fee, while the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card has a $95 annual fee. Some of the American Express cards cost even more, if you look at the $450 annual fee that comes with The American Express Business Platinum Card®!

Chase Ink®: Best All-Around Business Credit Card

Because of the huge sign-up bonus and the many perks it offers, many would say that the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card is the best credit card out there for businesses. With no foreign transaction fees, the ability to earn 5 points per dollar at office supply stores, and plenty of travel-related perks, there are few reasons to a different card as your main business account.

Ink Plus® Business Credit Card

Ink Plus® Business Credit Card Highlights

What makes the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card the best?

Earn 60,000 bonus points after required spend

This is one of the top signup bonuses in the industry, but what makes it really valuable is how you use the points with the Chase Ultimate Rewards platform. If you redeem points for travel booked through the Ultimate Rewards website, those points are immediately worth 20% more.

5X point categories

I’m always outraged at how expensive my Internet, business phone line, and cell phone bills are each month, but at least I can earn 5X points on those bills by paying with my Ink Plus® Business Credit Card. I just went to each company website and hooked up the card for auto-pay. Earnings on just these expenses alone nets me over 20,000 points.

As I detailed in the last section, the cards earn 5X points at office supply stores too. Even if you’re not buying reams and reams of paper to fill your copy machine, you can still benefit. Office supply stores carry all the standard items like pens, paper, office furniture, small electronics, and ink. They also carry many non-traditional items. Staples, for instance, carries water, snacks, coffee, and K-cups! Stock up the next time you’re in.

For larger businesses, it is important to note that the $50,000 mark can be met with combined purchases at office supply stores and on cellular phone, landline, internet and cable TV services.

2X point categories

The Ink Plus® Business Credit Card also earns 2X points per $1 on the first $50,000 spent annually at gas stations and for hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel. If you go over $50,000 spent on gas or hotels, each additional dollar will earn one point. These categories are great for the road warriors and salespeople among us. I spend a decent amount on gas and a bit less on hotels, but my upcoming travel schedule will be picking up so I got the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card just in time.

1:1 point transfer to leading frequent travel programs

As stated earlier, when you redeem your Ultimate Rewards points for travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards site, your points are worth 20% more. For example, you can redeem 30,000 points for a $375 airline ticket. In those special circumstances where you might get a better deal by using airline miles, the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card lets you transfer Ultimate Rewards points to any of their partners on a 1:1 basis with no transfer fees. This is a great option on the occasions where airlines or hotels run last-minute points deals.

Here is a list of Chase transfer partners:

• British Airways Executive Club
• Korean Air SKYPASS
• United MileagePlus®
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Hyatt Gold Passport®
• Priority Club® Rewards
• Marriott Rewards®
• The Ritz-Carlton Rewards®

No foreign transaction fee

Another uncommon perk that comes with the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card is no foreign transaction fee. If your business takes you international frequently, this will save you 2.5% to 3% or more on every trip.

Ink Cash® Business Credit Card: Best Small Business Credit Card (No Annual Fee)

If you like what you are reading about the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card, but don’t like the idea of paying an annual fee, then check out the Ink Cash® Business Credit Card.

This card has the same bonus rewards categories but caps rewards at $25,000 spent in each bonus category annually instead of $50,000. Earn $200 bonus cash back after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Ink Cash® Business Credit Card Highlights

Here’s what you’re missing out on if you select Ink Cash® over the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card:

1. No 20% bonus for redeeming points for travel through Ultimate Rewards
2. Can’t transfer points to partners on a 1:1 basis
3. 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars

SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express

SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express is another option for a no annual fee business credit card. Like Ink Cash® Business Credit Card, this card has 5% cash back at U.S. office supply stores and on wireless phone services purchased directly from US service providers. The interesting twist to SimplyCash® is that AMEX lets you pick one additional category to earn 3% back in. This adds some flexibility for you because you can analyze your spending and select the best category to max out.

Here are your choices to earn 3%:

• Airfare purchased directly from airlines
• Hotel rooms purchased directly from hotels
• Car rentals purchased from select car rental companies
• U.S gas stations
• U.S. restaurants
• U.S. purchases for advertising in select media
• U.S. purchases for shipping

SimplyCash® Highlights

Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® Credit Card

The Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® Credit Card offers an excellent opportunity for business owners who want to earn a $100 statement credit bonus and ongoing rewards without paying an annual fee.

With the Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® credit card, you can earn rewards quickly and easily. Here’s how the tiered earnings schedule breaks down:

• Earn 3% cash back at gas stations and office supply stores up to $250,000 annually; 1% earn rate after that
• Earn 2% at restaurants
• Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases

When it comes time to redeem your rewards, you can opt to redeem them for a statement credit or a deposit into your Bank of America® checking or savings account.

This card is best for someone who spends a lot at gas stations and at office supply stores for their business each year, and who mostly wants to earn cash rewards. However, the Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® Credit Card is a good option for anyone who wants to earn cash rewards for their business without paying an annual fee.

Bank of America® Cash Rewards for Business MasterCard® credit card Highlights

Bank of America® WorldPoints® Travel Rewards for Business Visa® Credit Card

The Bank of America® WorldPoints® Travel Rewards for Business Visa® Credit Card lets you earn points that are good for travel, statement credits, or gift cards. In addition to ongoing rewards, you can earn a $100 statement credit bonus just for spending $500 on your new card within the first 60 days of account opening.

Unlike other cards, however, the Bank of America® WorldPoints® Travel Rewards for Business Visa® Credit Card actually doles out a fixed number of points – 1.5 WorldPoints – for every dollar you spend and 5,000 bonus WorldPoints after the first purchase on your account.

When it comes time to redeem your rewards, you can opt to redeem your WorldPoints for for cash back, travel, or gift cards. If you redeem them for travel, you can book directly through the Bank of America website and book any hotel or flight without worrying about blackout dates.

This card is best for business owners who want to rack up travel rewards without paying an annual fee. And since there is no cap on how many WorldPoints you can earn, the sky is the limit! Even better, this card comes with travel benefits that are perfect for the business owner who travels frequently. The short list of benefits includes lost luggage reimbursement, travel accident insurance, and auto rental collision coverage.

Bank of America® WorldPoints® Travel Rewards for Business Visa® Credit Card Highlights

Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express OPEN

If you’re in the market for a rewards card that offers free hotel stays around the world, the Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express OPEN might be the perfect card for your wallet. By signing up and earning points in the Starwood Preferred Guest program, you can earn free nights at any of the programs 1,200 properties in nearly 100 countries.

But this card isn’t just a hotel card. Because SPG points transfer to 33 different airlines, you can also use them to fly the friendly skies or traverse the country by train. Even better, you can use your points to book flights directly on 150 airlines with no blackout dates through SPG flights. And thanks to a recent update to this offer, you can secure all of the card’s benefits without paying foreign transaction fees.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express OPEN Highlights

Best Business Credit Cards for Premium Services

If your business has made it to the top, you may be searching for ways to make your business travel more comfortable instead of pinching pennies on day-to-day expenses. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN and The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN can serve you well because they are loaded with premium travel benefits that help you relax and travel in style.

The trade-off is cost: the Platinum Card® carries a $450 annual fee, while the Gold Rewards Card will set you back a mere $175 annually.

The king of business travel cards has traditionally been the Platinum Card® from American express due to its previously unmatched benefits for travel. However, recently it has been losing a bit of its luster. First, there is a $450 annual fee — almost five times what Ink Plus® Business Credit Card charges. Then, US Airways/American Airlines severed ties with AMEX for their airport lounge access. The Platinum Card® has scrambled to try and replace that value.

The Business Platinum Card® still excels with airport lounge access with over 700 participating lounges through Priority PassTM Select and Airport Club Access programs worldwide. You also get a 30% Airline Bonus. You can use Membership Rewards® Pay with Points for all or part of a flight with your selected qualifying airline, and you can get 30% of the points back. However, if you don’t travel much, none of this means anything to you.

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN Highlights

The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN

Frequent travelers will enjoy getting 3x the points and are chosen from 1 of 5 categories. Also, 2x the points are earned in the other 4 categories, with 3x and 2x applying on the first $100,000 in purchases in each of the 5 categories per year, 1x point per dollar thereafter. But, with a $175 annual fee, make sure to check your spending levels to make sure you will get enough value for this card.

Who Are Small Business Credit Cards Good For?

While technically anyone can apply for a business credit card, these cards are usually best for small businesses and individuals who fall into the following categories:

• Self-employed individuals who travel frequently for work and want to rack up rewards
• Freelancers who need help managing their cash flow
• Consultants who may travel or entertain clients
• Small business owners or freelancers who experience irregular cash flow throughout the month
• Doctors or dentists who are part of their own practice
• Financial advisors
• Salespeople who travel for work and want to maximize travel-related rewards
• Business owners who spend heavily on office supplies and equipment

People who fall in these categories all have certain expenses that can be separated and classified as “business” expenses. These type of expenses can include things like meals, required travel, advertising, business development, entertainment and office space.

Meanwhile, certain types of individuals are employed by an outside company, yet asked to front expenses like gas, meals and parking. Their company is then expected to reimburse them for their purchases, but this arrangement doesn’t preclude them from getting a business credit card. In fact, this may be the type of person who could benefit from a business card the most. By using a card for their business-related expenses, they keep their expenses on a separate tab without messing with their personal cash flow.

Here are some other ways almost anyone could benefit from having a business credit card:

• Individuals who spend a lot in specific categories, such as dining and gas, could choose a card like the SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express, which offers 3% cash back in one main category of your choosing
• Like we mentioned above, individuals who are expected to pay for work-related expenses then get reimbursed can use a business card for those expenses instead of paying for everything with their own money
• Salespeople who drive a lot could benefit from a card with increased earnings on gas purchases, such as the SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express or the Ink Cash® Business Credit Card
• Businesses who spend a lot of money at office supply stores have the opportunity to earn 5 points per $1 on up to $50,000 in office supply purchases each calendar year with the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card

How to Use a Business Credit Card to Manage Cash Flow

Whether you run a small business, lead a large corporation, or work as a self-employed freelancer, you will probably experience cash flow issues from time to time. Sometimes this can happen when you’re waiting on various payments from your customers, and other times it is simply the result of having to purchase equipment or supplies when money is tight.

This is where business cards can really come in handy. Here are a few examples of when having a business card could solve a cash flow problem instantly:

Real Life Example #1

A self-employed freelancer is waiting on several large payments from various clients, but they don’t expect to receive those funds until the end of the month. In the meantime, they need to purchase essential office and computer equipment from an office supply store. A business credit card would allow them to charge their equipment purchases temporarily until they received payment from their customers later in the month. Further, a card like the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card would even reward them with 5% cash back on their purchases.

Real Life Example #2

A small business owner with ten employees just finished a huge project for a client that they have yet to be paid for. Unfortunately, payroll is coming up, and they don’t have enough funds to keep operations running and pay their employees. If necessary, they could cover many of their business-related expenses with a business card for a limited time so they could pay their employees. Once they received payment from their client, they could pay their balance in full and “catch up.”

Real Life Example #3

A large business needs to purchase $50,000 worth of equipment that they will need to pay off over several months. Instead of taking out a loan, the business could leverage the credit line on their business credit card instead. While they would need to pay interest in this case, they could write it off as a business expense.

Strategies for Maximizing Total Rewards

Since I have been a freelance consultant for a while, and I am interested in maximizing my credit card rewards, I have made the decision to maximize the rewards I earn on both personal and business expenses. Although it can be tricky to keep it all separate, several strategies I employ make the process a whole lot easier.
Here’s what I do.

Overlap Categories

As we have seen, most rewards credit cards offer bonus rewards in certain categories of spending. I sought out a business credit card that earns more points in categories that my personal rewards credit card does not.

For me, Chase has the best combination of personal and business cards on the market right now. For business, I use my Chase Ink Bold®, which earns 5x points on cell phone service, internet service, landline service and office supply stores plush 2x points on gas and hotels. I pair that card with my personal Chase Sapphire Preferred®, which earns 2x points on travel and dining.

If I am out to eat with a client, a business expense, I use my personal Chase Sapphire Preferred® instead of my Chase Ink Bold® because I earn double points with the Sapphire Preferred®.

If I spend on an item outside of any of these bonus categories, I still earn 1 point per dollar, so I’m always earning.

Using the Same Rewards Platform

What I like about these two cards is that they are both on the same rewards platform so I am able to combine the points where I wouldn’t if I paired a Ink Plus® Business Credit Card with the personal rewards card from American Express.

Two added advantages of the Chase Ultimate Rewards platform are transferring points and redeeming points for travel. Both the Ink Plus® Business Credit Card and the Chase Sapphire Preferred® transfer points to frequent flier partners on a 1:1 basis AND both cards’ points are worth 20% more when redeemed for travel through the UR platform.

The result is that when you have the same rewards platform, you have added flexibility to combine and redeem points. If you have business and personal cards on different networks, you’re doing yourself a disservice.

What to Watch Out For

Because I combine my expenses, I have developed a great system of tracking, keeping notes and accounting for which expenses are business vs. personal. This approach is not for the faint of heart. You need to keep up on tracking these expenses at all times. If you fall behind it can be a nightmare to sift back through your calendar, credit card statements and memory to put the right pieces of the puzzle together.

How to Avoid These Problems

First, Jot from Chase Business is great. I can tag expenses and take pictures of receipts. The only tag I really use is “Business” to denote a business expense I want to transfer to my accounting software.

For my personal card I use Expensify. This is essentially the same thing as Jot, but you can use it for any expense whereas Jot only works with your Chase business credit card.

With Expensify, I take a picture of my receipt only for purchases I want to use as business expenses. Expensify saves each receipt and any information I manually input. I then transfer these expenses to my accounting software at the end of each week.

I use Quickbooks for all of my accounting, which lets me keep detailed notes on all my expenses. Once I transfer my expenses, I make sure to add each receipt picture to my digital tax files, so I can back up any expense easily if I ever face an audit.

Research The 25 Best Business Credit Cards

Below is a directory with the most popular business credit cards today. The directory is updated on a weekly basis to reflect any new changes, to add new cards, and to remove expired cards. The business credit cards directory is a highlights the most important features for each card. The directory is maintained and updated consistently to make sure it’s always current.

Business Credit Cards Directory

We analyzed many features of each business credit card to develop an overall rating for each card. The most heavily weighted features of a business credit card are Rewards, Sign Up Bonus, and Perks. I also considered the annual fees and foreign transaction fees associated with the cards.

Based on these features and other data, I came up with an Business Credit Card Rating for each card. This rating provides an objective basis to compare cards based on the features we decided are most valuable to the majority of businesses. Noting that what’s best for the majority isn’t necessarily best for each individual, we also included all of the information for every card so you can decide which card is best for you based on what you value most.

Sort, filter, or search for what matters most to find the best business credit card for you.

Rating Methodology

We used the features and data from the directory above to develop a rating for each of the best business credit cards available today. To help explain what we looked at, a more detailed outline is included below.

Sign Up Bonus

Sign Up Bonus is the amount of extra points the business card offers to a new cardholder. Business card Signup Bonuses are often high but only last for a certain period, as cards compete for new members. Sign up bonuses usually range between 25,000 and 40,000 points, but the best go to 50,000 and beyond (with special offers).

Sign Up Bonus carries a high importance rating because the bonus can tip the scales when comparing two similar cards. The hefty bonus can easily save you a bundle on an upcoming flight.

Don’t wait until the last minute to act on a sign up bonus, however. There are usually certain spending requirements you need to fulfill before you actually earn the points and can use them. It is common for credit card issuers to require you to spend $3,000 in the first three months you have the card before the sign up bonus kicks in. This means that you’re out of luck if you want to apply the bonus to your New York to LA flight next week.

Rewards

There are a few components within rewards that I looked at to select the top cards. I go into each of these in detail to explain how I graded each card on its rewards level.

Redemption Options

Redemption Options refers to all the ways you can use your accumulated points. Business credit cards usually have the best Redemption Options because they are tied to large travel rewards platforms like Chase Ultimate Rewards or American Express Membership Points. These programs give you flexibility for how you use points when compared to specific airline credit cards and frequent flyer programs. These portals let you book travel on their sites with most carriers and hotels. They also facilitate points redemption for merchandise, gift cards, and services.

Your points are always redeemable for travel through the portals, but these programs also give you the option to transfer your points to specific airline frequent flyer programs for another option.

Once transferred to a partner airline, you can move points to other airlines by taking advantage of airline alliance networks. The largest airline networks are oneworld and Star Alliance. Other airlines create their own partner networks and join forces with hotels and rental car companies to give the customer more options for redeeming points.

Rewards Rate

We also looked at rewards rate, which is the rate at which your purchases on the card earn you points. This is either expressed as “points per dollar spent” or, for cash back cards, it is expressed as a percentage. It is common to see an business cards earn up to five points per dollar in certain categories, and one point per dollar on all other purchases.

There are also flat rate rewards cards that reward you two points per dollar on all purchases instead of higher points on only limited categories.

Rewards Categories

Rewards Categories are the spending categories in which your credit card earns greater than 1% or one point per dollar. Rewards Categories play a factor because they can significantly boost your points, they also usually contain limitations. Spending in each category is often capped and any spending above that cap in the category will only earn one point per dollar.

Popular rewards categories are Internet/phone services, gas, hotels, and dining. Depending on how your specific spending breaks down, Rewards Categories can sway your decision between two comparable cards.

Again, some flat rate cards simply offer two points per dollar on all expenditures instead of using Rewards Categories.

Perks

Perks refers to other benefits or programs that make a business card valuable. Most perks are geared toward travel. Many of the best business cards offer airline credits, lounge access, or hotel upgrades. The very best business cards for Perks kick in free preferred status with hotel rewards programs, free Wi-Fi services, and premium roadside assistance packages.

The Bottom Line

If you’re self employed or your profession has certain characteristics of self employment, you can use one of the best business credit cards to earn more rewards on your business purchases and keep your personal and business expenses separate.

If you are like me and want to max out your rewards bottom line, you can employ some of my strategies above to get the most out of your cards, but beware of the added importance of diligent record keeping.