Best Business Credit Cards: What’s Hot, What’s Not

A couple of years ago, I was in the market for a business credit card, so I applied for an American Express card that was offering a $250 signup bonus (sadly, that offer has long since expired). While this card was perfectly serviceable, I occasionally run into places that wouldn’t accept AmEx, and I also wasn’t crazy about the $125 annual. I ultimately cancelled it.

After that, I applied for a Discover Business card. I was once again enticed by a generous signup bonus, but I ultimately ran into similar problems regarding card acceptance. There are a few key places around town that won’t accept anything but Visa or MasterCard. Thus, I’m once again in the market for a business credit card.

Features of the ideal business credit card

My needs are simple. I want a cheap, widely accepted card — thus, I’m looking for a Visa or MasterCard. I also don’t carry a balance, so the APR is a non-issue. I’m more interested the annual fee (or lack thereof). Rewards are great, but my business expenses aren’t actually that high, so they’re not a huge deal.

The best business credit card — for me

As of right now, the most attractive business credit card out there for my needs appears to be the new AT&T Universal Business Rewards credit card from Citi. Most importantly, this is a Visa card and there’s no annual fee. The rewards also match up fairly well with my relatively meager spending.

For example, I’ll get 5 ThankYou points for every dollar spend on AT&T products/services (currently DSL and phone; also considering an iPhone) as well as 3 ThankYou points per dollar spent at gas stations, office supply stores, and on professional services (like legal and accounting). All other purchases qualify for one point per dollar spent. While points aren’t quite as good as cash, I can trade them in for gift cards at stores that we frequent.

Oh, and for those that are looking for a bit of interest-free financing, there’s a six month introductory period with 0% APR on purchases.

Published on April 24th, 2009 - 3 Comments
Filed under: Credit Cards, Self Employment
email this article email this article - bookmark it

About the author: Nickel is the founder and editor-in-chief of this site. He's a thirty-something family man who has been writing about personal finance since 2005, and guess what? He's on Twitter!

Related articles...

» Establishing Credit With a New Taxpayer Identification Number
» Applying for a Business Credit Card
» The Convenience of Using a Debit Card
» AmEx Credit Card Signup Bonus Disappearing Soon
» Signup Bonuses for Business Credit Cards (Anyone can Apply)
» What’s Your Favorite Credit Card?
» The Best Cash Back Reward Credit Cards for Buying Gas
» Using Credit Cards to Post Bail

Was this article useful? Please sign up to receive our content via e-mail:

You will receive only the daily updates, and can unsubscribe at anytime.

3 Responses to “Best Business Credit Cards: What’s Hot, What’s Not”

  1. 1
    Marian Says:

    Thanks, very timely info. We are cancelling our Capital One business credit card because of their completely frustrating customer service, I can’t even call it service. Their entire approach seems designed to drive the customer into head-banging madness. I hung up on them today after being transferred to 4 different “account specialists” who could not figure out how to modify the account to give my business partner/husband/financial manager (he is all of these) on-line access without me calling in to verify his worthiness each time. This is after many other head-banging phone sessions over the past couple of years, and after several hour-long phone sessions where I was assured that he now had unlimited access to our business account. The communication and understanding of most of their customer support staff are limited. We are in the market for a new business cc provider. On the positive side, Capital One did an excellent job of catching a hacker into our account several years ago. If they could fix their customer service, we would gladly stay with them.

  2. 2
    Greg / Wise Bread Says:

    Did you and Jim coordinate this? ;) I had a sense of deja vu when I saw this post’s title in my feed reader.

    Looks like you guys agree on the AT&T card. Great minds think alike! :)

  3. 3
    DDFD at DivorcedDadFrugalDad Says:

    It seems that Visa and MC rule the world as far as acceptability . . .

Leave a Reply

  1. < $10,000
 

Signup for free Newsletter

Disclaimer...

This website may receive financial compensation from the companies mentioned on its pages. The terms of third-party offers referenced on this website are also subject to change without notice. While we strive to maintain timely and accurate information, offer details may be out of date. Visitors should thus verify the terms of any such offers prior to participating in them. Please see our terms of service for additional details.