Best business credit cards offers of January 2022

February 26, 2021 By Meghan Hunter

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Using business credit cards for your expenses makes sense, if for no other reason than to separate your business and personal expenses. But when you add in the fact that there so many different types of business rewards credit cards you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t have one. Whether your small business is a side gig (like running an Airbnb, freelancing or driving for Uber or Lyft) or a full-time occupation, you can use business travel credit cards to save for vacation or earn cash back to reinvest in your business.

Wondering which is the best business credit card for you? We’ve examined all the top offers and we’ll help you choose the best small business credit card for your needs. Some have no annual fee; others are loaded with top-tier perks.

Summary of the best business cards of January

Best Overall

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Read our review
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
Apply Now

Annual fee

$95

Welcome offer

Earn 100k bonus points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $1,000 cash back or $1,250 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards®

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Best for Southwest points

Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card

Read our review
Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card
Apply Now

Annual fee

$199

Welcome offer

Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.

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Best Bonus Multipliers

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

Read our review
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
Apply Now

Annual fee

$0

Welcome offer

Earn $750 bonus cash back after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening

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Best for everyday spend

Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card

Read our review
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Apply Now

Annual fee

$0

Welcome offer

Earn $750 bonus cash back after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening

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Best for travel/airport lounge access

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

Read our review
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Apply Now See Rates & Fees
Terms Apply

Annual fee

$695

Welcome offer

Welcome Offer: Earn 120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with your Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.

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Compare the best credit cards for small businesses

Credit CardAnnual FeeWelcome BonusBonus Value (based on our valuations)Top Perk
Ink Business Preferred Credit Card$95100,000 bonus points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening $1,700Cell phone protection
Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card$19980,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening $1,200Immediately earn the Southwest Companion Pass after meeting minimum requirements and earning the sign-up bonus
Ink Business Cash Credit Card$0$750 bonus cash back (75,000 bonus points) after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.$1,275 (based on 75,000 points)Primary rental car insurance (when renting for business purposes)
Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card$0$750 bonus cash back (75,000 bonus points) after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.$1,275 (based on 75,000 points)1.5% cash back on every purchase with no yearly limits.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express$695 see rates and fees120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with your Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership. $2,160
35% points rebate when redeeming points for first or business class flights through Amex Travel (up to 500,000 points per calendar year)
Capital One Spark Miles for Business$95, waived the first year50,000 Spark miles after spending $4,500 on purchases within the first three months of account opening$500up to $100 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck when you use your Spark Miles card
Alaska Airlines Visa® Business credit card$7540,000 Alaska Airlines miles after spending $2,000 on purchases in the first 90 days of opening the account$600One free checked bag for you and up to six companions on the same reservation

The information for the Capital One Spark Miles has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

As long as your small business is aiming to make a profit, put your expenses on a business credit card to earn travel miles and cash back. (Photo courtesy of Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock.)

Deep dive on the best credit cards for businesses

Chase Ink Business Preferred

With this card, you’ll earn a whopping 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. This is a fantastic welcome bonus and a big reason why the Chase Ink Business Preferred is a top choice. If you like cash, the 100,000-point bonus offer is worth $ $1,250 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Why this card is the best overall business card

We selected the Chase Ink Business Preferred as our best overall small business credit card because, aside from the huge intro bonus, it also has generous spending bonus categories and great built-in insurances. Million Mile Secrets staff and readers alike have saved by using perks like the card’s trip delay coverage, rental car insurance and cellphone insurance.

Why we like this card

You can’t go wrong with this card. In the absolute worst case, you earn the intro bonus and take home $1,000 minus the annual fee, but it’s easy to get much more value by transferring your points to Chase’s travel partners.

When you book through the Chase Travel Portal (it looks and works just like Expedia or Travelocity) your Chase Ink Business Preferred makes your Chase Ultimate Rewards points worth 25% more (1.25 cents each instead of 1 cent each). So the bonus gets you $1,000 worth of airfare, hotel stays, car rentals and more.

(Photo by Isabelle Raphael)

Or you could move the points you earn to a Chase transfer partner for even more value. For example, your 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points can become 100,000 United Airlines miles or 100,000 Hyatt points.

The card also comes with the coverages like cell phone Insurance, extended warranty, rental car insurance, baggage and lost luggage coverage, and more.

In addition, you won’t have to worry about foreign transaction fees and it’s free to add employee cards to your account. And the annual fee is only $95 .

The Chase Ink Business Preferred card earns three Chase Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent on travel, shipping purchases, internet, cable and phone services, and advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines (up to a maximum of $150,000 in combined purchases each account anniversary year). You’ll also earn 1 Chase Ultimate Rewards point per dollar on all other purchases.

Who is this card best for

The Ink Business Preferred is best for anyone with a small business who’s looking to earn a big welcome bonus. And who spends a lot in categories like travel, shipping, and advertising. Plus, Chase business cards don’t appear on your personal credit report, so they don’t count toward your Chase 5/24 limit. That means opening the Chase Ink Business Preferred won’t limit you from being approved for other Chase credit cards in the future.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card

The Southwest Performance Business credit card has a bonus of 80,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.

Why this card is best for Southwest points

This is the Southwest business card with the biggest bonus at the moment. A Southwest point’s value is about 1.4 cents for flights (based on our valuations), so this bonus is worth around $1,200 in Southwest airfare — and potentially almost double that if you have the Southwest Companion Pass. The good news is that the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business credit card bonus counts toward earning a companion pass.

It’s also the best card for ongoing spending and earning, because you’ll get 4x points on Southwest Airlines purchases, 3x points Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners; 2x points on rideshare, 2x points on social media and search advertising purchases, internet, cable and phone service purchases, and 1x Southwest points on all other purchases.

In addition, every year you’ll get 9,000 bonus Southwest points on the anniversary of cardmembership (worth ~$135 in Southwest flights).

Why we like this card

This card has a $199 annual fee, the highest annual fee of all the Southwest cards, but if you make the most of the perks (9,000 points each card anniversary, four upgraded boardings, inflight Wi-Fi credits and Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit), you’ll come out way ahead.

Using Southwest points is incredibly easy. There’s no Southwest award chart; instead, if there’s a seat for sale, you can book it with points. The price of an award flight is tied to the cost of a paid ticket, so if there’s a Southwest fare sale, you’ll need fewer points.

This card is also loaded with benefits and perks like four upgraded boardings per year (when available), up to 365 $8 Wi-Fi credits per year, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit (worth up to $100), and 1,500 tier-qualifying points after every $10,000 in purchases. Plus if you use it overseas you won’t pay any foreign transaction fees.

Who is this card best for

It’s worth a hard look for anyone who flies Southwest because you only need to earn 125,000 qualifying Southwest points in a calendar year to get the coveted Southwest Companion Pass – and this bonus will get you most of the way there.

You can only have one personal Southwest credit card at any time. But you can have a business Southwest card and a personal Southwest card at the same time. So if you earn the intro bonus on both cards, you’re likely to have earned enough points for a Southwest Companion Pass.

Ink Business Cash Credit Card

With the Ink Business Cash credit card, you’ll earn $750 bonus cash back after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Earning $750 in cash from a business credit card with no annual fee is a fantastic deal.

Why this card is best for bonus multipliers

The Ink Business Cash card also has excellent bonus spending categories. You’ll earn 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on phone, internet and cable TV services each account anniversary year. In addition, you’ll get 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year, and 1% cash back on all other purchases.

I’ve had this card for many years. I rock it at office supply stores and to pay my internet and cable bills. Whenever I have a business meal, I use it to earn double points. Often business beer and cocktails earn 2x points too, because many bars and lounges code as restaurants.

Why we like this card

I love this card. You will too. It costs nothing to own and earns 5% back on your phone, internet and cable bill. It does, however, charge foreign transaction fees, which is why I use my Chase Sapphire Preferred when I travel abroad.

This card also comes with many of the same benefits as the Chase Ink Business Preferred, like primary rental car insurance (when renting for business purposes), extended warranty protection and delayed baggage and lost luggage protection. When I bought my semi-fancy office chair at Staples with my Ink Cash (to earn 5x points), I chuckled when they tried to sell me their extended warranty.

Who is this card best for

This card is best for anyone looking for a no annual fee business card that’ll earn you a steady flow of Chase Ultimate Rewards points. It’s an especially powerful card if you pair it with the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Ink Business Preferred because you can pool your Chase points onto one of those cards and then transfer them to any of Chase’s transfer partners.

If you only have the Chase Ink Business Cash credit card, all the points you earn are worth one cent each and you can redeem them for statement credit, gift cards or travel. But if you also have the Chase Ink Business Preferred (yes, you can have multiple Chase Ink cards), the Sapphire Preferred or the Sapphire Reserve, you have powered up from small Mario to Super Mario because you can move the Chase Ultimate Rewards points you earn with the Ink Cash to one of those cards. And from there you have access to all the great travel partners I talked about in the Chase Ink Business Preferred section.

Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card

With the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card, you can earn a $750 bonus cash back after you spend $7,500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Again, that is a great intro bonus for a credit card with no annual fee.

Why this card is best for everyday spend

This is the perfect card for earning those coveted Chase Ultimate Rewards points for non-bonus business spending without paying an annual fee. There are very few business owners who wouldn’t benefit from having this card because they can earn 50% more rewards (1.5% back on everything) for all of the non-bonus spending, which for some businesses can be the majority of expenses.

Why we like this card

Just like with the Ink Business Cash card, if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred or Ink Business Preferred, you can pool your points onto one of those cards and then transfer them to any of Chase’s travel partners.

The Chase Ink Business Unlimited card is similar to the Chase Ink Business Cash card. The biggest difference is that it doesn’t have any bonus categories. Instead, you’ll earn 1.5% cash back (1.5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points) on every purchase with no yearly limits.

Who is this card best for

This is the no-annual-fee, cash-back business credit card I recommend most to my friends and family who have small businesses. You’ll be earning a higher cash-back rate on every purchase, regardless of how much you spend per year and most businesses have lots of large expenses that don’t fall into narrowly defined bonus categories.

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

You’ll earn the American Express Business Platinum card’s 120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with your Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.

Why this card is best for travel and airport lounge access

This is a platinum card that is actually worthy of the name for this small business card. It is always a strong pick, especially for frequent travelers, because it is easy to offset the Amex Business Platinum’s annual fee with the welcome bonus, perks and benefits.

If you can take full advantage of the many statement credits and lounge access, it can be easy to justify the annual fee.

Perhaps the best travel perk of this card is the top-of-the-line airport lounge access. You’ll have access to 1,400 Priority Pass lounges around the world and you can visit Delta SkyClub lounges (when you’re travel with Delta), Airspace lounges, Escapes lounge, Plaza Premium lounge and the posh American Express Centurion Lounges. This is the most extensive network of airport lounges you can access with any credit card. Enrollment required for select benefits.

Why we like this card

One extremely valuable benefit that is unique to the Business Platinum is the 35% points rebate you get on all Pay with Points bookings in first class or business class, or any other flights (including coach) booked with your selected airline through the Amex travel portal using Pay With Points (up to 500,000 points per calendar year).

The card is also loaded with valuable statement credits.  You get up to $200 in credits per calendar year for eligible airline incidentals with your selected airline (luggage fees, inflight food and drink, etc.) and an annual Dell credit for U.S. purchases (up to $200 from January to June; up to $200 from July to December). That’s in addition to a credit of up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fees. Enrollment required for select benefits.

This card gets you Gold Hilton status and Gold Marriott Bonvoy Elite status. You can also enroll for rental car status with Avis, National Car Rental and Hertz. Enrollment required for select benefits.

Who is this card best for

The Business Platinum card is a good option for large business purchases and travel spending. It earns 1.5x Amex Membership Rewards points on single purchases of $5,000 or more and on eligible key business categories (on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year) and 5x Amex Membership Rewards points when you book airfare or prepaid hotels through the Amex travel site.

(Photo by Isabelle Raphael)

To get the most value from your rewards points you’ll want to transfer your Amex Membership Rewards points to travel partners. To redeem them without having to worry about award charts and blackout dates, take advantage of Amex’s Pay With Points feature. And if you’re looking to keep things super-simple (though we don’t recommend this route), you can use your points for gift cards through Amex’s portal.

The Amex Business Platinum annual fee is $695 and it is not waived for the first year (see rates and fees).

Capital One Spark Miles for Business

With the Capital One Spark Miles business card, you’ll earn 50,000 miles after you spend $4,500 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.

Why this card is best for earning transferable miles

You can transfer Spark Miles at a decent ratio (1:1 ratio for Singapore Airlines and Emirates). Using credit card rewards to fly in international business class is one of the best ways to maximize the value you get for your miles and you won’t find a better way to stock up on miles than with this offer.

You can transfer Capital One miles to the Accor Live Limitless hotel rewards program at a 2:1 ratio. This unlocks the ability to transfer your miles to three airlines that aren’t direct partners with Capital One (Finnair, Iberia and Virgin Australia) at a 2:1 ratio because those airlines are 1:1 transfer partners with Accor.

Why we like this card

Every purchase you make with the Capital One Spark Miles card earns 2 miles per dollar. So you always know how much you’re getting regardless of what you’re purchasing. On top of that, you can now earn five Spark miles per dollar on hotel and rental car purchases made through the Capital One Travel site.

The card has a $95 annual fee but it is waived the first year.

Who is this card best for

This card is for any business owner looking to earn transferrable rewards, especially those looking for higher-end travel.

You can transfer Spark miles to 15+ different airline and hotel partners. For most of the partners, the transfer ratio is 1:1 (except for Accor), which transfer at 2:1). Capital One has partnered with programs like Flying Blue (Air France and KLM), Air Canada and Avianca Airlines, which are good options for booking award flights to Europe.

For example, Avianca only charges 63,000 miles for one-way business-class flights to Europe. So with 225,000 Avianca miles, you could book three one-way business-class flights to Europe with partners like SWISS. Booking those same three tickets could easily cost $7,000-$10,000 if you paid cash — that’s the power of being able to transfer miles to airlines. If you need help transferring your miles, read our guide on Capital One transfer partners.

This card also comes with a TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fee credit (worth up to $100).

Alaska Airlines Visa® Business credit card

With the Alaska Airlines Business credit card you’ll earn 40,000 Alaska Airlines miles, plus a Companion Fare from $121 ($99 fare, plus taxes and fees from $22) after you make $2,000 in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account.

Why this card is best for Alaska Airlines miles

The intro bonus is unlikely to go higher than it is now. In the past, it’s been as low as 30,000 miles as a standard offer. If you use the companion ticket and check bags on a trip or two, you’ll come out way ahead. Plus if you fly Alaska Airlines regularly, you’ll earn 3x miles on ticket purchases, which is an easy way to earn more miles.

Alaska Airlines is unique in that it is not part of an airline alliance, but the domestic routes and bevy of excellent partnerships make Alaskan airline miles worth collecting.

Why we like this card

Domestic award flights start at just 7,500 Alaska Airlines miles, but you’re not limited to flying on Alaska Airlines. They have partnerships with over a dozen international airlines, like Fiji Airways, Korean Air, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines and Qantas. The award chart is surprisingly generous, though it varies by partner airline.

This welcome offer is as high as we’ve ever seen it. Plus, you’ll earn 3x Alaska Airlines miles on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases and 1x miles on everything else.

Who is this card best for

If you’re a fan of Alaska miles and looking for a small business card, this is the one for you. When it’s time to use your miles, simply head to the Alaska Airlines website. There you can book all partner awards online with the exception of Cathay Pacific and LATAM.

In addition, the Alaska Airlines Business card also comes with an annual Companion Fare each year you renew your card. With that fare, you’ll get to bring a companion along on a domestic economy flight (paid for with cash) for only $99 + taxes and fees. This is an especially good deal for flights to Hawaii or other markets that tend to have seasonal price jumps. You’ll also get a free checked bag on Alaska Airlines for yourself and up to six travel companions. Those are great perks for a card with a very manageable $75 annual fee.

Who qualifies for business credit cards?

Qualifying for a business credit card might be easier than you realize. You don’t need to own a multimillion-dollar corporation. In fact, you don’t even need to be officially registered as a business with your local or state government or the IRS to qualify for the best small-business credit card offers. You can apply for a business credit card as a sole proprietor by using your Social Security number on the application. Team members Meghan and Jasmin have received cards this way. At the same time, you’ll have to show the bank that you’re operating a for-profit venture. Anything you do as an independent contractor may count, especially if you get a 1099 form for it. For step-by-step instructions, check out our guides to completing a Chase business card application, Amex business card application, Citi business card application and Capital One business card application.

The good news is most banks do not have any minimum business-income requirements for opening business credit cards. So you’re eligible to apply for business credit cards even if you don’t make deposits for your business at the bank that issues the card.

It’s awesome to see business owners travel first class, stay in luxurious hotels or earn lots of cash using our tips and tricks. I loved the story of our reader Darren who owns a property management company. He treated his family of six to trips to Greece, Egypt, London, Montreal and New York City using miles – and they flew in business class. Nice.

How we select the best small business credit card offers

The bonus offer

Credit card companies make money every time you use their card and when you pay them interest (so pay those bills on time!). To entice you to become their customer, they give you an opportunity to earn lots of miles or cash when you first open the new card. Some bonuses are very generous, but some are not. We deleted all the cheapskate bonuses and kept only the cards with big offers.

Minimum spending requirement

So what’s the “catch” to a bonus offer? You have to spend a certain amount on your new card within a certain timeframe. Smaller spending requirements that make it easier for you to unlock the bonus make a card offer better. At Million Mile Secrets we want you to earn that bonus.

Ongoing bonus opportunities

We prefer business credit cards that keep rewarding you even after you earn the initial big intro bonus.

Other special benefits

Airport lounges, no foreign transaction fees, TSA PreCheck … these perks and others can save you money and time.

Having a small-business card is also a terrific way to stay organized because you can separate personal and business expenses, which makes it easier to track your spending.

We ranked the best business credit cards by category to help you decide which is a good fit for your situation.

For rates and fees of the Amex Business Platinum card, click here.

Meghan Hunter

Contributor

Meghan Hunter is an editor for Million Mile Secrets. She covers points, miles, credit cards, airlines, hotels and general travel. Her work has also appeared in The Points Guy.

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Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)

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