Updated December 2023. Do you have small business income or work as an independent contractor? Freelance, Uber/Lyft, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Airbnb? A small business credit card separates your personal and business expenses and can build up your business credit profile. If you are not a corporation or LLC, you can apply as a sole proprietorship, with your name as the business name and your Social Security number as the Tax ID number. These are the top 10 credit card offers that I would personally apply for right now (or have already). Recent changes:
Added Spark Cash Select $750, Hilton 130k, AA 75k, Bonvoy 3FreeNights, Ink Unlimited 90k No AF, Ink Cash $900 No AF, Venture X 150k.
Removed United 75k, JetBlue 75k, AmEx Gold 70k, Hyatt 75k, AA 70k, Southwest Premier 120k
This is a companion post to my Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers for personal cards. Notice that small business bonuses are on average even higher than those on consumer cards.
Capital One Venture X Business Card
- 150,000 miles (worth $1,500 towards travel, or transferrable to miles) after $30,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. See link for details.
- $300 annual travel credit. Get up to $300 in statement credits when booking through Capital One Travel.
- Additional 10,000 bonus miles (equal to $100 towards travel) every year, starting on your first anniversary.
- Capital One Lounges, Priority Pass(TM) and Plaza Premium Group lounges access.
- Up to $100 credit towards TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee.
- $395 annual fee.
Chase Ink Business Unlimited Card
- $900 bonus cash back (90,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. Limited-time offer. See link for details.
- Flat 1.5% cash back on all purchases with no limit.
- No annual fee.
- Subject to 5/24 rule.*
Capital One Spark Cash Select Business Card
- $750 bonus after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
- Unlimited 1.5% cash back spent on all purchases. with no limit.
- No annual fee.
- $900 bonus cash back (90,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. Limited-time offer. See link for details.
- 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year.
- No annual fee.
- Subject to 5/24 rule.*
Chase Ink Business Preferred Card
- 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points (worth $1,000 straight cash back or $1,250 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards®) after $8,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
- 3X points on the first $150,000 spent on travel, shipping purchases, internet/cable/phone services, and advertising purchases with social media sites and search engines.
- Primary rental car coverage when renting for business purposes.
- $95 annual fee.
- Subject to 5/24 rule.*
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
- 3 Free Night Awards (Worth Up To 150K Total Marriott Bonvoy Points) after $6,000 in eligible purchases within first 6 months. Redemption level up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points for each bonus Free Night Award. See link for details.
- Additional Free Night Award upon card anniversary (worth up to 35,000 Bonvoy points). Earn another additional Free Night Award after spending $60K in purchases on your Card in a calendar year.
- Annual fee is $125.
- 60,000 Hyatt points after $5,000 in purchases in first 3 months.
- Up to $100 in Hyatt statement credits – spend $50 or more at any Hyatt property and earn $50 statement credits up to two times each anniversary year.
- $199 annual fee.
- Subject to 5/24 rule.
Business Platinum® Card from American Express
- 120,000 Membership Rewards points after $15,000 on eligible purchases in the first 3 months.
- HUGE list of additional perks including $400 Dell, $360 Indeed, $150 Adobe, $120 wireless phone annual credits, $200 annual airline fee credit, $189 CLEAR credit, $100 TSA/Global Entry credit, Centurion airport lounge access, and more. See link for details.
- $695 annual fee.
American Express® Business Gold Card
- 70,000 Membership Rewards points after $10,000 in eligible purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
- $240 Annual Flexible Business Credit. Earn up to $20 in statement credits monthly after you use the Business Gold Card for eligible U.S. purchases at FedEx, Grubhub, and Office Supply Stores.
- $155 Annual Walmart+ Credit. Get $12.95 back in statement credits each month when you pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) with your Business Gold Card.
- $295 annual fee. ($375 if application is received on or after 2/1/24)
- 50,000 bonus United miles after $5,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
- Free first checked bag for both you and a companion (a savings of up to $140 per roundtrip).
- 5,000-mile “better together” bonus each anniversary when you have both the United(SM) Business Card and personal Chase United credit card.
- Primary rental car coverage when renting for business purposes.
- $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99.
- Subject to 5/24 rule.*
Hawaiian Airlines Business MasterCard
- 70,000 Hawaiian miles. 60,000 miles after $2,000 in purchases in first 90 days. 10,000 miles after a qualifying purchase is made on an employee card. See link for details.
- Receive a one-time 50% off companion discount for roundtrip coach travel between Hawaii and The Mainland on Hawaiian Airlines.
- $99 annual fee.
CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard
- 75,000 American Airlines miles after $6,000 in purchases in first the 6 months. See link for details.
- First checked bag free on domestic AA flights for you and up to 4 companions ($60 value per roundtrip, per person).
- $0 annual fee for the first year, then $99.
Bank of America Business Advantage Cash Rewards Card
- $500 statement credit after $5,000 in purchases in the first 90 days. See link for details.
- 3% cash back on your choice of six categories. 2% cash back on dining and unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases. The 3% and 2% cash back applies to the first $50,000 in combined category/dining purchases each calendar year, 1% thereafter.
- No annual fee.
US Bank Business Leverage Card
- 75,000 bonus points after $7,500 in purchases (on the Account Owner’s Card only) in first the 4 months. 75,000 bonus points can be redeemed for $750 in cash back. See link for details.
- Availability may be restricted to certain states.
- $0 annual fee for the first year, then $95.
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
- 130,000 Hilton Honors points after $3,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
- Earn a Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend $15,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Earn another Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend an additional $45,000 in purchases on your Card in the same calendar year.
- $95 annual fee.
- 60,000 TrueBlue points 50,000 points after $4,000 in purchases in first 90 days. Plus, earn 10,000 bonus points when a purchase is made on an employee card in the first 90 days. See link for details.
- First checked bag free for the primary cardmember and up to 3 companions when tickets are purchased with your JetBlue Plus Card.
- $99 annual fee.
Alaska Airlines Visa Business Card (Bank of America)
- 50,000 Alaska miles + Companion Fare Voucher after $3,000 in purchase within 90 days. See link for details.
- Companion fare voucher is “Buy one ticket, get one for $122” ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from just $23).
- Free checked bag on Alaska flights for you and up to six other passengers on the same reservation (worth $60 roundtrip per person).
- $70 annual fee for company, plus $25 per card.
* Note: Certain Chase cards have a “5/24 rule” which is an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards on your credit report within the past 2 years. This rule applies on a per-person basis, so if you are new, you might want to start with those Chase cards.
