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Regardless of your business’s size, age, or industry, using a business credit card is the best practice for streamlining your company’s finances. With this magical piece of plastic, you’ll build your business credit score, seamlessly pay for your business’s everyday expenses, and reap your card’s perks. The best signup bonus business credit card will give you those perks right off the bat.
Obviously, signup bonuses are intended to incentivize consumers to sign up for a given credit card. And if a signup bonus is really generous, that incentive works—which also means consumers might end up signing up for a card that doesn’t work for them. Because in reality, a signup bonus is useless if you either can’t reach the spending threshold you need to earn your bonus, or if the signup bonus doesn’t benefit your business as much as a different set of rewards would.
To get the most out of the best signup bonus business credit cards, pick the card that truly best serves your business’s needs and preferences. Those needs and preferences might be a batch of rewards points, miles, cash, no annual fee, an extra saving cushion, or simply an easily reached spending threshold—it all depends on you.
We’ll show you the best business credit card signup bonus you can get based on how you spend, no matter what you’re seeking within your first few months of card ownership (and beyond).
If you want some flexibility in what you can do with your signup bonus, rewards points are a good way to go. Depending on your card, you can redeem your points for gift cards, travel, products, experiences, or even cash back. And for points lovers, the Chase Ink Business Preferred credit card offers the absolute best business credit card signup bonus on the market.
If you spend $5,000 in the first three months of owning your Ink Business Preferred card, you’ll earn 80,000 rewards points. True, $5,000 is the highest welcome-bonus spending threshold on this list. But when you really break it down, you only need to spend $1,667 every month to reach that signup bonus.
And if you choose to redeem your points through Chase Ultimate Rewards, those points are worth 25% more—and those 80,000 signup points are worth $1,000 toward travel bonuses. So, as you spend a little over $1,500 on purchases for your business every month, you might inadvertently end up earning a plane ticket or two.
Aside from the generous welcome offer, the Chase Ink Business Preferred Card also gives you 3x points for every dollar you spend on travel, shipping, advertising, and internet/cable/phone services up to $150,000. The only drawback to this card is that it carries a $95 annual fee.
Hotels, car rentals, airfare, dining out, airport snacks… as a frequent flyer, you know how quickly travel expenses rack up, and how mitigating even one of those costs can seriously unburden travel stress. Using a business credit card that earns you travel rewards is a pretty foolproof way to pay for constant business travel.
Look toward the Capital One Spark Miles for Business card, a standout for the travel perks it offers users both during and after its signup bonus period.
First off, for a limited time, if you spend $5,000 on any purchases during the first three months after opening an account, you’ll earn 50,000 miles. To translate, that’s $500 shaved off your travel expenses, after only three months of using this card. And if you spend $50,000 in the first six months with the card, you’ll earn another 150,000 miles.
The card’s $95 annual fee is also waived during your first year with Spark Miles, and overseas travelers will be happy to learn that Spark Miles charges no foreign transaction fees at all during the life of your card.
After your first three months, you’ll earn a flat rate of 2 miles back for every dollar you spend, with no limit to the amount of miles you can gain. That makes using this business credit card refreshingly straightforward: Every time you swipe your Spark Miles, you’re contributing toward your next plane ticket, plain and simple.
True to its name, the Chase Ink Business Cash credit card is an excellent choice for business owners who’d like to earn some extra cash while they spend (which, we can safely say, is pretty much every business owner).
If you spend $3,000 on this card within your first three months, you’ll get $500 back in hard cash from Chase. That’s a nice amount of capital you can use to pick up extra supplies, invest in new marketing tactics, or simply to deposit into your business bank account for an extra cash cushion.
On top of a generous cash back signup bonus, the Chase Ink Business Cash credit card comes with a 12-month 0% intro APR period—so, you could consider putting that $500 toward an even bigger purchase for your business, and take a whole year to pay it off without worrying about incurring added interest. Be aware that after those first 12 months, your APR will set in at a rate that will vary with the market Prime Rate. Check the issuer’s terms and conditions for the latest APR information.
This card offers a robust cash back program even after the welcome bonus period is up, too. The rewards program is tiered, so you’ll earn different amounts of cash back when you spend in different categories. For example, you’ll earn:
If you’re looking for a solid business card signup bonus, cash back, and flexibility for how you can redeem your rewards, the Bank of America® Business Advantage Cash Rewards Mastercard could be right for you. When you spend $3,000 within the first 90 days of card ownership, you’ll earn a $300 online statement credit.
After those first three months, you’ll continue to earn cash back as you use your card on a variety of business expenses. Plus, you can choose how you earn your cash back. For instance, you can earn:
Keep in mind, your 3% and 2% cash back categories are on up to $50,000 in combined purchases. After that, your purchases will continue to earn 1% cash back. You can spend safe in the knowledge that you’re easily earning cash back, no matter where or how you use your Business Advantage Cash Rewards card. When you’re ready to redeem your rewards, you have the option to deposit the cash back into your checking or savings account, receive a card statement credit, or have a check mailed to you. Plus, that stream of cash is never mitigated by an annual fee. You will also have a 0% intro APR period of nine billing cycles with this business credit card. Just remember to pay off your balance before the intro period expires and the APR adjusts based on the market Prime Rate and your creditworthiness.
If you’re interested in a welcome bonus that provides you with saving power rather than earning power, look for a business credit card with a long 0% intro APR period. Essentially, that introductory grace period lets you use your card like an interest-free small business loan, because you can carry a balance without getting hit with a heavy APR. (Just remember to keep your credit utilization rate down, so you don’t end up dinging your credit score.)
If that sounds like the best signup bonus credit card for your business, shoot for the American Express Blue Business Plus credit card. This card boasts a 12-month 0% intro APR period that applies to purchases as well as balance transfers, as long as you transfer your balance within the first 60 days of card ownership.
This is an introductory rate, though, so after your 12 interest-free months are up, a variable APR sets in at a rate depending on your creditworthiness. This rate will also vary with the market, so check the issuer’s terms and conditions for the latest APR information. What’s more, you’ll earn 2x points for every dollar you spend on your first $50,000 in purchases annually.
Plus, the Blue Business Plus card carries no annual fee. That’s another feature that makes this card a great option for cash-strapped small businesses.
It’s not hard to find a business credit card that loops no annual fee into the terms of its signup bonus. A little tougher, though, is finding a business credit card with a great signup bonus and no annual fee, ever. The Chase Ink Business Unlimited card fills that gap.
Business Unlimited’s generous welcome bonus includes:
Even when your welcome bonus is up, you don’t have to worry about an annual fee at all, nor do you need to worry about finagling your way through a complicated rewards system. No matter where, on what, or how much you spend on the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card, you’ll earn an even 1.5% cash back. You can also add employee cards to your account for free, so you can supercharge your cash back rewards potential without the added stress of added costs.
The Capital One Spark Miles for Business Card offers a very generous signup bonus, but for those who spend big on travel, the American Express Business Platinum Card is your best option. You’ll be able to earn up to 50,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $10,000 and an extra 50,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend an additional $15,000 on qualifying purchases on the Business Platinum Card, within your first three months of card membership.
You can redeem these 100,000 Membership Rewards points on everything from travel to merchandise, gift cards, charitable donations, and even Amazon purchases. What’s more, Amex also provides an ongoing offer of 5x Membership Rewards points for every dollar you spend on flights and prepaid hotels booked on AMEXtravel.com.
However, these great perks are going to cost you. the Amex Business Platinum Card’s annual fee is $595 a year. It’s also important to keep in mind that this is a charge card, meaning you can’t carry a balance from month to month.
The Leverage Visa Signature Card is a business credit card from U.S. Bank that allows you to earn rewards points quickly. When you sign up, U.S. Bank will offer you an extra bonus point for every dollar you spend within your first 365 days with the card. This bonus will apply for up to 100,000 bonus points. What’s more, U.S. Bank will also waive this card’s $95 annual fee for your first year as a cardholder.
So if you take out this card and plan to spend a lot on it in your first year, the Leverage Visa Signature Card will give you a lot of bang for your buck. The ongoing rewards are also quite generous: You’ll automatically earn 2x rewards points for your top two spending categories every month. You’ll also earn 1x rewards for all other spending you do outside of your top two categories.
The Marriott Bonvoy Card is really only a good signup bonus card if you stay at Marriott hotels. Its welcome offer is generous: Earn 75,000 bonus points after you use your new card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first three months of card membership.
What’s more attractive, however, is the ongoing rewards. You’ll earn 6x points for every dollar spent at Marriott Bonvoy hotels; 4x points on restaurants, gas, phone services, and shipping; and 2x points on everything else. Note that you do have to pay a $125 annual fee with this card, too.
So, while this card does offer a nice signup bonus, it’s really only a good option if you often stay at Marriott hotels.
What counts as the “best” signup bonus business credit card is ultimately at the discretion of the cardholders themselves. First off, a signup bonus is only valuable if you can reach the spending limit necessary for unlocking the rewards, whether it’s points or miles or cash back.
And even if you can reach that threshold, you need to make sure that your business will best benefit from whatever that bonus entails. If you don’t often travel, for instance, then you’re better off not going for a card that rewards you in miles.
Rather, take a look at what you and your business need right now: Is it a bit of extra capital to drop into your bank account? Is it a card whose annual fee doesn’t cut into your cash flow? From there, you can find a card whose signup bonus helps you reach that goal fast.
Wading through all the business credit cards on the market can take a lot of time, though (not to mention the extra time it takes to read the fine print). Instead, scan over this list to find the card that truly affords your business with the best signup bonus:
A business credit card is more than the sum of its signup bonus—that signup bonus period doesn’t last forever. Ultimately, you should choose your business credit card based on what the card’s key evergreen features can offer you and your business for years to come. Really, a great signup bonus should just be an added bonus.