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You don’t need to worry about paying a high annual fee to open a small-business credit card that’s worthwhile. There’s a wide selection of no-annual-fee business cards to choose from, from options that earn cash back to flexible rewards points, and some even offer substantial benefits and an introductory 0% APR that can help you save money.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
Best for earning travel points: The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
Best for earning cash back: American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
Best for maximizing Chase points: Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Best for business expenses like office supplies and internet: Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
Best for rewards plus a generous intro 0% APR: U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard®
Best ultra-long introductory APR offer: U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card
Best for customizing rewards: Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card
Best for fair credit: Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business
Compare the best no-annual-fee business credit cards
Amex Blue Business Plus
Why the Amex Blue Business Plus card is worth it: The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express currently offers a solid welcome bonus offer and earns valuable Amex Membership Rewards points, which you can redeem for flights, hotels, and more through the Amex travel portal or transfer to airline and hotel partners.
Welcome bonus offer: Earn The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express.
The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express allows you to earn 2x points on the first $50,000 you spend each calendar year (1x points after). The card also comes with a The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (then a The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express APR).
You’ll typically get the most value when you transfer points to Amex transfer partners (like Delta SkyMiles, Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways Executive Club, Marriot Bonvoy, and Hilton Honors). You can also redeem points through American Express Travel to book airfare, hotels, and rental cars. Other redemption options include gift cards, statement credits, merchandise, and food delivery.
You’ll receive additional card benefits such as purchase protection, extended warranty, car rental loss and damage insurance, dispute resolution, expanded buying power, access to the Global Assist Hotline, and Amex Offers**.
Review: Amex Blue Business Plus card review
Amex Blue Business Cash
Why the Amex Blue Business Cash card is worth it: The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card earns cardholders straightforward cash-back on all eligible purchases. Plus, you can earn a solid welcome bonus offer and take advantage of a good introductory 0% APR.
If you’re looking to redeem your rewards as statement credits to lower your monthly expenses, you should definitely consider the American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card. If not, there are plenty of other no-annual-fee cards out there that have more flexible redemption options.
Welcome bonus offer: Earn American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card earns 2% cash back on all eligible purchases up to $50,000 per year, then 1% cash back (cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars). What makes the American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card unique is that it automatically redeems cash back as statement credits. Statement credits should appear in your next billing cycle and lower the overall cost of your bill, as long as you pay your monthly minimum payment.
The card offers a American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card (then a American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card APR). You’ll also receive other benefits such as car rental loss and damage insurance, access to the Global Assist Hotline, extended warranty, purchase protection, and Amex Offers**.
Review: Amex Blue Business Cash review
Chase Ink Business Unlimited
Why the Chase Ink Business Unlimited is worth it: The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card earns cash back (in the form of points) on all purchases with no cap, comes with an impressive welcome bonus offer, and has flexible redemption options. You’ll also receive free employee cards, as well as travel and purchase protection benefits.
However, the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card isn’t the only card out there offering these perks. The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card offers the same benefits with the potential to earn more rewards, but only in certain categories.
Welcome bonus offer: Earn Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card.
The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card earns a straightforward 1.5% cash back (1.5 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points per dollar) on all purchases, with no cap. It has one of the most generous welcome bonus offers of any no-annual-fee card, and you’ll receive a Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (then a Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card APR).
You can redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points for cash, gift cards, statement credits, or travel booked through Chase. Plus, if you have other annual-fee Chase cards (like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card), you can combine your points in one of those accounts and unlock more redemption options, including transferring points to Chase’s airline and hotel partners.
The card comes with solid benefits like car rental insurance, travel and emergency assistance services, roadside dispatch, purchase protection, and extended warranty.
Review: Chase Ink Business Unlimited card review
Chase Ink Cash
Why the Chase Ink Business Cash card is worth it: The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is a great option for businesses looking to maximize their spending at office supply stores, internet, cable, restaurants, and more. It has a great welcome bonus offer and a decent intro APR deal. The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card also has flexible redemption options and travel and purchase benefits.
If your highest expenses aren’t at office supply stores — or on any of the other select spending categories — then you’re better off with a different no-annual-fee business card. Also, if your yearly business expenses easily exceed a $25,000 cap on select spending categories, then you should definitely consider a card with a higher limit (or no limit).
Welcome bonus offer: Earn Ink Business Cash® Credit Card.
Although the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is marketed as a cash-back card, it’s actually a points card — Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth 1 cent each towards cash back, travel (booked through Chase), or gift cards.
Cardholders earn:
5% cash back (5 points per dollar spent) on the first $25,000 (then 1x) in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet cable, and phone services each year2% cash back (2 points per dollar spent) on the first $25,000 (then 1x) in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each year1% unlimited cash back (1 point per dollar spent) on all other purchases
As with the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, you can combine your points with other annual-fee Chase cards to increase your reward value, or redeem for cash, statement credits, gift cards, or travel booked through Chase.
The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card comes with a Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (then a Ink Business Cash® Credit Card APR). This is great if you need to pay off larger expenses over time without incurring interest. You’ll also receive fraud protection, car rental insurance, extended warranty, and travel and emergency assistance services.
Review: Ink Business Cash card review
US Bank Triple Cash Rewards
Why the Triple Cash Rewards Mastercard is worth it: The U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® is ideal if you’re looking for a card with a generous bonus and intro APR. Plus, it earns decent rewards with no cap, and you’ll receive annual software credit.
Unfortunately, you won’t earn the welcome bonus unless you’ve met the high spending requirement. Therefore, it may not be attainable for some businesses, especially smaller businesses or folks with side gigs.
Welcome bonus offer: Earn U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard®.
Cardholders earn:
5% cash back on prepaid hotels and car rentals booked through the Travel Rewards Center3% cash back at gas stations and EV charging stations, office supply stores, cell phone service providers, and restaurants 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases
You can redeem rewards as statement credits, Real-Time Rewards (to cover eligible purchases as you spend), or a direct deposit (a minimum of $25 to redeem). Plus, the U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® gets you $100 software credit every year towards subscriptions like FreshBooks or Quickbooks.
The card has a U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® (then a U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® APR), which is great for folks paying off debt or wanting to pay off large purchases over time.
The U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® provides cardholders with World Elite Mastercard benefits, as well as access to the Rewards Center Earn Mall.
Review: US Bank Triple Cash Rewards card review
US Bank Business Platinum Card
Why the Business Platinum Card is worth it: The U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card doesn’t earn rewards or come with a welcome bonus offer. But it does have an extra-long 0% intro APR, which is especially appealing to businesses looking to avoid incurring high interest on their debt — or those needing to pay off large purchases over multiple billing cycles.
Unless you need a significantly long intro APR, there are lots of better cards on the market also with 0% APR deals (not nearly as long) that also earn rewards and welcome bonus offers for no annual fee.
Welcome bonus offer: N/A
The U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card has a U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card (then a U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card APR).
Cardholders also get $0 fraud liability, 24/7 fraud monitoring, the US Bank ExtendedPay plan, and management over employee credit cards.
Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards
Why the Business Advantage Customized Cash Reward card is worth it: The Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card earns 3% cash back in a category of your choosing (from six predetermined categories) and comes with a solid welcome bonus offer and intro APR.
This is a great card for businesses looking for customizable cash rewards. But if you’re not interested in choosing your own rewards categories, you should consider a different no-annual-fee business card.
Welcome bonus offer: Earn a Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card.
The Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card is unique as it allows cardholders to choose which spending category they’d like to earn 3% cash back in (gas stations, office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom and wireless, computer services, or business consulting services). It also earns you 2% cash back on dining. But keep in mind that 3% and 2% earnings are capped at a combined $50,000 per year (then 1% cash back).
You’ll get a Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card (then a Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card APR).
You can redeem rewards as statement credits, a direct deposit, or credit to a qualifying Merrill (Bank of America’s wealth management division) account. Bank of America Preferred Rewards customers can also earn up to 75% more rewards (amounts depend on deposit/investment with Bank of America or Merill).
The card offers additional benefits like cash flow management tools, travel accident insurance, and car rental insurance. It does charge a foreign transaction fee, so it’s not ideal for traveling.
Capital One Spark Classic
Why the Spark Classic for Business is worth it: The Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business is significant because those with fair credit scores can get it, and it earns 1% flat-rate cash back on all purchases, with no cap.
However, there’s no welcome bonus offer or intro APR deal and it only includes a few additional perks. But if you have limited credit history and need a starter card to help grow your business, the Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business is defiantly worth considering.
Welcome bonus offer: Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business
The Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business earns unlimited 1% cash back on all purchases. Although other no-annual-fee business cards have higher rewards rates, more benefits, and include a welcome bonus offer (all things that the Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business doesn’t have), what makes this card special is that folks with fair credit are eligible. Most small-business credit cards require you to have at least good credit, so if you’re someone with limited credit, this card could be a great starting point.
You can redeem your rewards as a statement credit or check, as credits towards previous purchases, or for gift cards. You can also set up automatic redemption preferences through your Capital One account.
The regular APR is a Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business. The Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business also has benefits like no foreign transaction fees, extended warranty, and roadside assistance.
No-annual-fee business cards frequently asked questions (FAQ)
How do I choose the best no-annual-fee business card for me?
First, you should figure out how your business wants to use a credit card — whether that’s earning cash back rewards, taking advantage of low APR rates, using travel and purchase protection, or unlocking a hefty welcome bonus — in order to narrow the search. For example, if you’re not planning on paying off larger purchases over multiple billing cycles or paying down credit card debt, then the U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card isn’t a good fit.
Another factor to consider is credit. If you have fair credit, then a card like the Capital One®️ Spark®️ Classic for Business would be a good choice. Otherwise, if you have good to excellent credit, it’s worth looking into other no-annual-fee business cards with higher rewards rates and better benefits.
Can you use an EIN to get a business card?
An Employee Identification Number (EIN) is a number issued by the IRS to businesses. You can use an EIN and SSN to apply for business credit cards. Sole proprietors (like online business owners, freelancers, and other side gigs) are eligible to apply for business cards with just their SSN — no EIN necessary.
Are you eligible to get a business credit card if your personal credit score is low?
Even if you apply with an EIN, the card issuer will still ask for your SSN to check your personal credit history and factor that into their decision to approve you. If you have a low credit score, you may not qualify for the best small-business credit cards, but you might still be eligible for business cards geared towards those with limited or fair credit.
And if you have bad credit, you may be eligible for a secured credit card, which can also help you boost your credit score with responsible use.