The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card Review

The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card is great for small business owners looking for a solid cash back rewards rate on every purchase for no annual fee.

You can earn 2% cash back on all eligible purchases on up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1%. This rewards rate can simplify your life as a business owner, since you won’t have to juggle between several credit cards with different rewards rates. Plus, your cash back is automatically redeemed for statement credits.

This card works best if you plan on spending around $50,000 on it. If your business has more expenses than that, then a card without an elevated rewards cap like the Capital One Spark Cash Plus could be a better fit. It charges a $150 annual fee*, but earns unlimited Earn 2% Cash Back on every purchase; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

• Simple rewards program

  The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card is ideal for cardholders who want a simple rewards structure.

  Since you earn 2% cash back on all eligible purchases on up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1%, there’s no need to keep up with bonus spend categories. If you max out the spending cap by making $50,000 in purchases in a year, you will earn $1,000 cash back. Cash back earned is automatically credited to your statement, which is ideal for business owners looking for simplicity.

  This is an ideal rate if you spend in a lot of different categories, like dining, gas and business purchases. But if travel is a big spending category for your business, The Blue Business^® Plus Credit Card from American Express earns points and also has a simple rewards rate for no annual fee.

• Flexible credit limit

  American Express’s Expanded Buying Power feature helps business owners deal with unexpected costs and pay for larger purchases. You can exceed The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card credit limit — with no overlimit fees — and earn cash back on those purchases.

  The portion above your credit limit is due in full at the end of your billing cycle as part of your minimum payment. There aren’t many cards that allow you to do that without fees, so it’s great for business owners who have a lot of variable expenses.

• No annual fee

  Unlike business cards that can charge upwards of $595 per year, The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card has no annual fee. This allows you to enjoy all the benefits that come with the card without a big financial commitment.

• Intro APR on purchases

  The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card offers an intro APR of 0% on purchases for 12 months from date of account opening, followed by a 17.74% - 25.74% Variable APR.

  It’s best to pay your card off in full every month, but the introductory offer will let you finance big business purchases over a long period of time without any interest charges. Plus, the card’s welcome offer can help provide some cash to pay it off.

  Many business cards don’t offer an introductory APR at all — which gives The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card an edge.

  *To see rates & fees for The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, please click here.

• Cap on rewards earnings

  The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card only allows cardholders to Earn 2% cash back on all eligible purchases on up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1%.

  If your company charges more than $4,200 each month on business expenses, you’ll be better off with a card that offers bonus cash back without a spending cap. Some other options are:

  • Capital One Spark Cash Select: Earn 1.5% Cash Back on every purchase; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel ($0 annual fee)
  • Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card: Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase made for your business ($0 annual fee)
  • Capital One Spark Cash Plus: Earn Earn 2% Cash Back on every purchase; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel

  *To see rates & fees for Capital One Spark Cash Select, please click here.

• No balance transfer intro APR

  Although The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card has a generous intro purchase APR, it doesn’t offer the same for balance transfers.

  If you’re looking for a business balance transfer credit card, the U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card is your best bet. It offers a N/A; after, a 17.24% to 26.24% APR applies.

• Foreign transaction fee

  The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card charges a foreign transaction fee of 2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars. It’s hard to find no-annual-fee cards that also don’t charge a foreign transaction fee, so it may be worth considering a different card if you travel abroad a lot for business.

  *To see rates & fees for The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, please click here.

The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card vs. The Blue Business^® Plus Credit Card from American Express

The Blue Business^® Plus Credit Card from American Express is essentially a travel rewards version of The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card. Instead of earning cash back, you’ll earn 2X points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2X applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter. Terms and limitations apply.

The Blue Business^® Plus Credit Card from American Express may be a better choice if you travel frequently. This card lets you transfer points (often at a 1:1 rate) to a number of airlines and hotels, including Delta SkyMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue, Choice Privileges, Marriott Bonvoy™.

With The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, your cash back will automatically be credited to your account as a statement credit.

The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card vs. Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card

The Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card is another $0-annual-fee cash back business card. It earns a lower cash back earning rate than The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, but doesn’t have a cap on elevated earnings. You’ll earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase made for your business.

Once your business spends over $100,000, the Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card becomes more valuable.

A big advantage the Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card has is its generous sign-up bonus: Earn $750 bonus cash back after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card has a much lower welcome offer, so take that into consideration before applying.

The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card vs. Capital One Spark Cash Select

The Capital One Spark Cash Select is good for business owners who are looking for a $0-annual-fee simple rewards option, but not necessarily looking for an intro APR.

You can earn 1.5% Cash Back on every purchase; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. As with the Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card, you’ll earn more with this card only if you spend more than $100,000.

You’ll also earn $500 Cash Back once you spend $4,500 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening. This is a much more generous welcome offer than The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, if you’re looking to earn some extra cash.

The downside of this card is that, unlike The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card, it doesn’t offer intro APRs on either purchases or balance transfers.

If you want to keep things simple without paying an annual fee, The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card could be right for you. It offers a generous earning rate as long as you don’t exceed its spending cap.

However, if you spend more than $50,000 per year on business expenses, you’ll be better off with a card that offers unlimited cash back on every purchase, like the Capital One Spark Cash Select. This card offers unlimited 1.5% Cash Back on every purchase; 5% Cash Back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

But if you spend more than $50,000 and you don’t mind carrying two cards, you could get the most value from using The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card on your first $50,000 in expenses, then using an unlimited 1.5% cash back card on everything else.