The best business credit cards for travel rewards in May 2024
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Travel credit cards are often touted as the best credit cards for businesses—no matter their size. With every transaction getting you cash back, travel rewards, or access to coveted airport lounges, we understand why you might be considering a travel card.
But with all the travel credit cards out there, it’s hard to decide which business travel credit card is the best fit for your business. Are you looking for airline mile rewards? Welcome offers or no foreign transaction fees? What about low annual fees?
In this article, we’ll cover the best business credit cards for travel and what to look for in a travel credit card. Let’s get started.
Business travel credit cards may offer travel perks such as:
- Free checked bags
- Hotel room upgrades
- Airport lounge access
- TSA precheck
- Priority boarding
How does a business travel credit card differ from a personal travel credit card?
You might wonder if sticking with your personal credit card for business is good for now. However, there are key differences between business and personal travel credit cards that can work towards the growth of your business. A business travel credit card can:
- Draw the line between personal and business finances: Separating your personal finances from your business finances is crucial for the success of your business. Whether you operate as a sole proprietor or a corporation, separating your finances is necessary for legal and tax reasons.
- Get rewards for your business: Business travel credit cards have better rewards. For example, you might enjoy travel rewards, airline miles, or access to a VIP lounge.
- Give you access to higher credit limits: A high-limit business credit card offers larger credit limits than personal travel credit cards, making it ideal for bigger business purchases.
- Help you build business credit history: If paid off regularly, this can help you build a business credit history and contribute towards a favorable business credit score.
Best business credit cards for travel rewards in 2024
Here’s a summary of the best business credit cards for travel:
- Ramp Visa Corporate Card
- American Express Business Platinum Card
- Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards World Mastercard Credit Card
- Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business American Express
- Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card
- Chase Ink Business Preferred Card
What you should look for in a business credit card for travel
Choosing the right business credit card for travel depends entirely on the needs of your business and employees. If you travel often, you’re probably looking for card offers that supplement your business trips (as opposed to a generic rewards program).
Unfortunately, more benefits often equate to higher fees. To pick the best card, give some serious thought to what’s most important to you.
Annual fees
Many cards that offer benefits for business travel often come with hefty annual fees. The annual fee you pay will fluctuate depending on the travel perks and rewards that come with the card.
Welcome bonuses
Most business credit cards for travel entice you with a welcome offer soon after opening the card. For example, you may get 100k bonus points after spending $10,000 in purchases in the first three months after opening your account.
APR
Pay close attention to the APR offered by business credit cards. If you don't pay your credit card in full each month, this interest can quickly compound. The more you owe, the harder you’ll find it to pay off the balance.
Reward rates
Business travel cards offer various reward rates depending on your purchases. For instance, you might earn 5x points per dollar when you book through their flight portal, but only 1x points for all other purchases.
Foreign transaction fees
Since these cards will be used for travel, you want a card with no foreign transaction fees. If your card gets you great exchange rates but you need to pay transaction fees every time, it negates any benefits you may enjoy. Most business travel cards don’t come with transaction fees, but it's best to double-check the fine print.
Co-branded
If you enjoy using a specific brand or airline for travel, you may want to look into co-branded options. For example, the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business American Express gives you rewards across different airlines and hotels. You get access to rewards from the main airline as well as any of their partners.
Purchase protection
Where will most of your traveling take you? No matter where you go, purchase protection can kick in as a backup. It works as a form of insurance on your purchases and covers things like airfare, hotels, and rental cars. This could remove the need for you to purchase additional travel insurance.
Card benefits
Look into the benefits and perks of the card you’ll be choosing. For example, does your card come with airport lounge access? If your business is located near a smaller airport, your employees will likely spend more time changing flights at larger airports with longer layovers. They might benefit more from an airport lounge than employees who live near a larger airport and take non-stop flights.
Downsides of a dedicated business credit card for travel
Although there are several benefits of a business credit card, there are some downsides as well. Initially, you might have felt that securing a business travel credit card would have you and your employees employing luxury lounges around the world. However, this isn’t the case for many companies.
Higher interest rates
Due to the supposed “rewards” of these cards, business travel credit cards often come with higher interest rates than their corporate counterparts. These APR rates can be as high as 24%, much higher than the standard 16% seen with traditional cards.
Sky-high interest rates like these cancel out any potential travel rewards for your company. If you aren't paying your credit card in full every month, these cards might be more trouble than they're worth.
Steep annual rates
Business travel credit cards come with several perks, but they also have high annual rates. As mentioned earlier, the American Express Business Platinum Card has a steep yearly fee of $695. With such hefty fees, you’ll need to ensure that the card's benefits outweigh the costs.
Separate cards create hassles
Credit card issuers have limits on how many cards can be issued to employees. This can quickly create chaos within the office.
If you own a small business with thirty employees, but only receive ten cards from your card issuer, it can be confusing and time-consuming to keep track of who is using which card, and chasing down employees for reimbursements.
If you give your employees your travel card, you might also use a personal card for business expenses. This opens you up to personal liability for your many business expenses.
Simplify business travel with Ramp’s all-in-one corporate card
Instead of a business travel card, consider a card that meets all of your business's spending needs. While traditional credit cards encourage spending to earn rewards, Ramp’s corporate cards offer universal 1.5% cashback on purchases and come with spend management software designed to help your business save.
Ramp cards also come with travel management features like real-time trip expense monitoring, custom trip budgets and spending categories on employee cards, and easily accessible travel itineraries.