6 best company credit cards for your employees in December 2024

As a small business owner or startup, it’s nice to know you can trust your employees to make wise spending decisions on your behalf. That may include spending petty cash on office supplies when necessary, booking a hotel for business travel, or expensing client dinners.

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While giving your employees the ability to spend on behalf of your business offers a level of convenience, it also opens the door to headaches. Managing the employee reimbursement process is time-consuming, and spending in multiple areas without automated tracking is an accounting nightmare.

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That’s one reason your business may want to transition to company credit cards for your employees. In this article, we review what these credit cards are, why they’re beneficial, and the best business credit cards to consider.

What is an employee credit card?

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Employee credit cards can help eliminate the need for reimbursements and make it easier to track business transactions. Some business credit cards, like corporate cards, include other features like custom spending limits and vendor restrictions. These cards also come with expense management features that allow you to automate expense reporting and tracking.

How to choose the best company card for your employees

There are plenty of benefits of business credit cards. Here’s what you should look for when you choose a new company card:

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• Unlimited cards: Look for options that offer free unlimited physical and virtual cards for authorized users. Some providers charge fees for each additional card.
• Spending controls: Some cards allow you to create employee spending limits and vendor or expense category restrictions. These limits can reduce your business expenses by ensuring cardholders follow your company’s spending policy.
• Real-time tracking: Some providers let you track spending on corporate credit cards in real time. This means you always have an accurate view of how your actual spend is tracking against projected budgets.
• Additional perks: Many business credit cards come with extra perks, like travel benefits, cashback, or rewards points. These perks help you get the most bang for your buck as you spend to grow your business.

The best company credit cards for employees

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The Ramp Business Credit Card is a charge card designed to help businesses streamline expense management. It offers cashback on purchases and provides advanced tools for tracking and controlling expenses. Businesses can issue unlimited free physical and virtual employee cards with customizable spending limits, ensuring greater control over employee expenses. With no annual fees or interest charges, Ramp helps businesses save money while improving operational efficiency.

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In addition to its spending controls, Ramp offers robust automation features, including receipt matching and expense categorization. The card integrates seamlessly with popular accounting tools, making bookkeeping and reporting more efficient. It also provides analytics to identify cost-saving opportunities, enabling businesses to optimize spending.

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Key features:

• Unlimited free physical and virtual employee cards with spending controls
• Cashback rewards on purchases
• Automated expense tracking and cost-saving insights
• Seamless integration with accounting tools

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The Chase Ink Business Cash Credit Card provides significant cashback rewards for businesses with regular expenses in office supplies and telecom services. Cardholders earn 5% cashback on these purchases (up to $25,000 annually) and 2% cashback at gas stations and restaurants. All other purchases earn 1% cashback. Additionally, new users can earn a $900 bonus after spending $6,000 in the first three months.

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The card offers a 0% introductory APR for 12 months but includes a 3% foreign transaction fee, making it less suitable for international use. Rewards for bonus categories are capped, which may limit its appeal for high spenders in those areas.

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Key features:

• $900 welcome bonus after spending $6,000 in the first 3 months
• 5% cashback on office supplies and telecom (up to $25,000 annually)
• 0% introductory APR for 12 months
• 3% foreign transaction fee

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The U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards World Elite Mastercard® is ideal for businesses seeking cashback rewards across multiple categories. It offers up to 5% cashback on eligible purchases and a $100 annual statement credit for recurring software subscription expenses. The card includes a 0% introductory APR period, which is helpful for businesses managing large upfront expenses.

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While the card offers strong category-specific rewards, not all purchase categories qualify. Additionally, the standard APR after the introductory period is relatively high, ranging from 19.24% to 28.24%.

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Key features:

• 5% cashback on eligible purchases
• Annual $100 statement credit for software subscriptions
• 0% introductory APR
• No foreign transaction fees

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The Capital One Spark 2X Miles is a travel-focused business card offering unlimited 2 miles per dollar on every purchase. Cardholders earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Additional perks include credits for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck and access to travel partners for mile transfers.

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The card has a $95 annual fee after the first year, which is waived for the first 12 months. However, it lacks an introductory APR offer, and the APR is relatively high, making it less appealing for businesses that carry balances.

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Key features:

• 2 miles per dollar on all purchases
• 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars through Capital One Travel
• $95 annual fee waived for the first year
• Credits for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck

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The Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business American Express Card is tailored for frequent Delta travelers, offering exclusive benefits such as complimentary Sky Club access, priority boarding, and baggage insurance. Cardholders earn 3x miles on Delta purchases and 1.5x miles in specific categories after reaching $150,000 annual spending. A welcome bonus of 110,000 miles is available after spending $6,000 in the first three months.

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The card’s annual fee of $650 may deter some users, and the APR ranges from 20.99% to 29.99% (variable), which could be costly for businesses carrying balances. The rewards program is heavily focused on Delta, limiting its appeal to non-Delta travelers.

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Key features:

• Complimentary Delta Sky Club access
• 110,000 miles bonus after meeting spending requirements
• 3x miles on Delta purchases
• Priority boarding and baggage insurance

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The Chase Ink Business Premier Credit Card is a high-spending business card with a $10,000 minimum credit limit. It offers 2% to 2.5% cashback rewards on purchases, making it ideal for businesses with significant expenditures. The card also provides free employee cards with customizable spending limits and includes valuable travel and purchase protections.

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The $195 annual fee and lack of an introductory APR may deter some businesses. Additionally, the card’s cashback rate is not category-specific, which may not maximize rewards for businesses with targeted spending.

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Key features:

• $10,000 minimum credit limit
• 2% to 2.5% cashback rewards
• Free employee cards with spending controls
• Includes travel and purchase protections

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Summary of the best company credit cards for employees

‍How to qualify for a corporate credit card for your employees

To qualify for a corporate credit card, you’ll need to have a registered business with an EIN number. Depending on the credit card issuer, your business credit score may or may not be taken into account. If it isn’t, you’ll need to be generating substantial annual revenue. In some cases, you may have to put up a personal guarantee, making you as the business owner personally liable for any outstanding debts.

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With Ramp, we don’t ask for a personal guarantee or check your credit score. Our requirements to apply are as follows:

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• Be a registered business in the United States
• Be a corporation, limited liability company, or LP (including nonprofits). We’re not currently accepting individuals, sole proprietors, or unregistered businesses.
• Have at least $25,000 in cash in any US business bank account attached to your application
• Have most of your operations and corporate spend in the US

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If you run an ecommerce business, you may also qualify for a higher credit limit compared to other cards with Ramp’s sales-based underwriting.

Getting a business credit card as an employee

Getting a company credit card as an employee isn’t the same as getting a personal credit card. To get an employee credit card, your company needs to issue it to you directly. Your eligibility for a corporate card usually depends on your role, responsibilities, or other criteria based on your company’s expense policy. With employee credit cards, companies usually set a spend limit at the employee, card, or department level to control spending and effectively manage expenses.

Ramp: Unlimited physical and virtual corporate cards

A corporate card should do more than just let your employees spend to a specific limit. That’s where Ramp comes in.

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Ramp’s corporate cards help you streamline your cash flow and automate expense management:

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• Automated receipt matching: With Ramp, the days of matching receipts to expense reports are behind you. Employees can submit receipts via mobile app the instant they make a purchase. Ramp matches those receipts to your expense reports for seamless accounting.
• Pay bills in seconds: You can pay vendors via card, ACH, or check. When you’re done, let Ramp streamline your accounting process by automatically categorizing expenses and syncing them with your accounting software.
• Close books faster: Ramp’s automatic expense categorization and accounting integrations help businesses close their books eight days faster on average.
• Real-time expense tracking: Track every expense you have in real time. You can even analyze spending by department, location, merchant, and more.‍