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Best startup business credit cards with no credit check in December 2024
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As a startup, having no credit history or a bad personal credit score can make it nearly impossible to get approved for a business credit card. Thankfully, some types of business credit cards don’t require a credit check, helping you access financing even with low creditworthiness.
This article will review four of the best startup business credit cards with no credit check and share all the details you need to make an informed decision about which to choose. We'll look at a range of features, benefits, drawbacks, and available options for startups, including:
- The Ramp Business Credit Card
- Brex Card
- BILL Divvy Corporate Card
- OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card
How a business credit card with no credit check works
When your startup applies for a business credit card that doesn’t require a credit check, lenders judge your application against other factors, such as your business revenue and history. This makes them more accessible to businesses with less established credit scores.
The application process is usually simpler than traditional credit cards, requiring only basic information like your business name, address, and contact details. Once approved, you can use your card immediately up to your specified credit limit.
Why choose a credit card with no credit check?
Applying for your first business credit card will typically trigger a hard inquiry into your personal credit history. In the absence of established business credit, credit card issuers need a way to check your creditworthiness before approving you for a business credit card. Personal credit history is usually the best proxy in these cases.
A credit card with no credit check is ideal for startup founders who don't have an established business credit history or who are looking to build business credit. Here are a few situations when these cards can be beneficial:
- You need to build your business credit score
- You want to get access to a higher credit limit
- You need extra funds for business expenses
- You’re starting a new business with no credit history and need access to credit
- You’re not eligible for traditional credit cards due to no or bad credit history
- You need to make purchases online or abroad
- You want to spread the cost of purchasing equipment or supplies
Best business credit cards with no credit check for startups
The Ramp Business Credit Card is ideal for startups without a credit history. You just need an EIN and $25,000 in a business bank account to qualify—no credit check or personal guarantee required. Once you’re approved, you can issue as many physical or virtual cards as your startup needs at no additional cost.
Ramp's corporate business credit credit card offers cashback on purchases and built-in expense management software to help streamline your business finances. On top of Ramp’s built-in card controls, you also get receipt matching, corporate travel management, automated expense reporting and approval workflows, and AI-powered spending insights to help you save time and money.
The Brex Card is another popular startup business credit card with no credit check aimed at venture-backed and mid-market companies. Brex’s business credit card functions as a charge card, so it requires daily or monthly balance payments; there’s no option to carry a balance from month to month. It offers a points-based rewards system, with different point bonuses for different categories. Brex’s corporate cards also come with expense management features.
While the Brex Card has many benefits, it does come with some drawbacks. Its requirement for daily or monthly balance payments can limit cash flow flexibility for businesses that prefer or need to carry a balance. Additionally, the card is primarily designed for venture-backed companies, which may exclude smaller startups or those without substantial funding.
BILL, formerly known as Bill.com, is best-known for its AP/AR automation software. After acquiring Divvy, it added corporate cards with integrated expense management features to its product offerings. BILL’s corporate card is available to registered businesses with an Employer Identification Number (EIN) and a US business bank account.
Like Brex, the BILL card offers a points-based rewards program with bonus points in various purchase categories. Unlike other options we review here, BILL does require a credit check for approval—luckily, it’s only a soft credit check, so it won’t affect your credit score.
The OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card works a bit differently than the other small business credit cards we’ve listed here, but it’s worth mentioning as an option for new businesses with no credit history. The OpenSky Secured Visa doesn’t require a credit check, but because it’s a secured credit card, it does require a refundable security deposit. The deposit then acts as your credit line.
The downside is that this means your line of credit will be limited by the amount of cash you have on hand to pay the security deposit. On the positive side, though, you don’t need a business bank account to qualify, there’s no personal credit check required, and regular, timely payments will help you build business credit.
Summary of the best business credit cards with no credit check for startups
Pros and cons of business credit cards with no credit checks
Before applying for a business credit card with no credit check, it’s important to understand the pros and cons. Here are some of the key benefits and drawbacks to consider:
Pros:
- Quick and easy application process
- Accessible for those with little or no credit history
- Low interest rates
- Ability to build your business credit score over time
- No credit check necessary for approval
Cons:
- May require a personal guarantee
- Lower credit limits than traditional cards
- Fewer rewards and benefits than traditional cards
- Some business credit cards with no credit check may require a higher minimum deposit as collateral
5 alternative options with no credit check for startups to consider
If your startup or small business is seeking financing, there are several alternatives to business credit cards worth exploring. These options can provide opportunities for growth and financial stability without a credit check. Plus, they offer ways for business owners to build business credit without using a credit card.
1. Trade credit
Trade credit allows businesses to make purchases on credit without requiring a credit check. By building a strong relationship with suppliers and consistently making timely payments, you can establish business credit and gain access to the essential resources you need to operate and expand.
2. Alternative lending
Another option is to seek out alternative lending sources such as online lenders or peer-to-peer lending platforms. These options often have more flexible lending criteria and may be willing to extend small business loans to businesses with no credit check.
3. Invoice factoring
Invoice factoring involves selling unpaid invoices to a third-party company in exchange for immediate cash. This can help businesses improve their cash flow and access funds without relying on credit.
4. Merchant cash advances
Merchant cash advances provide businesses with a lump sum of cash in exchange for a percentage of future sales. This option can be particularly beneficial if your business has a consistent stream of revenue.
5. Partnerships
Finally, business owners can consider establishing partnerships or joint ventures with other companies. By pooling resources and sharing risks, your business can access capital and resources without the need for a credit check.
Honorable mention: Secured credit cards
Although they typically require a credit check, secured business credit cards are another good alternative to traditional business credit cards if you or your business have low or no credit. Your personal credit score tends not to be a major factor for approval because of the way these cards work.
With a secured credit card, you make an initial cash deposit that acts as collateral. This deposit directly determines your card's credit limit. For example, a $1,000 deposit would typically allow for a $1,000 line of credit. You then use the secured card just like a traditional credit card by making purchases up to your credit limit and paying down your balance monthly.
When you use a secured credit card responsibly by making timely payments and keeping your balance low, it reflects positively on your business’s credit report because secured credit card issuers report to the major business credit bureaus. Over time, as you build business credit, you can eventually qualify for the best business cards.
Consider Ramp's startup business credit card with no credit check
Does your startup or small business need access to credit, but you don’t have the necessary credit score?
Ramp is a business credit card and expense management platform with no credit check or personal guarantee required. Instead, our qualification process depends on the amount of capital you have in your business bank account, or you may be eligible for our sales-based underwriting.
Here are a few of the features you can expect from us:
- Unlimited physical and virtual employee cards
- Automate your expense policy and set custom spending limits at the card level
- No foreign transaction fees when using your card abroad
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- Business credit card with customizable spending controls
- Cashback rewards on purchases
- Exclusive partner rewards
- Unlimited free physical and virtual employee cards
- Access to advanced expense management features
- Must have $25,000 in a business bank account to qualify
Pros:
- Advanced expense management automations and accounting integrations
- No personal guarantee or credit check required for eligibility
- No annual fee or foreign transaction fees
Cons:
- Not available to sole proprietors. Must be a corporation, limited liability company, or LP to qualify
- Must have most of your operations and corporate spend in the US (though international purchases are supported with no foreign transaction fees)
- Doesn't support balance transfers
- Corporate card designed for venture-backed or mid-market companies
- Functions as a charge card, requiring daily or monthly balance payments, with no option to carry a balance from month to month
- Points-based rewards with different points per purchase category
- Includes expense management features and Mastercard benefits
Pros:
- Flexible rewards system with up to 7x points on certain spending categories
- No annual, foreign transaction, or account fees
- No personal guarantee or credit check required for eligibility
- Unlimited physical and virtual cards issued by Mastercard
Cons:
- Limited to specific business types (C-corp, S-corp, LLC, and LLPs) with equity investors, substantial annual revenue, or a significant number of employees
- Top rewards require an exclusivity agreement with Brex
- New users must pay off their balance daily
- Corporate card available to registered businesses with an EIN number and U.S. business bank account
- Comes with expense management software
- Points-based rewards with bonus points in different categories
- Requires only a soft credit check, so it won't temporarily affect your credit score
Pros:
- Doesn't require a hard credit check
- Lower capital requirement of $20,000
- No annual fee
- Unlimited physical and virtual cards
Cons:
- Requires a soft credit check
- Fair credit is needed to qualify
- To earn rewards, you have to use 30% of your credit line in a given month
- Foreign transaction fees
- Secured credit card that requires a refundable security deposit
- The security deposit acts as the credit line
- No bank account or credit check is required to qualify
- Money can be funded through online banking, money order, or Western Union
Pros:
- Doesn't require a credit check for approval
- Reports to the credit bureaus to help build your credit score
- Access to credit education and financial management tools
Cons:
- Annual fee required
- Higher interest rates compared to some other unsecured cards
- No rewards program or cashback incentives
- Limited benefits beyond credit building
Ramp Business Credit Card
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- Higher credit limits: Ramp offers credit limits up to 30 times higher than traditional business credit cards. That’s because Ramp bases your credit limit on factors like revenue and dollars raised rather than just your business credit score.
- Flexible ways to qualify: Ramp uses connections to some of the biggest commerce platforms in the industry, including Stripe, Shopify, and Amazon, to underwrite credit limits for startups using their sales data. Your business only needs a year of sales history on commerce platforms to be evaluated, allowing you to unlock growth for your startup faster.
- Exclusive partner rewards: Ramp cardholders can access over $350,000 in rewards from a massive list of partners. Get exclusive discounts, credits, and other perks for business essentials like UPS, Amazon Business, AWS, and QuickBooks, plus SaaS providers like OpenAI, Notion, HubSpot, and more.
- Simpler spend control: Enforce your company expense policy with custom spend controls. Ramp lets you set vendor, category, and transaction limits at the individual card level and automatically flags any suspicious or out-of-policy spending.
- More than just a business credit card: When you qualify for Ramp’s business credit card, you get access to a full suite of finance tools. Advanced expense management features, financial reporting, accounting integrations, corporate travel booking, and accounts payable automation are all part of the package.
Brex Corporate Card
- US-based businesses: Only available to companies with primary operations in the US.
- No cashback option: Rewards are points-based without direct cash-back functionality.
- Cash balance requirement: Requires a minimum cash balance of $50,000 for funded businesses, though this may vary based on referrals or other factors.
BILL Divvy Corporate Card
OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card
