Best Business Credit Cards for Businesses with Employees

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When your business grows from a solo desk-in-the-basement operation into one with multiple employees, the way expenses are managed changes significantly. Purchases are no longer limited to what you buy, and the task of accounting for employee expenditure is a minefield without a structured system in place.

Business credit cards offer a solution to this problem.

For limited liability companies (LLCs) and larger enterprises, choosing the right business credit card not only helps with expense tracking but also turns everyday business spending into a source of value through rewards points and cash back.

Many of today’s leading business credit cards from issuers like American Express, Capital One and Chase allow business owners to issue free or low-cost employee cards. These cards not only simplify accounting but also allow owners to set custom spending limits, track employee purchases in real-time and centralize rewards and payments.

Here’s a breakdown of the best business credit cards for companies with employees and strategies you can use to maximize your points and cash back to offset operating costs.

Why Business Credit Cards Matter for Companies with Employees

The financial needs of a company with employees differ from those of a freelancer or sole proprietor. While a one-person operation may be able to manage expenses through a single card or even a personal account, businesses with multiple staff members face greater complexity.

Imagine an LLC with 15 employees, five of whom travel frequently for sales meetings, another three who are responsible for advertising budgets and others who handle day-to-day operations like office supply purchases and client entertainment.

If each of these employees used their own personal credit card and submitted reimbursement requests, the company’s finance team would have to process dozens of receipts every month, reconcile spending manually and deal with delays in expense reporting.

Business credit cards simplify this process by allowing the company to issue employee cards tied to a central account. Each transaction is recorded automatically, categorized and is visible to the owner or finance manager.

Additionally, most issuers allow business owners to set individual spending limits for employees. For example, a travel manager could have a $5,000 monthly limit for airfare and hotels while a junior employee might have a $500 limit for incidental purchases. This level of control not only helps prevent overspending but also reduces the risk of misuse.

From a financial perspective, the benefits extend beyond tracking. Centralizing all purchases on one account means that rewards accumulate faster. A company that spends $500,000 annually on travel, advertising and operations could generate tens of thousands of dollars in rewards points or cash back, which can be reinvested into the business.

For example, at a flat rate of 2% cash back, $500,000 in annual spending would yield $10,000 per year in cash back—enough to cover a portion of payroll for a month or fund a company-wide training event.

The Best Business Credit Cards for Companies with Employees

Here’s a breakdown of the best business credit cards for companies with employees. We’ve focused on cards that offer solid rewards rates without costing you hundreds in additional annual fees.

Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

The Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers robust rewards rates for businesses that spend heavily on advertising and travel and wish to use their earnings for lucrative award travel redemptions.

With a $95 annual fee, the card balances affordability with robust benefits. Employee cards are free, making it an attractive option for LLCs or corporations that plan to distribute cards among numerous employees.

Here’s an overview of what the Ink Business Preferred offers:

• 3X points per dollar spent on the first $150,000 in combined purchases in the following categories:
  • Shipping purchases
  • Advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines
  • Internet, cable and phone services
  • Travel
• 1X points on all other purchases
• No foreign transaction fees
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance
• Cell phone protection
• Auto rental coverage

If your business spent $150,000 in combined purchases across the 3X category, you’d earn 450,000 Ultimate Rewards points. These points are worth between $4,500 and $7,875 when redeemed through Chase Travel℠. They could be worth even more if you transfer them to any of Chase’s 14 airline and hotel partners.

If you hold any other Chase credit cards, you can combine your points and redeem them through your Ink Business Preferred account with Chase’s full list of transfer partners.

Overall, if your business spends heavily in the Ink Business Preferred’s bonus spending categories, the card offers a significant opportunity to rack up thousands of points and offset your spending through lucrative travel redemptions.

Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

For business owners who want a $0 annual fee option, the Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card delivers strong value.

It charges a $0 annual fee while still offering the following earning rates:

• 5% cash back at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services on up to $25,000 spent in combined purchases (1% thereafter)
• 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants on up to $25,000 spent in combined purchases (1% thereafter)
• 1% cash back on all other purchases

It’s important to understand that while the Ink Business Cash is marketed as a cashback card, it earns rewards in the form of Ultimate Rewards points that you can redeem for cash back.

However, if you hold a premium Ultimate Rewards-earning card, such as the Ink Business Preferred, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® or the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you can transfer your points to one of these accounts and redeem them with all of Chase’s 14 hotel and airline partners.

If your business spent $25,000 in both the 5% and 2% categories annually, you’d earn $1,175 in cash back or 175,000 Ultimate Rewards points—more than enough for a lucrative award redemption.

Employee cards are also free to issue and can be modified with personalized spending caps.

If you want a solid return on your business expenditure without paying an annual fee, it’s hard to beat the Ink Business Cash card.

Capital One Spark Miles for Business

For companies with frequent travel needs, the Capital One Spark Miles for Business offers a flexible alternative.

With a $95 annual fee that’s waived in the first year, it provides unlimited 2X miles per dollar spent on all purchases plus 5X miles per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One’s travel booking site. It also enables you to issue employee cards free of charge.

If you run a firm with employees who are constantly on the road, having them charge their travel expenses to the Spark Miles for Business card could amass you hundreds of thousands of points.

The average business trip costs $1,771, which would earn you 8,855 miles if booked through Capital One’s travel booking site using your Spark Miles for Business card. If you or your employees took just one business trip per month, you’d earn more than 100,000 miles annually based on these costs—enough to cover business-class award travel.

The card also offers a statement credit every four years toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® application fees as well as complimentary Hertz Five Star status.

For the frequent business traveller who doesn’t want to pay high annual fees, the Capital One Spark Miles for Business is a solid option.

Capital One Venture X Business

The Capital One Venture X Business card is a premium option for larger corporations or high-spending LLCs.

With a $395 annual fee, it may seem expensive at a first glance, but the perks offset the cost for travel-heavy companies.

Employee cards are free and the rewards are generous:

• 10X on hotels and rental cars
• 5X on flights booked through Capital One’s travel booking site
• 2X miles on all purchases

The card truly shines for businesses that spend a significant amount on hotels, rental cars and flights.

For instance, let’s say you have a distributed workforce that travels frequently for conferences and work-related events, costing your business $500,000 annually on travel. By booking flights through Capital One’s travel booking site, you’d earn 2.5 million miles—more than enough to cover international travel for dozens of employees. And if a good chunk of your spending went toward hotel stays, you could earn even more miles.

The card’s baseline rewards rate also offers a solid return of 2X miles per dollar spent on all other purchases, regardless of the category.

Additionally, the card comes with complimentary Hertz President’s Circle status, a $300 annual travel credit for bookings made through Capital One’s travel booking site and complimentary Priority Pass Select membership with access to Capital One Lounges included.

On top of this, the miles you earn can be transferred to any of Capital One’s 15+ transfer partners for outsized value.

If you spend a lot on travel and want a card that offers a strong baseline rewards rate combined with luxury travel perks, the Venture X Business is one of your best bets.

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

For LLCs looking to minimize costs while still earning solid rewards, the Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express is a solid choice.

It charges a $0 annual fee (see rates and fees) and offers 2X Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on all purchases up to $50,000 annually (1X points thereafter). That works out to 100,000 points per year if you hit the spending cap.

Employee cards are also free, and you can tailor spending limits on each individual employee card.

The $50,000 annual cap on 2X earnings may limit the card’s utility for larger enterprises, but for small to mid-sized LLCs, it provides a cost-effective way to accumulate rewards without worrying about annual fees.

American Express® Business Gold Card

For businesses with more specialized spending patterns, the American Express® Business Gold Card offers maximum flexibility.

With a $375 annual fee (see rates and fees), it offers:

• 4X points on the two categories where your business spends the most each billing cycle, including:
  • Purchases at U.S. media providers for advertising in select media
  • Purchases made from U.S. electronic goods retailers and software and cloud system providers
  • Purchases at U.S. restaurants, including takeout and delivery
  • Purchases at U.S. gas stations
  • Transit purchases, including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses and subways
  • Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.
• 3X points on flights and prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel®
• 1X points on all other purchases

As an example, a company that spends $20,000 per month on digital ads and $10,000 on travel would earn 1.44 million Membership Rewards points annually. Depending on your redemption strategy, those points could be worth at least $14,000, if not far more. Even after paying for several employee cards, the net value of rewards far exceeds the annual fee for high-spend businesses.

The ability to adjust automatically to a company’s top spending categories ensures that rewards always align with real-world expenses, making the Amex Business Gold Card particularly useful for businesses with dynamic or evolving budgets.

The card also offers the following annual statement credit perks to help offset its cost:

• Up to $240 flexible business credit for FedEx, Grubhub and office supply store purchases, issued in up to $20 monthly credits
• $155 Walmart+ membership credit, issued in up to $12.95 monthly credits, plus applicable taxes. Plus ups not eligible

If you can maximize both of these credits, you’ll offset the cost of holding the primary card each year.

Overall, you need to have a high-spend business to make the Amex Business Gold Card worth it for you and your employees. However, if you can harness its rewards-earning potential and maximize its flexibility, you’ll reap significant value from it.

Key Features to Look for in a Business Credit Card with Employee Access

When evaluating business credit cards, a company with multiple employees needs to consider more than just the baseline rewards rate.

Here are some of the key features to look for when choosing a business credit card.

Additional Employee Card Fees

One of the most important factors is the cost of employee cards.

Certain card issuers, such as Chase and Capital One, provide employee cards at no additional fee, allowing you to scale your business and issue numerous cards to your employees.

Other issuers, such as American Express, may charge a fee depending on the number of employee cards you issue and the type of card.

For example, The Business Platinum Card® from American Express charges an annual fee of $400 for Employee Business Platinum Card (see rates and fees) per employee card , Employee Business Expense Cards that have no annual fee are also available and you may add up to 99 total Employee Cards on your account. The American Express Business Gold Card charges a fee of $95 for the first five employee cards and then $95 per additional card thereafter (see rates and fees). Employee Business Expense Cards that have no annual fee are also available. You may add up to 99 total Employee Cards on your account.

For a company with dozens of employees who need purchasing authority, these fees can add up quickly and eat into your bottom line. So the more employees you have, the more crucial it is to select a card with low fees for additional employee cards.

It’s worth noting that Amex does offer employee expense cards that cost $0 to add but lack many of the perks associated with the primary card.

Spending Controls

Spending controls are another critical feature of business credit cards. As the primary cardmember, you’re able to assign cards to specific employees with custom rules.

For instance, let’s say you have an LLC that operates a chain of restaurants. Managers at each location may need to cover local purchases like emergency repairs or catering supplies. By setting a $2,000 monthly cap on each manager’s card, you ensure that no location overspends while still giving managers the flexibility to act quickly when needed.

You can also set different spending caps on different employees’ cards, allowing you to diversify spending limits based on roles.

Earning Rates

Earning rates offered by business credit cards should align with your business’ spending habits.

For instance, a digital marketing agency that spends heavily on online advertising would benefit far more from a card like the Chase Ink Business Preferred, which offers 3X points in that category, than from a flat-rate cash back card.

Conversely, a construction firm that spends broadly across many categories might be better off with the Capital One Spark Cash Plus, which offers 2% cash back on all purchases without restrictions.

So before you select a business credit card, ensure that you have a clear overview of where your business spends the most.

Accounting Integration Options

Integration with accounting software is another useful feature of business credit cards.

Many business cards sync seamlessly with platforms such as QuickBooks and Xero, which reduces the time spent reconciling expenses. For larger organizations, this can translate into hundreds of hours saved annually, freeing up accounting staff to focus on other tasks.

Do Employees Have Access to Rewards Points?

One of the most frequent questions business owners ask is whether employees who hold company cards have the right to access or redeem the rewards earned on their purchases.

The answer is a straightforward no.

Rewards belong solely to the primary account holder—the business itself, typically represented by the owner or authorized administrator.

When an employee uses their company-issued card for travel, client dinners or office purchases, the rewards points or cash back generated flow directly into the central business account. Employees can’t transfer or redeem points individually. This ensures that the collective spending power of the company benefits the business as a whole.

For instance, a sales manager booking $2,000 in monthly flights may generate 4,000 miles on a Spark Miles card. While the manager accrues those miles through spending, the points accumulate under the company’s rewards pool. The owner can then decide whether to redeem those miles for future business travel, apply them as statement credits or transfer them to a travel partner for maximum value.

This structure protects the business’s interests and ensures that rewards are reinvested strategically rather than being dispersed among employees.

How Business Owners Can Maximize Rewards Points

For companies with employees, rewards can quickly accumulate to a substantial level, but maximizing their value requires strategy.

The first step is to centralize all company spending onto business credit cards. By ensuring that every expense—whether travel, advertising or operations—is charged to a rewards card, your business accelerates point accumulation. A company spending $1 million annually on centralized cards could generate between $20,000 and $30,000 in value depending on the rewards program and redemption strategy.

Another key tactic is to match specific cards to department needs. A marketing team responsible for ad spend could use the Chase Ink Business Preferred while the operations team might rely on the Amex Business Gold for shipping expenses. By aligning card categories with employee responsibilities, the business ensures that each dollar spent earns the highest possible rewards rate, maximizing the return on your spending.

Transfer partners offer another avenue for maximizing value. Points from Chase, Capital One and American Express can be transferred to airline and hotel loyalty programs often at 1:1 ratios, unlocking premium travel experiences at a fraction of the retail cost.

Rewards also can be used strategically to offset operational costs. Cash back from a card like the Spark Cash Plus can be applied directly against payroll or other overhead costs. For a business with thin margins, this kind of direct cash flow relief can be a game changer.

Others may choose to use rewards for employee perks, such as covering travel for training events or offsetting the cost of team-building retreats.

While transfers to hotel and airline partners typically offer the greatest value for your points, the best strategy will depend on your business’ specific needs.

Matching the Right Card to Your Business

The ideal credit card depends on the size, structure and spending habits of your company.

Service firms with high advertising budgets may see outsized value from the Chase Ink Business Preferred or the Amex Business Gold. Retailers and e-commerce businesses might benefit more from the flat cash back of the Spark Cash Plus. Travel-intensive companies with consultants or sales representatives on the road each week may find the Capital One Venture X Business to be the best fit, thanks to its premium travel perks, strong earning rates and flexible redemption options.

For smaller LLCs or budget-conscious businesses, $0 annual fee cards like the Amex Blue Business Plus (see rates and fees) or the Chase Ink Business Cash provide an accessible entry point while still offering meaningful rewards.

Final Thoughts

For LLCs and larger corporations with employees, business credit cards are more than just another type of payment method. They are tools that simplify financial control and accounting while helping to offset costs.

The best business cards combine free or low-cost employee cards with strong rewards structures, allowing companies to centralize spending, monitor expenses and reinvest earned rewards.

Whether your priority is maximizing travel perks or earning cash back to bolster cash flow, cards from issuers including American Express, Capital One and Chase all offer strong options. The right choice depends on aligning card features with your company’s spending patterns and selecting a card with rewards that will ultimately boost your bottom line.

To learn how to leverage your business expenditure to earn hundreds of thousands of points, sign up to the free 10xTravel course today.