Best Business Credit Cards for Bad Credit [2024]

Most business credit cards require good credit, but there are a handful of options if you have bad credit. These options can help you separate your personal and business expenses, increase cash flow, and help build your business credit history.

Some business credit card options enable you to earn valuable rewards on business purchases and provide helpful benefits, such as purchase protection or extended warranty coverage.

Explore our recommendations for business credit cards for bad credit to see which one can be a good fit for you.

How we evaluate products

To determine the best business credit cards for people with bad credit, we researched which credit cards business owners could qualify for with poor credit, including cards with no personal guarantee and secured business credit cards. Then, we gathered data about each card’s APR, annual fee, qualifying criteria, and benefits. We eliminated cards that required signing up for software demos, those that reject applicants with poor credit, and those that are only available to small segments of business owners.

Of the cards that remained, we determined which ones offered the best combination of low or no fees, attractive welcome bonuses, earning rates and card benefits. Keep in mind that our recommendations do not include all available business credit cards for bad credit, and we did not rank the cards in any particular order. Instead, our recommendations aim to provide helpful information on a selection of business credit cards that may be suitable for individuals with bad credit.

The best business credit cards for bad credit

• Capital One Spark Classic for Business
• Brex Credit Card
• First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard Credit Card
• Ramp Card

Compare business cards for bad credit

Card name	Excellent for	Benefits	Annual fee
Capital One Spark Classic for Business	Cashback and card benefits	1% unlimited cash back on every purchase for your business, plus 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel No foreign transaction fees	$0
Brex Credit Card	Earning travel rewards	7X points on rideshare, 4X on Brex Travel, 3X at restaurants and on eligible Apple products, 2X on software subscriptions, and 1X on all other purchases with Brex Exclusive No foreign transaction fees	$0
First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard Credit Card	Best secured business card	Credit limit between $2,000 to $100,000 Earn interest on your security deposit	$39
Ramp Card	Earning unlimited cash back	up to 1.5% cash back on qualified purchases (varies by customer and determined by Ramp) No personal credit check or personal guarantee required	$0

Capital One Spark Classic for Business

People with bad or poor credit scores may not have as many credit cards to choose from, so the Capital One Spark Classic for Business presents an appealing option. It comes with a $0 annual fee and you can earn 1% unlimited cash back on every purchase for your business, plus 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Many credit cards in the poor credit score range don’t provide any rewards at all, so this is a welcome sight.

In addition, you can also take advantage of different card benefits, including purchase protection, extended warranty coverage, and no foreign transaction fees¹. These benefits can help if you make business purchases that need protection or if you tend to travel abroad for business.

The Capital One Spark Classic for Business earns cash back, but it’s not the highest rate you’ll see among business cards. If maximizing your rewards earnings is a priority, I’d recommend checking your other card options.

Learn more in our Capital One Spark Classic for Business review.

Brex Credit Card

The Brex Credit Card is geared toward growing and scaled startup companies, so this won’t be an option if you’re a sole proprietor. But if your business is registered as a corporation, limited liability company (LLC), or limited partnership (LP), the Brex card might be what you’re looking for.

I like that you can get approved for the Brex Credit Card with only an employer identification number (EIN), meaning no hard credit inquiry on your personal credit report. A $0 annual fee is always nice, and so is the opportunity to earn rewards that you can redeem for travel or transfer to travel partners. Pair these redemption options with the fact that you don’t have to pay foreign transaction fees, and you’ve got a decent business travel card on your hands.

The Brex Credit Card earns 7X points on rideshare, 4X on Brex Travel, 3X at restaurants and on eligible Apple products, 2X on software subscriptions, and 1X on all other purchases with Brex Exclusive. Brex transfer partners include:

• Aeromexico
• Air France KLM
• Avianca
• Singapore Airlines
• Emirates
• Asia Miles
• Qantas

The card requires at least $50,000 in a linked bank account, which can be steep for some startups. It’s nice that there’s no personal credit check, but you have to put up a lot of money for a chance at approval.

Brex credit limits flex according to your business’s cash balance, and requires visibility into your linked accounts. If something goes wrong with the link between Brex and your bank account(s), your credit limit can drop to $0.

Learn more in our Brex Credit Card review.

First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard Credit Card

As the name suggests, the First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard Credit Card is a secured credit card. Secured credit cards tend to have lower credit requirements than standard credit cards. This could be helpful if you haven’t had success with other business credit cards.

As with other secured credit cards, you have to put down a security deposit for this card, which can be between $2,000 and $10,000. Your security deposit will earn interest.

On top of the security deposit, you also have to pay a $39 annual fee for this card.

Learn more about the FNBO Business Edition Secured Mastercard Credit Card.

Ramp Card

The Ramp Card is a straightforward rewards card that earns up to 1.5% cash back on qualified purchases (varies by customer and determined by Ramp). This makes it easy to use this card for all your business needs, regardless of which category the expenses fall under.

It’s also helpful that the Ramp Card has a $0 annual fee. There is no personal credit check or personal guarantee required when you apply, which is handy for someone without the best credit score but who has the money to back up their credit limit.

You need at least $50,000 in a linked bank account to apply. Sole proprietors aren’t eligible for the Ramp card, as it’s only for only corporations, LLCs, and LPs.

Learn more about the Ramp Card.

Alternative cards if your credit needs work

You don’t necessarily need to use a business credit card for your business expenses. You can also use consumer credit cards for your business, which opens up more opportunities to find cards for poor credit.

But keep in mind that personal credit cards generally report activity to the major credit bureaus, including Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. So using these cards wouldn’t necessarily help build your business credit score, which is something that could help you secure business financing.

Additionally, by using a personal credit card, you wouldn’t be separating your personal finances from your business finances. This can seriously complicate your accounting and tax filing. I recommend keeping your business and personal finances as separate as possible.

Here are a few recommendations for consumer credit cards to consider if you have poor credit:

• Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card: Has a $0 annual fee and provides unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, every day; plus unlimited 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
• Capital One Platinum Secured Credit Card: Has a $0 annual fee and requires a $49, $99, or $200 minimum security deposit.
• OpenSky^® Secured Visa^® Credit Card: Has a $35 annual fee and doesn’t perform a credit check when you apply.

Find more options in our list of the best credit cards for poor credit.

How to choose a business credit card

There are some differences between business credit cards versus personal cards, including interest rates. However, they typically share the same decision-making factors whether you’re choosing a business or personal credit card for bad credit.

Here’s what to consider before you choose the best credit card for bad credit.

Credit score requirements

If you have bad or poor credit, skip any card that typically has strict credit score requirements. This includes credit cards that might require a good or excellent credit score. You’re not likely to get approved, and the hard inquiry on your credit report could pull your score down further.

Rather, it makes sense to focus on credit cards that don’t do a credit check at all or have more lenient requirements. This could help improve your chances of getting approved.

Keep in mind that credit cards that don’t do credit checks often have other ways to determine your creditworthiness or to reduce the risk for credit card issuers. For example, most secured credit cards will require a security deposit.

Annual fee

In general, credit cards with annual fees have better benefits and/or rewards than cards with no annual fees. This could include a higher rewards rate, no foreign transaction fees, or any number of other benefits.

But having an annual fee is similar to paying an upfront cost every year as a cardmember. This is fine if you think you get enough value from your card to be worth the cost, but no-annual-fee cards are less stressful.

Learn more about no-annual-fee business credit cards.

Card benefits

Does the card offer benefits like purchase protection or extended warranty coverage? Does it charge foreign transaction fees? It’s worth taking your time to see which perks you might receive as a cardholder – and which you’ll actually use.

For business cards, consider how each card might help you with your business goals. This could include tracking expenses, issuing employee cards, or earning bonus rewards on common business purchases.

Rewards rate

Earning cash back, points, or miles can be beneficial if you own a business with loads of expenses. But not all rewards credit cards are equal, so pay attention to earning rates on different cards.

If two cards are similar in most other ways, but one has a higher earning rate, it likely makes sense to choose the potentially more rewarding card.

Welcome bonus

Not all credit cards provide welcome offers for new cardholders, but many do. It can be an easy way to earn extra rewards for purchases you were already planning on making.

FAQs

Bottom line

There are a few options for business credit cards for bad credit, typically including secured business credit cards or business cards that don’t require a personal credit check.

Apart from these options, you also have the Capital One Spark Classic for Business. We like it because it’s a cash back rewards card that generally only requires a fair credit score. Keep in mind that card issuers look at multiple factors when determining your eligibility, so having a certain credit score won’t guarantee your approval.

For more of our top recommendations, compare credit cards and credit card offers.