Business

Best Credit Cards for Business Expenses in the UK

Caroline Wire

15.04.24 (last updated)

Read time 7 minutes

When you work for yourself, it’s a good idea to keep your business expenses separate from your personal spend.

There are two main reasons for this. Keeping business expenses apart from personal costs makes them clearer and easier to manage. Plus, you know exactly what is coming in and out of your business.

Using a credit card for business expenses is one way of making sure you deal with business expenses separately. In this article you’ll see the best credit cards for business expenses. We’ll also explore how you can manage your employees’ expenses using Wise Business debit cards.

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Why using personal credit card for business expenses isn’t recommended

You may find it easy to get a personal credit card. There are also some great deals available including interest free periods. However, using personal credit card for business expenses UK isn’t a good idea for the following reasons¹:

It becomes more difficult to track tax-deductible business expenses
You can’t build your business credit rating with a personal credit card
If your business is a limited company, keeping your business and personal dealings separate is essential to maintain this legal protection

How do business expenses cards work?

Expense cards are a type of business credit or debit card. These cards give you and your employees greater flexibility when making business purchases². As a business owner or manager you can control spending whilst still enabling employees to cover their work expenses. Using business expense cards gives you access to tools such as:

Setting spending limits.
Monitoring spending for each card.
Linking cards with your business accounting tools.
Reduces admin with less need for paper-based expense claims

Business expenses cards: types and differences

There are three types of card you can use for business expenses. These three types are prepaid cards that you can top up with a set amount, credit cards with an approved credit limit, and debit cards with funds coming from your business bank account.

The table below shows the comparison between these cards.

Prepaid expense cards	Expense credit cards	Expense debit cards
Spending comes from a prepaid balance on the card that you can top up	Spending comes from an agreed credit limit	Spending comes from your business bank account balance or your agreed overdraft
Some fees may apply	Fees are likely to apply	No fees apply unless you exceed the amount in your business bank account or your agreed overdraft limit
Simple application process with no credit checks	Business credit cards can be hard to get. The application process includes a credit check	Comes with your business bank account
Does not build your business credit rating	Builds your credit rating but can be damaging if you don’t make payments on time	Does not build your business credit rating
Expenses can be controlled	There’s a spending limit but there’s a danger of creating debt if you don’t make payments on time	There’s a spending limit but charges can be expensive if overspends happen

Using credit cards for business expenses: considerations

Using a credit card for business expenses may be a good move for your business if you manage its use in the right way. However, credit cards may not always be the best choice, so taking time to make the right choice is important. You’ll find some points to consider to help you decide

Why you may decide to use a business credit card
If your business doesn’t have much of a credit history, using a credit card responsibly can help build one
Encouraging employees to use a business credit card for expenses keeps all expenses in one place instead of separate expense claims
Having a rolling line of credit with several weeks before interest is charged makes it easier to budget
A business credit card helps you separate personal from business finances

Important considerations
Debts can build up if payments are made on time
You risk damaging your credit score if payments are late, making it more difficult to get funding for your business in future
If a card has an annual fee attached, your usage may not justify the fee involved

card-for-business-expenses

An alternative to business credit cards: Wise Employee Expense Cards

If you’re looking for an expense card for employees,Wise Employee Expense Cards are simple to use and help you control the expenses for your business. The features of these cards include:

Transparent fee of £3 per expense card for employees.
The facility to pre-set spending limits and control access to cards.
Reduced costs for international transactions as you get the mid-market exchange rate when you pay bills or expenses in foreign currencies.
The ability to pay in-store or online in more than 200 countries using 40+ currencies.
0,5% cashback) on purchases.

Discover how Wise can help manage business expenses 💰

Best credit cards for business expenses in the UK

In the list of best credit cards for business expenses below, you’ll find cards to consider based on points such as annual percentage rate (APR), interest rates, withdrawal fees, foreign transaction fees, and cashback or rewards.

Cashplus credit card³

You can use the Cashplus credit card to make purchases, cash payments and card withdrawals at millions of locations worldwide. You can currently only apply if you’ve received either an email or postal invitation from Cashplus to apply.

Whether you are approved or not will depend on factors such as your credit history and financial circumstances. Credit checks will be run before a decision is made, which will result in a hard search appearing on your credit record.

Features⁴	Fees⁴
Services	Cashplus is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Services that come with this card include: 24-hour fraud monitoring Easy expense monitoring UK-based customer service team
Annual percentage rate (APR)	Representative APR 29.9% (variable) dependent on circumstances
Interest rates	Interest rates as low as 19.9% variable on purchases (dependent on circumstances)
ATM Withdrawals fees	£3.00
Foreign currency transactions	2.99%
Cashback or rewards	1% cashback

Capital on Tap⁵

To apply for this credit card you must have an active business registered with Companies House as a private limited company (Ltd) or limited liability partnership (LLP). You must also have no unsatisfied CCJs against you in the last 12 months. Your business turnover must be at least £2,000 per month.

The basic account has no annual fee and gives you control of your business expenses in real time. The Business Rewards account costs £99 per year and includes bonus points and additional redemption options.

Features⁵	Fees⁵
Services	Capital On Tap is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Services that come with this card include: Credit limits up to £250,000 Auto sync with accounting software Unlimited company cards with spend controls
Annual percentage rate (APR)	Representative APR 29.9% (variable) dependent on circumstances
Interest rates	Interest rates as low as 15.5% variable (dependent on circumstances)
ATM Withdrawals fees	Free
Foreign currency transactions	Free
Cashback or rewards	1% cashback Exclusive offers like savings at Dropbox, Slack and Superscript

Barclays⁶

Barclays is a long-standing and trusted name in UK banking. Choose Barclays, and The Select Cashback credit card is one of three credit cards you can apply for. It gives you a fast and convenient way to manage business expenses. It’s also a good choice if you trade overseas as benefits include FX savings and cashback on travel and trade.

Other credit cards you can choose from at Barclays are the Premium Plus credit card and the Select charge card.

Features⁶	Fees⁶
Services	Barclays Bank PLC is regulated by the FCA. Features of the Select Cashback⁷ credit card include: No annual fees for the card or account Freshbooks accounting plan Exclusive perks and benefits
Annual percentage rate (APR)	27.5% variable dependent on circumstances
Interest rates	27.5% variable dependent on circumstances
ATM Withdrawals fees	2.99%
Foreign currency transactions	2.99%
Cashback or rewards	1% cashback, exclusive rewards and discounts

American Express⁸

American Express is a well-known global brand. To apply for the American Express Business Gold Card you must be at least 18 years old, have a permanent address in the UK, have a business bank or building society account, and be prepared to pay fees after the first twelve months.

Other American Express cards you can consider are the American Express® Business Platinum Card, British Airways American Express® Accelerating Business Card, Amazon Business Prime American Express® Card, Amazon Business, and American Express® Card.

Features	Fees
Services	American Express is regulated by the FCA. Features of the Amex Business Gold Card are: No annual fee for the first 12 months, then £195 per year Free employee cards Sync with accounting software Membership rewards programme
Annual percentage rate (APR)	This is a charge card so balances must be paid in full each month. A £12 late payment fee will apply
Interest rates	This is a charge card so balances must be paid in full each month. A £12 late payment fee will apply
ATM Withdrawals fees	3% (£3 minimum)
Foreign currency transactions	2.99%
Cashback or rewards	Reward points and access to exclusive business rewards

NatWest⁹

The business credit card from NatWest is for holders of a NatWest Business Banking account in the same legal entity name with NatWest whose business has a turnover of up to £2m.

There’s no annual card fee for the first twelve months and no fee after that if you spend £6,000 or more annually. You get a minimum credit limit of £500 and a maximum limit that’s subject to status.

Features	Fees
Services	NatWest is regulated by the FCA. Features of the NatWest Business Credit Card include: No annual fee for the first 12 months, normally £30. Fee waived if you spend over £6,000 annually Interest-free period of up to 56 days Sync with accounting software Merchant offers with business savings from Mastercard
Annual percentage rate (APR)	Representative APR of 24.3%
Interest rates	Representative APR of 16.9%
ATM Withdrawals fees	3% (minimum £3)
Foreign currency transactions	2.95%
Cashback or rewards	Earn 1% cashback at eligible fuel and electric vehicle charging stations

credit-card-for-business-expenses

Expenses made simple with Wise Business

You can efficiently manage your business spending with an easy to use Wise account. The account features help you keep track of your business spending.

You can access to expense cards for your employees, so you can keep control of spending. Plus, you get 0,5% cashback on Wise business cards. Overall, using a Wise Business simplifies your business expense management, so you can spend more time on other areas of the business that need your attention.

Get started with Wise Business 🚀

Efficient management of your business expenses is essential. To make sure this happens, you should keep your personal and business expenses separate. Using a business credit card is one way to do this. You can also use prepaid expense cards or a business debit card. If you decide to apply for a business credit card, choose one that best suits your needs. Pay attention to the features of the card that are most important to you, such as APR, foreign exchange rates, and rewards, and use this information when making your choice.

Sources:

Sources last checked Apr 15, 2024

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This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.

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