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Sound financial management is essential to ensure the stability and growth of your business. Furthermore, using an American Express business card is an essential tool for entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals. Specifically, to optimize cash flow management, take advantage of Amex online offers, and, of course, obtain travel benefits. That being said, do you need a charge card or a credit card? In this article, we explore the different American Express business cards and help you choose based on your professional needs.
American Express business cards differ from “Corporate” cards reserved for large corporations. They are primarily aimed at the following customer segments:
Quite often, self-employed individuals tend to use their personal credit cards for their business expenses. At the end of the year, it becomes difficult to keep track and separate business expenses from personal expenses.
To learn more about the benefits of American Express business credit cards, consult this guide:
To apply for an American Express business card, it is advisable to have a registered business. That being said, having a registered business is not a decisive criterion when applying. Indeed, it is entirely possible to register your own name instead of the business name. Quite often, self-employed individuals earning less than $30,000 in annual revenue include this in their personal income tax return.
If you still wish to register your business with the Registrar of Enterprises, consult the following guides:
Additionally, if you need help filling out your first American Express business card application, consult the following guide:
American Express cards for Business offer financial flexibility, particularly through credit card and charge card options. The main difference concerns the associated spending limits and repayment terms:
Here is more information on each type of card…
A charge card is a card that must be paid in full each month. Its advantage is having no pre-established limit. Moreover, these cards allow you to maximize the cash flow over 55 days, which is convenient.
American Express Business Charge cards are:
For small businesses that conduct numerous transactions in a month, it is recommended to choose a payment card such as the American Express® Business Gold Rewards Card®.
A credit card is a card whose balance can be carried over from month to month against interest payments (not recommended) and which has a pre-established credit limit. You can, if needed, obtain a limit increase. If a limit increase is offered by American Express, there will be no impact on your credit file.
Additionally, you can transfer unused credit from your personal American Express credit cards (such as the Marriott Bonvoy® Business American Express®* Card) to your American Express business card.
American Express Business Credit Cards are:
If you are a self-employed individual or a professional with a few monthly transactions, we recommend choosing a credit card such as the Marriott BonvoyMD Business American ExpressMD* Card. It is the least expensive American Express business credit card.
Now that you know the target businesses and types of business cards, discover the best cards based on your business needs. Moreover, American Express offers business cards in 3 loyalty programs:
Here is more information for each of these cards…
Do you wish to earn Aeroplan points with your business purchases? The AeroplanMD* Business Reserve American ExpressMD Card is for you. With this Card, you earn:
In addition, you enjoy access to Maple Leaf lounges in North America, a first checked bag for you and up to 8 travel companions, an annual companion pass, and several exclusive benefits with Air Canada.
The AeroplanMD* Business Reserve American ExpressMD Card is the best Aeroplan credit card for self-employed individuals, professionals, or small businesses who travel with Air Canada or use Aeroplan.
The Marriott Bonvoy® Business American Express®* Card has an annual fee of $150. As heavy users of the Marriott Bonvoy program, we renew this card year after year to benefit from an attractive advantage: the annual certificate for a free hotel night (worth 35,000 points). We generally use this certificate in major cities abroad to get the best possible return. It is not uncommon for a hotel night to cost 300 euros, which easily justifies the annual fee of the card.
Among its other benefits, it offers 5 Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels. It is also useful for small businesses with significant gas or restaurant purchases, as it offers 3 Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar in these categories.
The Marriott BonvoyMD Business American ExpressMD* Card is particularly recommended for self-employed individuals, professionals, or small businesses who stay at Marriott Bonvoy hotels. It is complementary to the Marriott BonvoyMD American ExpressMD* Card, and you can, of course, keep both.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has an annual fee of $799. It is the most expensive card among those offering Membership Rewards Points. However, in exchange for the high annual fee, it offers numerous benefits:
Furthermore, it is with its free and unlimited access to airport lounges that the American Express Business PlatinumMD Card stands out. The cardholder gets free and unlimited access to over 1,400 airport lounges in over 130 countries for themselves and an additional traveler.
The American Express Business PlatinumMD Card is particularly recommended for self-employed individuals, professionals, or small businesses who travel regularly in Canada or worldwide. Its airport lounge access represents an undeniable advantage.
The American ExpressMD Business Gold Rewards Card for SMEs is often the first card small businesses apply for. It has an annual fee of $199. Among other things, it allows you to earn a quarterly bonus of 10,000 points when you charge $20,000 in net purchases to your Card account during each calendar quarter. This represents up to $400 in statement credits each year.
Let’s take the example of a quarterly billing period that starts on April 1st and ends on June 30th. You must therefore have made $20,000 in purchases on your card during this period to benefit from the 10,000 point bonus. Please note: purchases must be posted to your account before the deadline. If they are “pending”, you will not receive your bonus.
American Express business cards regularly feature welcome offers for new clients.
With this welcome offer for the American Express Aeroplan Business Reserve Card, you can earn up to 90,000 Aeroplan points:
With this Card, you earn 3X the points on purchases made directly with Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations. And 2X the points on hotels and car rentals. Everywhere else, you will earn 1.25X the points.
With this Card, you benefit from many Air Canada travel benefits such as access to Maple Leaf lounges in North America for you and one guest, priority check-in, priority boarding and priority baggage handling.
Enjoy your first checked bag free (up to 23kg/50lb) for up to 9 people travelling on the same reservation on Air Canada®* flights.
Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.
The Marriott Bonvoy® Business American Express®* Card is the best credit card for the self-employed, professionals and small business owners who travel.
With this welcome offer, earn up to 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points:
It’s a card we recommend you keep, because each year at renewal, you’ll get an Annual Free Night Award for up to 35,000 points, plus 15 Elite nights per year, counting towards your Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
With this Card, you earn 5 points per dollar for all your spending at Marriott Bonvoy establishments, and you can earn 3 points per dollar for :
And 2 points per dollar on all other purchases.
Earn up to 40,000 Membership Rewards points* with the American Expressᴹᴰ Gold Rewards Card:
With this Card, you earn 1 Membership Rewards point per dollar on your purchases.
You can then use your points in many ways:
For example, with this welcome offer, if you decide to transfer your Membership Rewards points to a partner loyalty program, you would have the choice of earning up to:
Alternatively, 80,000 Membership Rewards points can be redeemed for $800 worth of travel or any other Card purchase.
Also, as a cardmember, you get many advantages such as up to 55 interest-free days to maximize your cash flow.
Finally, you are covered with reliable insurance for your travels and purchases.
In summary, you do not need to be the owner of a large business to obtain an American Express business card. Indeed, self-employed individuals and SME owners can apply for an Amex business card. Furthermore, using an American Express business credit card is an essential tool for simplifying your expense management and the accumulation of reward points, as well as for Amex online offers and travel benefits.
The advantages of subscribing to an American Express business credit card are numerous: separating business expenses from personal expenses, benefiting from Amex online offers, earning rewards on your everyday expenses, monitoring your employees’ expenses, optimizing cash flow management, and much more.
Like all American Express Canada cards, no minimum personal or business income is required. This is, in fact, one of the advantages of Amex business cards.
Whether you are self-employed or a small business owner, you can apply for an American Express business credit card as soon as you generate business income and expenses. You do not need to be incorporated.
For business needs, American Express offers credit cards and charge cards. The main difference concerns spending limits and repayment terms. With an American Express credit card, the spending limit is fixed and the balance can be carried over. With an American Express charge card, there is no predefined spending limit, but the balance must be paid in full each month.
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