Best Secured Business Credit Cards
How can you get a business credit card if you have less than perfect credit? If your goal is to strengthen or build business credit, this post is for you.
You’ve probably heard a secured credit card can be a good option to build or rebuild your personal credit. But what about businesses?
As a business owner, you need a different approach: a secured business credit card that builds your business credit.
What Is a Secured Business Credit Card?
A secured business credit card requires a refundable deposit before a card account can be opened. With the majority of secured business credit cards, the amount you deposit becomes the credit limit of the card.
You will also need to link your business bank account to the card account in order to load the security deposit to your card and make future credit card payments.
Keep in mind with a secured business credit card, you can make purchases just like a regular credit card. With this card, your payment history is reported to business credit reporting agencies such as Dun & Bradstreet, Experian Commercial and Equifax Small Business to name a few.
The main benefit to secured business credit cards is the ease of approval. You don’t need good credit to qualify. Secured business credit cards are designed for business owners who have less than perfect credit or little to no credit history.
Let’s face it, credit cards are an essential tool needed for day-to-day business activities. If you’re paying for supplies, booking a hotel, purchasing airline tickets for business travel, or simply taking a client out to lunch; a business credit card is a must.
Putting a small deposit down for a business credit card is a smart decision. It helps you build business credit, keeps personal and business expenses separate, and may potentially lead you to acquiring an unsecured business credit card.
Choosing the Best Secured Business Credit Card for Your Company
It’s important to not only examine the card’s benefits, fees and rewards, but also which business credit bureau(s) the card issuer reports to. Other factors to consider are both the minimum and maximum security deposit offered.
Tips to Avoid Issues with a Secured Business Credit Card Approval
You’re probably wondering how can someone get declined for a secured business credit card? Unfortunately, it does happen but not because of personal credit issues. Listed below are several of the most common issues that trigger a decline according to secured business credit card issuer, Tillful.
- Address on CP 575 EIN Confirmation Letter (Mismatch)
- Applicant name does not match (ex. last name change)
- Sole proprietor – this structure is vulnerable to fraud so may have issue
- Restricted industry (Cannabis, small arms, adult, financial, online advice and counseling)
- High risk industry – transportation, construction, retail
Now that you know what to look out for before applying, let’s dive into our top list of secured business credit cards.
Tillful Secured Business Credit Card
Issued by Sutton Bank
To apply go to => http://securedbusinesscredit.org
This by far is the best secured business credit card you can get. There is no credit check and no personal guarantee and requires the smallest deposit across all other cards.
- No credit check & no personal guarantee
- Must be incorporated for at least 3 months
- Minimum $500 security deposit (credit line will equal deposit)
- Earn 1.5% rewards on purchases
- 0% APR
- No annual fee
- Security deposit does not earn interest
- Transition opportunity to an unsecured card (coming soon)
- Reports to Experian Business & Equifax Small Business
Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards Mastercard® Secured credit card
Issued by Bank of America
- Credit check & personal guarantee required
- Minimum $1,000 security deposit (credit line equals deposit)
- Earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases
- 26.49% variable APR
- No annual fee
- Security deposit does not earn interest
- Transition opportunity to an unsecured card
- Reports to Equifax Small Business
To apply go to https://www.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/credit-cards/
Valley Secured Business Credit Card
Issued by Valley Bank
- Credit check & personal guarantee required
- Request credit limit between $1,000 – $25,000
- Security deposit is 110% if the amount of your credit limit up to $25,000
- 1% unlimited cash back
- 0% intro APR on purchases for first 9 months
- 15.20% to 26.75% variable APR
- No annual fee
- Security deposit does not earn interest
- Reports to Experian Business, Equifax Small Business and Dun & Bradstreet
To apply go to https://www.valley.com/business/commercial-lending/business-credit-cards/secured-business-credit-card
FNBO Business Edition® Secured Mastercard® credit card
Issued by First National Bank of Omaha
- Credit check (Experian) & personal guarantee required
- Request credit limit between $2,000 – $100,000 (multiples of $50)
- Security deposit is 110% if the amount of your credit limit between $2,200 and $110,000
- 23.99% variable APR
- $39 annual fee
- Reports to Dun & Bradstreet
- Earn interest on your security deposit
To apply go to https://www.fnbo.com/small-business/credit-cards/
Hello Alice Small Business Secured Mastercard®
Issued by First National Bank of Omaha
- Soft inquiry for initial pre-qualification (secured/unsecured)
- Credit check & personal guarantee required
- Minimum $550 security deposit
- Earn up to 4X points on purchases
- Earn $50 statement credit ($1k purchases/3 cycles)
- 0% Intro APR – first 6 billing cycles
- 18.49% – 27.49% variable APR
- $0 annual fee
- Reports to personal and business credit reports
- Seamless transition to unsecured (min 11 months)
To apply go to https://helloalice.com
Platinum Rewards Secured Business Visa® Credit Card
Issued by Suncoast Credit Union
- Credit check & personal guarantee required
- Minimum $500 security deposit
- Security deposit does earn interest
- Reports to business credit reports
- Must be credit union member to apply
To become a member, go to https://www.suncoastcreditunion.com/business
For business owners like yourself, it’s crucial to have access to a business credit card. By choosing the best secured business credit card for your needs, you can take advantage of all the benefits credit cards provide and build business credit to ensure the success of your company.
Ready to build your business credit? Become a member of my Business Credit Insiders Circle and gain access to a proven step-by-step business credit building system. A system that provides you access to vendor credit, retail credit, gas cards, business credit cards with and without a PG, funding sources and lenders that report to all the major business credit bureaus. Submit your name and email below for details and receive our Business Credit Insiders Newsletter and business credit audio seminar ($497 value) =>
To Your Success in Business and in Life!
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About the author
Marco Carbajo is a business credit expert, author, speaker, and founder of the Business Credit Insiders Circle. He has written articles for Dun and Bradstreet, the SBA.gov, Business.com, About.com and AllBusiness.com. His articles and blog; Business Credit Blogger.com, have been featured in ‘Fox Small Business’, ‘American Express Small Business’, ‘Business Week’, ‘The Washington Post’, ‘The New York Times’, ‘The San Francisco Tribune’, Alltop, and Entrepreneur Connect.