Amex Blue Business Cash Card benefits guide
Key takeaways
- The Amex Blue Business Cash Card offers an attractive welcome bonus, 2% cash back rate, 0% introductory APR, impressive travel benefits and charges no annual fee.
- The card’s Expanded Buying Power feature allows cardholders to spend beyond their credit limit when needed (the amount above isn't unlimited), which can be helpful when unexpected business expenses arise.
- Cardholders can maximize benefits by taking advantage of the reasonable spending requirement for the welcome bonus, utilizing the intro APR for large purchases, and making the most of travel benefits and expense management tools.
The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card is a solid cash back business credit card with some lucrative rewards, a $250 welcome bonus (earned after spending $3,000 in the first three months of account opening) and no annual fee.
While the card doesn’t have as extensive perks as some more luxury rewards cards, there are some helpful benefits associated with Amex Blue Business Cash, including Expanded Buying Power, an intro APR, travel benefits and expense management tools.
Amex Blue Business Cash Card travel benefits
Car rental loss and damage insurance
The Amex Blue Business Cash Card comes with car rental loss and damage insurance. As long as you use your card to rent the vehicle, this benefit allows you to waive the insurance offered by a rental car company if you rent a car.
Global Assist Hotline
If you come across any issues while traveling, such as a lost passport or illness, cardholders have access to the Amex Global Assist Hotline. This hotline can help you to get in touch with the appropriate services, such as legal or medical referrals.
Amex Blue Business Cash Card expense management tools
For businesses that use QuickBooks for accounting purposes, you can connect your Amex Blue Business Cash Card to QuickBooks in order to appropriately categorize transactions.
Pay vendors via Bill.com
Cardholders can use their Amex Blue Business Cash Card to pay bills with Vendor Pay by Bill.com. This can help businesses to manage cash flow and earn rewards while paying routine bills.
Extra employee cards
Account holders can add additional employee cards to the account for free, making it easier for multiple employees to continue earning rewards on all business expenses. You can also track employee spending and view summaries and reports.
American Express app
The American Express mobile app makes it easy to keep tabs on your account, pay bills, check your balance and more.
Year-end summary
The card comes with a handy year-end summary that lets cardholders view their spending patterns throughout the year. This can help cardholders to gain a more accurate understanding of their expenses and budget accordingly.
Other Amex Blue Business Cash Card benefits
Cash back rewards
This flat-rate cash back card comes with an impressive 2 percent cash back rate for the first $50,000 spent per year in eligible purchases. After $50,000 in spending, eligible purchases earn 1 percent back.
0% intro APR
The Amex Blue Business Cash Card features a 0 percent introductory APR on purchases for the first 12 months, followed by a variable APR between 18.49 percent to 26.49 percent. This gives business owners who need to make a significant purchase ample time to pay down their balance before they start incurring interest.
$250 welcome bonus
While this card’s welcome bonus isn’t quite as generous as some other rewards cards, it’s still a nice perk that’s relatively easy for new cardholders to qualify for. To earn the $250 welcome bonus, cardholders must spend $3,000 in the first three months.
Expanding Buying Power
One unique perk of the Amex Blue Business Cash Card is the ability to take advantage of its Expanded Buying Power feature. This enables cardholders to spend beyond their credit limit when needed. While the amount you can exceed your credit limit is not unlimited, it still provides a nice safety net for unexpected expenses or big purchases.
Purchase protection
This card also comes with American Express purchase protection. As long as you use your card to buy covered purchases, they can be protected from accidental damage or theft for up to 90 days.
Dispute resolution
If your card is used for a fraudulent transaction, Amex will help resolve the issue and make sure that your account is safe.
No annual fee
Unlike many other rewards credit cards, the Amex Blue Business Cash Card has no annual fee. This means that, no matter how much or little you spend on business expenses each year, this card is still an affordable option for your budget.
Maximizing the Amex Blue Business Cash Card
There are a few things new cardholders should do to maximize the benefits of this Amex business card. To start, cardholders should spend at least $3,000 in the first three months to qualify for the $250 welcome bonus. This card is also an ideal option for everyday purchases or expenses that might not neatly fit into other spending categories.
Cardholders can also take advantage of the intro APR offer on new purchases. If you have a large purchase in mind that will take time to pay down, this card is a good option since you’ll have 12 months to work toward paying off the balance (then a 18.49 percent to 26.49 percent variable ongoing APR applies).
While the Amex Blue Business Cash Card’s other benefits are fairly typical of mid-range rewards credit cards, it’s still a good idea to review them carefully for future use. For example, if you’re renting a car on a business-related trip, you can take advantage of the car rental loss and damage insurance — and if you use QuickBooks for your accounting, you can utilize the card’s built-in integration.
The bottom line
The Amex Blue Business Cash Card has a variety of benefits, including an impressive cash back rate, welcome bonus, low introductory APR, and other perks, like Expanded Buying Power and integrations with common business software.
For borrowers with annual expenses over $50,000, other American Express business credit cards with more lucrative rewards might be a better option. That said, it’s a good choice for small businesses looking for a simple, straightforward cash back credit card with no annual fee.