Editor’s note: This is a recurring post with regularly updated card details.
The best small business credit cards for fair credit have low fees and offer features that may be needed for your business. Those that offer ongoing rewards are a plus. To find the one that suits your business, consider your regular expenses, the credit limit you’ll need, and whether you prefer to earn rewards on purchases. Our list includes a regular business card, secured business cards, business debit and prepaid cards, and a cobranded fuel card.
Here are the seven best business credit cards for business owners with fair credit:
- Capital One Spark Classic for Business: Best overall for those who want an unsecured business credit card
- Capital On Tap Business Credit Card: Best for those with significant purchases
- First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard: Best secured card with a high credit limit
- Emburse Spend Card: Best prepaid card with no personal credit check and unlimited 1% cash back
- Bento for Business Visa Debit Card: Best debit card with no personal guarantee
- Brex Card: Best for those who prefer to make daily or monthly payments
- Shell Small Business Card: Best for fuel expenses and businesses with fleets
Best Business Credit Cards for Fair Credit At a Glance
Best For | Annual Fee | Sign-up Bonus | Rewards | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Capital One Spark Classic for Business | (Best overall) for those who want an unsecured business credit card | None | None | Unlimited 1% cash back on all purchases | |
 Capital on Tap Business Credit Card | Those with significant purchases | None | $200 cash back | Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase | |
 First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition Secured Mastercard | Best secured card with a high credit limit | $39 | None | None | |
 Emburse Spend Card | Best prepaid card with no personal credit check and unlimited 1% cash back | None | None | Unlimited 1% cash back on all purchases | |
 Bento for Business Visa® Debit Card | Best debit card with no personal guarantee | None, but charges monthly fees starting at $29 | None | None | |
 Brex Card | Those who prefer to make daily or monthly payments | None | Up to 8x points on selected categories | ||
 Shell Small Business Card | Fuel expenses and businesses with fleets | None | None | Rebates of up to 5 cents per gallon |
Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business: Best Overall For Those Wanting an Unsecured Business Credit Card
Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business
BEST FOR:
Those with fair credit
- 1% cash back every time you swipe
- Build your business credit through responsible usage
- Issue employee cards for free
Pros
- Opportunity to build business credit
- Only requires fair credit to qualify
- Doesn’t charge annual and balance transfer fees
Cons
- Charges high ongoing APR
- Has no 0% introductory APR
- No sign-up bonus
- Automatic payments: Setting up AutoPay in the Capital One mobile app will save you from having to worry about signing in to your account every month
- $0 fraud liability: If your card is either lost or stolen, you can get an emergency replacement and cash advance.
- Purchase records: You can download all purchase records quickly and securely in multiple formats, including Quicken®, QuickBooks®, and Excel®.
- Extended warranty: Get free additional warranty and protection on eligible items purchased with your business credit card.
- Free employee cards: You can create multiple employee cards, track employee spending, and customize spending limits while earning all the rewards from their purchases.
- 1% cash back every time you swipe
- Build your business credit through responsible usage
- Issue employee cards for free
Pros
- Opportunity to build business credit
- Only requires fair credit to qualify
- Doesn’t charge annual and balance transfer fees
Cons
- Charges high ongoing APR
- Has no 0% introductory APR
- No sign-up bonus
- Automatic payments: Setting up AutoPay in the Capital One mobile app will save you from having to worry about signing in to your account every month
- $0 fraud liability: If your card is either lost or stolen, you can get an emergency replacement and cash advance.
- Purchase records: You can download all purchase records quickly and securely in multiple formats, including Quicken®, QuickBooks®, and Excel®.
- Extended warranty: Get free additional warranty and protection on eligible items purchased with your business credit card.
- Free employee cards: You can create multiple employee cards, track employee spending, and customize spending limits while earning all the rewards from their purchases.
Who Should Consider the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business
This is our best business credit card for Fair Credit, making it a great option for those who want an unsecured business credit card to help build their business credit scores. It is also included in our roundups of the best credit cards for self-employed and business credit cards with no foreign transaction fee.
Reward:
- Unlimited 1% cash back on all purchases, with no limits or category restrictions
Other Benefits:
- Charges $0 annual, foreign transaction, and balance transfer fees
- Lets you choose your own monthly due date, giving you the control to pay when you want
Important Considerations:
- It charges a high interest rate, which can become costly if you carry a balance.
- It does not have a sign-up bonus.
- It requires you to pay your balances in full each month.
Capital On Tap Business Credit Card: Best for Those With Significant Purchases
Capital On Tap Business Credit Card Visa
BEST FOR:
Those who want fixed-rate cash back rewards
- Unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases
Pros
- No annual, foreign transaction, and cash advance fees
- Low starting annual percentage rate (APR)
- High credit limit available
Cons
- Balance transfers aren’t allowed
- Sole proprietors and nonprofit orgs are not eligible
- Low sign-up bonus with high spending requirement
- Unlimited, free cards for employees
- Instant, virtual card is available right after approval
- Credit limits up to $50,000
- Uncapped 1.5% cash back on every purchase
- Unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases
Pros
- No annual, foreign transaction, and cash advance fees
- Low starting annual percentage rate (APR)
- High credit limit available
Cons
- Balance transfers aren’t allowed
- Sole proprietors and nonprofit orgs are not eligible
- Low sign-up bonus with high spending requirement
- Unlimited, free cards for employees
- Instant, virtual card is available right after approval
- Credit limits up to $50,000
- Uncapped 1.5% cash back on every purchase
Who Should Consider the Capital On Tap Business Credit Card
This is an excellent business credit card for fair credit for those who frequently make significant purchases for their business. Issued by WebBank, it lets you acquire a maximum credit limit of $50,000, offers a low minimum regular APR, and lets you earn cash back rewards on all purchases. These are why it made it in our lists of the best high-limit business credit cards, top instant approval business credit cards, and leading small business credit cards.
Reward:
- Unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases
Other Benefits:
- Offers $200 back after spending $15,000 within the first three months of card ownership
- Lets you create unlimited employee cards at no additional cost
- Allows you to apply for the card without impacting your credit score
- Enables you to set credit limits of up to $50,000
Important Considerations:
- Sole proprietors, charities or nonprofit organizations, and clubs or other nonregistered organizations are unable to apply for the card.
- It requires a high-spending requirement to receive the sign-up bonus.
First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition® Secured® Mastercard®: Best Secured Card With a High Credit Limit
First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition® Secured Mastercard® Card
BEST FOR:
Secured credit lines of as much as $100,000
- While FNBO does not offer any rewards for their new and existing cardholders for this card, you can still earn rewards through Mastercard Easy Savings®, where cardholders are able to save on purchases with automatic rebates from over 40,000 participating merchant locations available.
Pros
- Available for those with very poor to good scores
- Can set credit limits between $2,000 and $100,000
- Offers free management reports
Cons
- With annual fee
- Charges foreign transaction fee
- No introductory and ongoing rewards
- Requires a security deposit of 110% of the credit limit required
- TurboTax discount: Get a discount of up to $20 on TurboTax federal products when using First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition® Secured Mastercard®.
- QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Self-Employed discount: Receive either a 30% off of a 12-month subscription on QuickBooks Online (Simple Start, Essentials, Plus, or Advanced) or a 30% off of a 12-month subscription on QuickBooks Self-Employed. This is applicable only to new QuickBooks Online customers.
- Free management reports: First National Bank of Omaha provides free management reports to help track expenses, monitor spending, note tax deductions, prepare tax filings, and predict costs easily.
- Zero liability: FNBO guarantees that you won’t be held responsible for any fraudulent charges made with both your card and account information.
- While FNBO does not offer any rewards for their new and existing cardholders for this card, you can still earn rewards through Mastercard Easy Savings®, where cardholders are able to save on purchases with automatic rebates from over 40,000 participating merchant locations available.
Pros
- Available for those with very poor to good scores
- Can set credit limits between $2,000 and $100,000
- Offers free management reports
Cons
- With annual fee
- Charges foreign transaction fee
- No introductory and ongoing rewards
- Requires a security deposit of 110% of the credit limit required
- TurboTax discount: Get a discount of up to $20 on TurboTax federal products when using First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition® Secured Mastercard®.
- QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Self-Employed discount: Receive either a 30% off of a 12-month subscription on QuickBooks Online (Simple Start, Essentials, Plus, or Advanced) or a 30% off of a 12-month subscription on QuickBooks Self-Employed. This is applicable only to new QuickBooks Online customers.
- Free management reports: First National Bank of Omaha provides free management reports to help track expenses, monitor spending, note tax deductions, prepare tax filings, and predict costs easily.
- Zero liability: FNBO guarantees that you won’t be held responsible for any fraudulent charges made with both your card and account information.
Who Should Consider the First National Bank of Omaha Business Edition® Secured® Mastercard®
This is one of the best business credit cards for fair credit for those who are looking for a secured business credit card with a high credit limit. It only requires a credit score between 300 and 719 to qualify. It is our leading secured business credit card due to its high credit limit. First National Bank of Omaha serves communities in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming.
Other Benefits:
- Offers automatic rebates from more than 40,000 participating merchant locations through the Mastercard Easy Savings®
- Guarantees that you will not be held responsible for any fraudulent charges made with your card via zero liability
- Provides coverage on automobile rentals paid with your card
Important Considerations:
- It requires a security deposit of 110% of the desired credit limit.
- It charges annual fees, which is at $39.
- It does not offer rewards.
Emburse Spend Card: Best Prepaid Card With No Personal Credit Check & Unlimited 1% Cash Back
 Emburse Spend CardBEST FOR: Earning unlimited cash back rewards | |
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Spending Limit | Load Limit |
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Costs | |
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Who Should Consider the Emburse Spend Card
Issued by Celtic Bank (member FDIC), this card is a viable option if you are looking for a card with no personal guarantee and to earn fixed-rate cash back rewards. It’s also an excellent choice if you intend to issue multiple physical and virtual cards at no additional costs. This card made it to our lists of the best business credit cards for bad credit, top-recommended small business credit cards, leading cash back business credit cards, and top business credit cards for startups due to its unlimited cash back rewards and no additional fees.
Reward:
- Unlimited 1% cash back on all purchases
Other Benefits:
- Offers Emburse Spend, available on iOS and PC, which can help track real-time expenses, categorize vendors, and approve or reject transactions; it is free to use if you have fewer than 100 employees and is one of our best spend management software
- Lets you load the card either through automated clearing house (ACH) transfer or connect to any bank in the US and use the account and routing number to transfer funds
- Enables you to set amount restrictions depending on your business needs; note that there are four modes: Budget, Daily, Weekly, and Monthly
Important Considerations:
- It is unable to make ATM withdrawals.
- It does not have a sign-up bonus.
- It cannot be used to build your business credit scores.
Bento for Business Visa Debit Card: Best Debit Card With No Personal Guarantee
 Bento for Business Visa® Debit CardBEST FOR: Those who need robust spend controls | |
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Spending Limit | Load Limit |
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Costs | |
Monthly fees
Additional fees
Further details
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Who Should Consider the Bento for Business Visa Debit Card
Issued by The Bancorp Bank N.A. (member FDIC), this business prepaid card is a great choice if you are looking for a card that does not report to credit bureaus. It is also accessible to all business owners, regardless of their business size and revenue requirements.
Additionally, it has a straightforward monthly fee structure (which is based on how many cards you need for your business), offers a high maximum spend limit of $25,000 per day, and does not charge on domestic and international transactions. These are why it is our best business prepaid card and our top business credit card with no personal guarantee.
Other Benefits:
- Lets you create multiple virtual and physical cards, depending on your business needs. Within physical cards, it offers two different options:
- Spend limit card: Lets you set limits that can be used for everyday purchases
- Fixed-limit card: Can be used for one-time payments or transactions that don’t require monitoring, such as per diem for employees
- Allows you to pay invoices digitally using only your vendors’ email addresses through Bento Pay™—vendors don’t need to sign up for Bento and choose when and how they get paid; also allows business owners to send business-to-business (B2B) payments at any time while tracking all payments and payees in one place
- Offers several ways to load your Bento account: via direct Bento transfer, automatic deposit via Bento, bank transfer through ACH, and wire transfers.
Important Considerations:
- It charges fees depending on the number of cards you need for your business.
- It does not offer rewards.
Brex Card: Best for Those Who Prefer to Pay Daily or Monthly Payments
 Brex CardBEST FOR: Those who want daily or monthly payments | |
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Spending Limit | Load Limit |
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Costs | |
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Who Should Consider the Brex Card
Brex Card is a great card for those with Fair Credit as it can work as a travel and expense card, vendor card, benefits card, and purchasing card. It also lets you earn points on your purchases, which you can redeem for cash back, credits, rebates, and billboards. The ability to create cards depending on your business needs and letting you earn points rewards are why we included the card in our roundups of the best credit cards for startups and top-recommended corporate cards.
The Brex Card is issued by Emigrant Bank and Fifth Third Bank, NA. See Brex’s partner banks—all are Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)-insured.
Rewards:
Variations of the Brex Exclusive Program | Specific Rewards |
|---|---|
Brex Exclusive Life Science Rewards |
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Brex Exclusive Daily Payments Rewards | Advertising
Software
Life sciences
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Brex Exclusive Custom Rewards | This is for companies that have more than 50 Brex users and that can meet minimum spending commitments. Contact any Brex Sales Representative to learn more about it. |
Other Benefits:
- Offers 10,000 points after spending $3,000 within the first three months after account activation
- Offers an expense management system that lets users track expenses, matches receipts automatically, and identifies excess spending
- Has no setup and installation fees
Important Considerations:
- It requires a Brex Business Account to acquire the card; read our review of Brex Business Account for information.
- Its rewards are not as inclusive compared to other cards.
- It does not allow ATM withdrawals.
Shell Small Business Card: Best for Fuel Expenses and Businesses With Fleets
Shell Small Business Card
BEST FOR:
Larger businesses
- Earn rebates of up to 5 cents per gallon
Pros
- Zero card fees
- Discounts at Jiffy Lube locations
Cons
- Businesses need to earn at least $1 million annually to qualify
- Total savings capped at $300 per billing cycle
- Online and mobile account management
- Cancel stolen or lost cards in real time online
- 24/7 customer service available
- Payment flexibility―revolve your balance or pay in full each billing cycle
- Earn rebates of up to 5 cents per gallon
Pros
- Zero card fees
- Discounts at Jiffy Lube locations
Cons
- Businesses need to earn at least $1 million annually to qualify
- Total savings capped at $300 per billing cycle
- Online and mobile account management
- Cancel stolen or lost cards in real time online
- 24/7 customer service available
- Payment flexibility―revolve your balance or pay in full each billing cycle
Who Should Consider the Shell Small Business Fuel Card
This is a viable business credit card for fair credit for small businesses with fleet vehicles or those that are constantly on the road. This card can be used at nearly 13,000 Shell stations and participating Jiffy Lube locations nationwide. It does not charge setup, monthly, or annual fees, and gives the ability to carry a balance each month with interest. These are why it is one of our top-recommended fuel cards for small businesses.
Reward:
- Rebates of up to 5 cents per gallon
Other Benefits:
- Offers ClearViewTM Snap and ClearView Essentials, which let you pull up detailed fueling activity reports, which makes it easier to track business spending
- Lets you know who purchased what, where, and when—making it easier to track all financial transactions with DriverDash
- Lets you set limits on what and how much can be purchased per employee card; you can also activate, suspend, and terminate cards through online and mobile tools
Important Considerations
- It is only viable if you purchase fuel at Shell.
- It requires businesses to earn at least $1 million annually to qualify.
How We Selected the Best Small Business Credit Cards for Fair Credit
In choosing the best small business cards for fair credit, we looked at cards that have a low or no annual fee and offer features that your small business may find valuable. We also took into account their interest rates, introductory and ongoing rewards, and other features and benefits, as well as whether they report to the credit bureaus and help grow your credit score.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Fair Credit has credit scores between 580 and 669.
Having a good credit score (between 670 and 739) means that you are eligible to apply for business credit cards with higher rewards, benefits, and perks. Meanwhile, having a fair credit score is considered just a step higher than poor credit (between 300 and 579), and business owners with fair credit scores are limited to financial opportunities, such as loans and applications for business credit cards. It is rather important for business owners to find ways to quickly reach at least good credit.
Bottom Line
When you have a fair credit score, some business credit cards can help improve your credit if you use them responsibly and pay your bills on time. After approval, take advantage of free online and mobile banking to track your expenditures and create reminders to pay your credit card bill. Once your credit score improves, you’ll be eligible for a wider variety of cards with richer rewards and benefits.
