The Amex Business Green Card can be worth its
$95 annual fee if you earn the initial bonus and pay your bill in full each month to avoid expensive interest charges. It gives you
1 point per $1 spent, plus
15,000 points for spending
$3,000 in the first
3 months.
As a result, small business owners with good credit or better who are looking for a reliable card to use for business expenses may want to consider the American Express Business Green Card. However, it’s unlikely to be the top choice for most qualified applicants, considering how attractive the alternatives are right now.
You can learn more below, including how the Business Green Amex compares to the average credit card offer market-wide and the best overall business credit cards.
What I Like About the Amex Business Green Card
Rewards on every eligible purchase
You will earn 1 point per $1 spent on most eligible purchases made with the American Express Business Green Card. Getting some rewards is always better than nothing, but that's not so hot, seeing as the average cash rewards card offers
1.2 points/miles per $1 while the
best rewards cards give you double that.
The 2 points you’ll earn per $1 spent on flights and prepaid hotels via AmexTravel.com are a bit better. That earning rate still isn’t elite, though.
Decent Initial Bonus
If you spend at least
$3,000 within
3 months of opening an account, you will earn a bonus of
15,000 points.
The bonus is below the market average, seeing as the average offer includes
35,124 points or miles, according to our research. However, it does more than offset the annual fee, which is helpful.
What I Don’t Like About the Amex Business Green Card
$95 annual fee
The Amex Business Green Card will cost you about four times more than the market
average, according to our research. The best rewards credit cards can justify charging similar annual fees because they offer more than enough rewards value to make up for it. But that can’t be said of the American Express Green Business Card.
Foreign fee
The American Express Business Green Card is far from the best option for small business owners who travel abroad or make purchases through internationally based merchants. Not only will all such purchases be inflated by a foreign-transaction fee (
2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars), but Amex isn’t as widely accepted abroad as Visa and Mastercard.
No financing appeal
The Amex Green Business Card is not a traditional credit card and thus won’t let you carry a balance from month to month in most cases. Certain transactions may qualify for the “Pay Over Time” feature (up to your Pay Over Time Limit), which allows you to carry an interest-accruing balance. All charges not added to a Pay Over Time balance must be paid in full each month by the payment due date.
Good personal credit recommended
You – not your business – need good or excellent credit to be eligible for the Business Green Rewards Card from American Express. If you’re thinking about applying, you can
check your latest credit score for free here on WalletHub.
If you know you want an Amex but aren’t sold on Business Green, check out the other
American Express business cards available right now. There are several good options to choose from.
Note: This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. Opinions and ratings are our own.