Key Differences Between Business & Personal Travel Credit Cards

Before delving into these differences, it’s worth noting that business travel credit cards work similarly to personal credit cards in many respects. When you make purchases using either type of card, you earn reward points that you can redeem for travel, such as flights or hotel stays, and you may also qualify for a range of other rewards.^1,2 But they also differ in certain aspects that could be important to a small business owner. You can generally apply for a business credit card even if you’re self-employed and don’t operate as a formal business entity, such as a corporation.³

Paying for expenses with a business travel credit card can help you keep your business and personal finances separate – which is required if your business operates as a corporation;⁴ it’s also recommended for legal and tax reasons even if you’re a sole proprietor.¹ Even though you may be able to pay for business expenses with a personal credit card, using a business credit card can make it easier to demonstrate that you’re drawing a clear line between personal and business expenses.⁵ However, experts say that when you open a small business credit card account, many issuers require you to personally guarantee payment – so you’re generally still personally liable for paying your business’ credit card bills.³

Personal credit cards provide legal protections that may not be included with business credit cards. Specifically, the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 – often referred to as the CARD Act – established rules covering many aspects of personal credit cards, including how much time users have to pay their bills, notice periods for interest-rate changes, and allowable fees.⁶ The CARD Act doesn’t cover business credit cards. However, many major issuers voluntarily provide some of the same types of protections for business credit card accounts.⁶ If you apply for a small business credit card, it’s a good idea to check whether the issuer provides the protections that are important to you.

Business travel credit cards often provide higher credit limits than personal credit cards because businesses tend to make and spend more money than individuals.¹ That higher limit may be useful to cover everyday supplies, big purchases, and other operational expenses. On the other hand, some business credit cards may also have higher interest rates than personal credit cards.¹

If you sign up for a business travel card, the card issuer may provide apps or other tools to help track expenses.¹⁰ These tools may let you capture images of receipts with your phone’s camera, categorize transactions, import transactions into accounting software, and build expense reports.⁷