Why the Capital One Spark Cash Plus is an easy-to-use card for businesses
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Key takeaways
- If your business can spend at least $20,000 in three months, you'll be able to take advantage of Capital One Spark Cash Plus' $1,200 cash back once you spend $30,000 in the first 3 months.
- Cardholders also appreciate the flat 2 percent cash back on all business purchases, as well as the card's travel benefits and business perks.
- However, the card does come with a $150 annual fee, so make sure you'll spend at least $7,500 each year on the card to offset the expense.
The Capital One Spark Cash Plus is an easy-to-use business credit card that offers straightforward rewards — in this case, an unlimited 2 percent cash back on all purchases. It’s also a charge card, which means cardholders have to pay their balance in full each month, and there’s no APR or preset spending limit. This card’s spending bonuses, flat cash back, unlimited spending and attractive perks make it an easy card for business owners to use.
Read on to find out more about what makes this card a great choice and whether its offerings will meet your business’s needs.
Why you should get the Capital One Spark Cash Plus
Generous welcome bonus
The Capital One Spark Cash Plus offers up to a one-time cash bonus of $1,200 once you spend $30,000 in the first 3 months. While this may be unattainable for smaller businesses, it should be easier to achieve for larger businesses.
Unlimited, flat cash back on all purchases
If you want to avoid the hassle of keeping track of bonus spending categories, the Spark Cash Plus card offers a high cash back rate on all general business spending: You’ll earn 2 percent cash back on all purchases. Additionally, you’ll also earn 5 percent cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
There’s also no spending cap on rewards, a feature that is common on cards with higher earning rates. So, if you don’t want to worry about spending limits, and if you’re looking to earn easy, straightforward rewards on your business spending, this card is a good option to consider.
While this card does come with an annual fee of $150, the unlimited 2 percent cash back on all purchases will cover the fee if you spend at least $7,500 per year — an amount that should be easy for businesses of most any size to reach.
No preset spending limit
Because this is a charge card rather than a credit card, it’s best suited for business owners who have a positive cash flow and are fully confident they’ll be able to pay in full and on time every month. A charge card may also be an attractive choice if you want to make sure you’re not going to accrue debt or face interest charges.
However, keep in mind that the card comes with a late fee of 2.99 percent on the unpaid portion of your minimum payment. Of course, it’s best not to miss any payments, as doing so puts your account at risk of being closed.
Travel benefits
This card is an easy choice for business owners who travel infrequently for business and want some travel-related perks. For instance, this card comes with no foreign transaction fees, making it a great choice for traveling abroad. You’ll also get access to roadside assistance and Capital One’s travel portal.
Business perks
The Spark Cash Plus also comes with a number of business-related perks that can help streamline business operations and improve security, such as:
- Free employee cards
- Customized spending limits for employee cards and access to transaction history in real-time
- Year-end, itemized summary reports to make budgeting and tax filing easier
- Quick access to purchase records, which can be downloaded into programs like QuickBooks and Excel
- Virtual card payments for safer online payments
- Payment flexibility, allowing you to choose a monthly due date that works best for you
How the Capital One Spark Cash Plus compares to other Capital One Spark cards
The Spark Cash Plus card is a part of the Capital One Spark card family. Here’s how some of the Spark cards compare to one another:
| Cards | Welcome bonus | Rewards rate | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital One Spark Cash Plus | Earn a one-time cash bonus of $1,200 once you spend $30,000 in the first 3 months |
|
$150 |
| Capital One Spark Cash Select for Good Credit | N/A |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Spark Cash Select for Excellent Credit | $750 bonus when you spend $6,000 within 3 months of account opening |
|
$0 |
| Capital One Spark Miles for Business | 50,000 miles after spending $4,500 within 3 months of account opening |
|
$95 ($0 for the first year) |
| Capital One Spark 1.5X Miles Select | 50,000 miles after spending $4,500 within 3 months of account opening |
|
$0 |
If you want a credit card instead of a charge card, the Capital One Spark Cash Select for Good Credit is a good option to consider. In addition to no annual fee, this card offers 1.5 percent cash back on all purchases and 5 percent cash back on hotel stays and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Though the cash back rate is lower than Spark Cash Plus offers, it’s a better choice if you don’t want to pay an annual fee. It also has a 0 percent intro APR offer on purchases for the first 12 months (21.24 percent to 29.24 percent variable APR thereafter).
Capital One also offers a variation of the Spark Cash Select called the Capital One Spark Cash Select for Excellent Credit. This option does feature a welcome offer: earn a $750 cash bonus when you spend $6,000 within the first three months. However, there’s no introductory APR offer with this card and it comes with an 18.49 percent to 24.49 percent variable APR (expired).
For business owners who’d prefer to receive rewards in the form of Capital One miles, the Capital One Spark Miles for Business is another option to consider. You can earn 50,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,500 within the first three months of holding the card, and you’ll earn an unlimited 2X miles on all purchases and 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. This card also has a 26.24 percent variable APR and a $95 annual fee ($0 for the first year). It’s also worth noting that this card allows you to transfer miles to Capital One’s airline and hotel partners.
Alternatively, Capital One offers a sister version of this card, the Capital One Spark 1.5X Miles Select*, which doesn’t charge an annual fee. As with the Capital One Spark Miles for Business, you can earn 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,500 within the first three months. Though the rewards are smaller, this card is geared toward business owners who don’t want to pay an annual fee while still retaining the ability to transfer miles to travel partners.
The bottom line
The Capital One Spark Cash Plus is an easy-to-use card for business owners. It offers flat cash back on all purchases, no preset spending limit and numerous card perks. For larger businesses, the spending bonuses should be easy to attain, too.
However, before you choose a business card, make sure to take a look at other top business cards to make sure you choose the right card for your business needs and spending style.
*The information about the Capital One Spark 1.5X Miles Select has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.
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