The American Express Blue Business Cash is Amex’s no-annual-fee 2% card with a catch—the card’s 2% rewards cap out at $50,000 of spending annually. Here’s what you need to know about this card.
American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card at a glance
The The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card is far from the most exciting card Amex offers, but 2% cash back on up to $50k in purchases each year, with no annual fee and basic Amex consumer insurance benefits is a great choice for small business owners who spend a limited amount on cards each year.
The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
Earn a $250 Statement Credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership.
This bonus is awarded as a statement credit.
Annual fee: $0
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Rewards
- 2% cash back on purchases up to $50,000 per calendar year.
- 1% cash back on purchases thereafter.
Cash back is automatically credited to your statement.
Benefits
Consumer benefits
- Purchase Protection.
- Extended Warranty
Travel benefits
- Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance
- Global Assist Hotline
Rates and fees
- Annual fee: $0
- Foreign transaction fee: 2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars.
Amex Blue Business Cash Review
Cards and Points Rating: 3.5/5.0
Read more about our star ratings.
The The American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card is probably going to appeal mostly to owners of very small businesses or solopreneuers who don’t spend that much on credit cards during the year.
The card’s simple cash back reward structure is appealing, even if the cap on 2% rewards means that there are other cards—namely the Capital One Spark 2% cash and the Wells Fargo Simplicity—that become a better deal as you spend much beyond $50,000 a year
But we’ll forgive that to some extent because we like that the Blue Business Cash offers extended warranty and purchase protection.
Our biggest request for improvement is that Amex drop the $50,000 spending cap on 2% cash back rewards. That should make the card plenty profitable and competitive with what else is out there for small business owners who spend more. But we doubt that’s happening any time soon.
Amex recently launched the Amex Graphite Small Business card which does offer unlimited 2% cash back rewards, but that card’s massive annual fee kills that deal for us. Ultimately, we don’t see a reason why Amex couldn’t offer unlimited 2% cash back rewards on a no-annual-fee card.
Likes
- No annual fee
- Extended warranty
- Purchase protection
- Cash back rewards are redeemed automatically
Dislikes
- Annual cap on 2% cash back earnings
- Limited travel protections
Quick take: Almost an excellent card
Aaron Hurd
Executive Editor of Cards and Points
I had the Blue Business Cash card a few years ago, but ultimately decided to cancel it because Amex only allows five credit cards per person and I personally could get more value with Amex’s other cards. Plus, my business spending matched more closely with the Chase Ink credit cards’ bonus categories and I like earning transferable points.
Personally, I’m left scratching my head about why Amex seems to be doing everything they can to not offer a simple card that earns 2% cash back everywhere with no annual fee. This card’s been around a while, but its rewards are capped, and the recently launched Amex Graphite card offers unlimited 2% cash back, but with a hefty annual fee attached. Given what merchants pay in credit card processing fees, a 2% cash back card with limited benefits should be profitable, even with customers that you expect to never revolve a balance.
If you’re a small business owner, you don’t spend much (under $50k) on credit cards in a year and you want decent cash back rewards that you don’t want to think about, the card is a good choice for you. If you spend more or want better rewards, there aren plenty of other options out there.
Rewards: Cash back
The Blue Business Cash offers simple cash back rewards. You’ll get 2% cash back on your first $50,000 of eligible purchases each calendar year. After that, you’ll earn 1% cash back through the end of the year.
Benefits: Essential consumer protections
In addition to 2% rewards on up to $50,000 of purchases each year, Blue Business Cash offers a handful of benefits that are useful to small business owners.
Consumer insurance benefits
Many cards offer consumer insurance benefits that can protect the things you buy. Here are the consumer insurance benefits offered by the Blue Business Cash. Terms and restrictions apply to all benefits.
Purchase protection
Purchase protection protects the things you buy with your card from damage or theft for a certain amount of time after you buy them.
- Provides coverage for 90 days from the date of purchase.
- Covers only damage or theft.
- Limit of $1,000 per covered purchase and $50,000 per eligible card, per calendar year.
Extended warranty
Extended warranty coverage provides additional warranty coverage on items you purchase with your card or your card’s rewards.
- Doubles U.S. manufacturer’s warranty, up to an additional year.
- Applies to original manufacturer’s warranties of five years or less.
- Limit of $10,000 per covered purchase and $50,000 per eligible card, per calendar year.
Travel insurance benefits
Cards targeted toward travelers often offer travel insurance benefits that can protect you when you are traveling away from home. Terms and restrictions apply to all benefits.
Car rental loss and damage insurance
Amex car rental insurance protects you against damage to or theft of your rental vehicle.
- Secondary coverage.
- Covers certain additional charges beyond damage like loss of use and appraisal fees.
- Coverage not available in Australia, Italy, or New Zealand.
- Limit of $50,000 per rental agreement.
Statement credits and partner offers
Targeted merchant-specific offers that frequently offer additional cash back or statement credits.
- Enrollment in each offer required.
- Offers are account-specific.
Who is American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card best for?
Small business owners who want simple cash back rewards and who do not spend much will benefit most from the American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card. Here’s who should strongly consider this card:
- Small business owners who spend less than $50k/year. After you spend $50k in a calendar year, the Blue Business Cash earns only 1% rewards. That’s fine if you don’t spend much for your small business, but this dramatically reduces the card’s value for high-spending small business owners.
- Business owners who want Amex purchase protection and extended warranty. Amex has a reputation for providing much better service when you need to make a claim on its consumer and travel insurance benefits than what you’ll get with other cards. Putting your purchases of durable goods on your Blue Business Cash card may pay off if you ever need to make an extended warranty claim.
Other cards to consider
You’re likely looking at Blue Business Cash because you want a flat rate of rewards and value cash back. Here are a few other cards to consider as a small business owner.
- The [ink_premier] has a $195 annual fee, but offers a flat 2% rate of cash back on most purchases, plus 2.5% cash back on purchases of $5,000 or more. It’s a good choice if you spend a lot more than $50k/year for your business, and a stellar option if you frequently make payments of more than $5,000 using a credit card.
- The Blue Business Cash is a decent alternative card that will earn 2x Membership Rewards® on the first $50k you spend, with no annual fee.
- The Capital One Spark Cash Plus is another card offering 2% cash back rewards. The card has an annual fee of $150 and is best suited for small business owners who spend a lot on their cards. You’ll get that card’s annual fee refunded each year when you spend at least $150,000 on the card.
