Whether you’re a real estate agent who spends a lot of time driving to show properties, a contractor who often travels to job sites, or any other business owner whose business requires frequent fuel purchases, you’ll want to consider a gas card for your company. The right business credit card of gas purchases will offer discounts, rewards or both.

Here we share the best business credit cards. 

Benefits of a Business Credit Card for Gas Purchases

Rewards

Fuel costs can add up quickly. Discounts and rewards are the two biggest benefits of business credit cards for gas purchases. Some credit cards offer significant cash back rewards for these purchases, for example, saving you money in the long run. 

Better cash flow

Another reason to use a business gas credit card is to improve cash flow. With most business credit cards you will have time to pay the bill in full and avoid interest charges. In fact, most business credit cards will offer a grace period of 21 to 25 days.

As long as you pay your entire statement balance in full by the due date, you won’t have to pay interest charges. When you add in your billing period, this can give you between 21 and 55 days of interest free financing. Also, some card offers feature 0% intro APR welcome offers that apply to purchases and/or balance transfers. 

Expense management

Expense management is another popular benefit of fuel cards. With a business credit card you can more easily track and manage your fuel purchases. If you have employees or contractors who need to fill up at gas stations, you can provide them with cards and avoid the hassles of reimbursements.

Many card issuers offer free cards to employee authorized users. With these cards, you can impose spending limits, while utilizing real-time expense tracking and reporting. And best of all, as the primary account holder, you will earn  rewards for purchases they make on those cards.

Business Credit Cards With Gas Rewards

Here are some of the best small business credit cards with higher-than-average gas rewards:

1. Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express

If you prefer to fill up at a gas station of your choosing rather than be limited to one spot, the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express offers great rewards: 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%). 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions. 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations. 3% Cash Back on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more). 1% Cash Back on other purchases. There’s a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95.

2. Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi

Costco is a popular place to fill up the tank due to its very competitive fuel prices. You can save even more with the Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi due to its cash back rewards program: 4% cash back on eligible gas and EV charging purchases for the first $7,000 per year and then 1% thereafter. 3% cash back on restaurants and eligible travel purchases. 2% cash back on all other purchases from Costco and Costco.com. 1% cash back on all other purchases. There is ​​a $0 annual fee with your paid Costco membership.

3. Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card

Spending at gas stations can earn you significant points on this travel card. Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points on each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program. 4x points for purchases made at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and on U.S. purchases for shipping. 2x points on all other eligible purchases. 

WELCOME OFFER: Earn 3 Free Night Awards after you use your new Card to make $6,000 in eligible purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership.

4. Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard®

The Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard® is great for business travelers who want to get miles for their gas and other purchases. Earn 1 AAdvantage® mile per $1 spent on other purchases. Earn 2 AAdvantage® miles per $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases, and on purchases at telecommunications merchants, cable and satellite providers, car rental merchants and at gas stations. The annual fee is $99, waived for first 12 months.

5. Bank of America® Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card

With the Bank of America® Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card, 1.5% cash back on all purchases. There’s also a welcome offer: $300 online statement credit after you make at least $3,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of your account opening. There is $0.00 annual fee for this card, and the APR is 0% for 9 billing cycles on purchases with a 18.49% - 28.49% Variable APR on purchases after that.

6. American Express® Business Gold Card

With the American Express® Business Gold Card you Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points on the 2 categories where your business spends the most each billing cycle from 6 eligible categories.

Categories include:

• Gas stations
• Airfare purchases directly from airlines.
• Online, TV and radio advertising.
• Computer hardware, software and cloud systems from select technology providers.
• Restaurants, including takeout and delivery.
• Shipping.

Welcome Offer: Earn 70,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $10,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Gold Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.* The annual fee for this card is $375, and if you’re worried about foreign transaction fees, there are None.

7. Coast Visa® Fleet Card

This card is marketed as a fleet card, meaning it can be used at any gas station or truck stop where Visa cards are accepted. Furthermore, this is a corporate card that you can qualify for without a personal guarantee.

Earn 2¢ on every gallon with no tiers or excluded stations. You also Earn $100 opening account statement credit after spending $1,000 on purchases. There’s a charge of $4 per monthly active user. 

Fleet Fuel Cards: Are There Cards for Gas Only?

Fleet fuel cards may be another option to consider. Popular with fleet managers, these are charge cards that are typically restricted to fuel and service station purchases. Most fuel purchase cards are valid either at gas stations affiliated with major brands like Shell or ExxonMobil, or at multiple fueling locations including independents. They emphasize discounts or rebates on fuel purchases and expense management features. A few examples of the best fuel cards:

• WEX Fleet Cards are accepted at every major U.S. fuel station and over 45,000 service stations. That’s 95% of U.S. Fuel stations.
• Fuelman® fuel cards simplify fuel expense management for your business fleet and drivers. They offer a variety of cards with various features and benefits. 
• U.S. Bank Voyager Mastercards are accepted at 320,000 U.S. gas stations and truck stops. There are no transaction fees though there is a $3 charge per billing period. 

Arco, BP, Casey’s, CEFCO, and Speedway all offer fleet cards and/or business gas cards as well. 

*All information about the WEX, Fuelman®, U.S. Bank Voyager, Arco, BP, Casey’s, CEFCO, and Speedway credit cards have been collected independently by Nav. These cards are not currently available through Nav. To see what business credit cards are available, please visit the Nav Credit Card Marketplace.

How to Qualify for a Business Gas Card

Business gas credit cards issued by major card issuers (those that carry the Visa or Mastercard logo) typically require a personal credit check of the business owner who applies. Most small business credit cards require good or excellent personal credit scores. Your credit scores may affect the APR for which you qualify, as well as help determine your credit limit. 

Fuel fleet cards that are limited strictly to fuel and service station purchases may involve a personal and/or business credit check.

How to Apply for a Business Gas Card

You can apply for most business credit cards online and a decision can be made very quickly. You should have information about your business such as your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) or Employer Identification Number (EIN) handy when you apply. 

Is a Business Gas Card Right for You?

The best business credit cards for gas can make sense for you when it offers valuable bonus rewards for your fuel purchases. But you have to weigh these rewards against cards that offer bonus rewards for other typical business purchases including office supply stores, cell phone service, restaurants and travel. 

You also have to consider that even the best business credit cards for gas will typically offer a higher standard interest rate than non-rewards cards. If your business needs to carry a balance, then you might be better off with a card that offers the lowest possible standard interest rates, which won’t be a rewards card. And since nearly all credit cards have a variable APR, you can expect your interest rates to rise when the Prime Rate rises. 

How to Use Business Gas Card Rewards

Your business gas rewards credit card can be extremely valuable, especially when you’re careful how to use it. First, you’ll want to know exactly which gas purchases will qualify for the bonus rewards. For example, many business credit cards that offer additional rewards for gas purchases will exclude the fuel stations at warehouse stores like Costco and Sam’s Club. Others may impose an annual limit on the amount of fuel purchases that will qualify for a bonus. You should keep track of these limitations in order to ensure you earn the most possible rewards from your business credit card. 

When you receive a business gas credit card, you’ll also want to order additional employee cards for your drivers. This will allow you to extend your purchasing power to your employees, earn rewards on their purchases and track their spending. And with many cards, you can impose limits on their purchases. In fact, it’s a good idea to create a written policy outlining what employees are allowed to do with their company credit cards, and the consequences for violations. 

Finally, you’ll want to ensure that you pay your card’s statement balance in full and on-time, if at all possible. Because when you incur interest charges on your gas purchases, it will negate the value of any rewards that you have earned. 

Alternatives to Business Gas Credit Cards

While business gas credit cards can be a valuable tool, they’re not the only way to pay for fuel purchases. Fuel charge cards, mentioned previously, are similar to business credit cards, but aren’t part of a larger payment network such as Visa or Masetercard. You can also reimburse your employees for fuel purchases that they make with cash or their own credit card, but this can create an additional accounting workload.

Can I Get a Gas Card for My Business?

While some people are hesitant to apply for a business credit card, it’s actually easier than it might seem. You don’t even have to be incorporated to qualify for most business credit cards, and most credit card issuers will allow you to use your Social Security Number(SSN) on the application instead of an Employee Identification Number (EIN). 

And you don’t have to be a large business either. For example, if you’re a rideshare driver or perform deliveries in your spare time, you can still qualify for a business credit card as an unincorporated sole proprietor. 

Whether or not you can get a gas card for your business will depend on your qualifications. Again a personal credit check is common. In addition, you’ll need to meet minimum income requirements. Most cards will allow you to qualify based on income from all sources, not just the business.