Editor’s note: This is a recurring post with regularly updated card details.
The best prepaid business credit cards for small businesses have reasonable fees and offer convenient ways to reload your balance. To find a prepaid card fit for your business, consider your spending habits and how many cards you’ll need for your employees. Choose one that provides access to an online and mobile dashboard and lets you control your employee cards and company expenses. Prepaid cards aren’t credit cards and require no credit check so that you can be approved for one easily.
Here are the seven best prepaid business credit cards:
Best Prepaid Business Credit Cards at a Glance
How We Selected the Best Business Prepaid Cards
To determine the best business prepaid cards, we considered cost, load limits, spending limits, and convenience. We also looked at additional features and the process of loading funds to the card. Prepaid cards that offer rewards are a plus.
Bento for Business Visa® Debit Card: Best Overall Business Prepaid Card
Why we like it: It is our best overall business prepaid card because of its straightforward fee structure and high maximum spend limit of $25,000 per day. It may be used at any merchant that accepts Visa debit cards and for international transactions—with no foreign transaction fees. What’s more, you can try Bento for free for the first 60 days with no setup and debit fees. Note that funds held within Bento are Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)-insured to at least $250,000 through the Bancorp Bank (member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
You can add or transfer funds to your Bento account through the following:
- Bento transfer
The maximum deposit limit is $10,000 daily, and it will take around one to three business days for your funds to become available in your Bento account.
: Once your card is linked to your business bank account, you can transfer funds from the bank account to your Bento account online. To complete a Bento transfer:- Click the “Bento Transfer” on the Funds tab, then enter your desired transfer amount.
- Click the “Add Funds” button to initiate a transfer from your linked bank account into your Bento account.
- Automatic deposits via Bento transfer: You can also schedule reloads daily, weekly, or monthly. Plus, you can set up a low-balance reload to initiate a funds transfer once your Bento card’s balance meets the threshold.
- To schedule an automatic deposit, log on to your Bento online account, click “Schedule Reload” from the Funds tab, and enter the desired deposit amount.
- To set up an automatic low-balance reload, click “Low-balance Reload” from the Funds tab, set a balance threshold, and enter your desired deposit amount
You can pause or turn off the Scheduled Reload or Low-Balance Reload by simply switching the on/off toggle.
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- Bank transfer: You can initiate a funds transfer via your bank’s ACH transfer service. Your bank may offer this option through their website, phone, or in-branch services
Some banks offer next-day or same-day ACH functionality. Verify with your bank if it offers this option.
.- Select “Bank Transfer” from the Funds tab, then note the banking information provided.
- Contact your bank to process an ACH transfer using the provided banking information.
- Your bank will process the transfer, and your funds will be available within one to two business days.
- Wire transfer
Your funds will be available to you within the business day if it was received before 4 p.m. Central time. Otherwise, these will be made available in the next business day.
: You can also transfer funds through your bank’s wire transfer service.- Select “Wire Transfer” from the Funds tab and note the banking information provided.
- Contact your bank to initiate a wire transfer using the banking information.
- Your bank will process the wire transfer, and funds will typically be available the same or the next business day
It’s worth noting that while Bento does not charge any fees for transferring funds into your Bento account, your bank may charge an outgoing wire transfer fee. Check with your bank to learn about the fees associated with this service.
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- Spend controls: With Bento for Business Visa® Debit Card, you can activate or deactivate the card or your employees’ cards anytime online. You can also set up flexible spending amounts, limit spending to work days only, and restrict merchant categories. Plus, it lets you activate international use only when needed and allows online and telephone purchasing.
- Analytics and reporting: You can take advantage of real-time visibility into your transactions. Additionally, you’ll see an overview of your cash flow, allowing you to manage your budget effectively.
- Accounting integration: Bento is integrated with a variety of accounting software, including QuickBooks, FreshBooks, Oracle, Xero, and Sage Intact. Plus, you can check the transactions page using two different views: the simple reporting view shows the basic information, while the accounting-focused view allows for enhanced functionality.
- Bento Pay™: This lets you pay invoices digitally using only your vendors’ email addresses. Vendors don’t need to sign-up for Bento—plus, they can choose when and how they get paid. This feature allows business owners to send business-to-business (B2B) payments at any time while tracking all payments and payees in one place.
Important Considerations
- It does not let you earn cash back rewards or withdraw cash from an ATM.
- It does not support direct deposits.
- It charges a monthly fee after the 60-day trial, depending on the number of cards you need for your business.
- It has a maximum limit of $10,000 per day for deposits via Bento Transfer.
You don’t need to provide a personal guarantee to qualify for Bento for Business Visa® Debit Card, making it one of our leading business cards with no personal guarantee. For more information, read our Bento for Business Visa Debit Card review.
Emburse Spend Card: Best for Earning Fixed-rate Cash Back on All Purchases
Why we like it: It lets you earn an unlimited 1% cash back and doesn’t charge monthly fees and local transaction fees. You can load your card up to a maximum of $100,000, but you can request an increased limit, subject to additional review and approval. On top of that, the card has a streamlined expense management system, which lets you approve or reject transactions made by your employees. Note that Emburse Spend Cards are issued by Celtic Bank, a Utah-chartered industrial bank (member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
You can transfer funds to your Emburse Spend card through:
- Bank transfer
If balances are low, Emburse Cards will automatically pull from your default connected bank account to replenish your funds and meet the minimum balance.
: From the “Bank Account” tab in your Settings page, choose from the list of banks/credit unions, log in with your bank/credit union credentials, and authorize it so that it can be used with your Emburse cards. Once that is connected, this will be reflected on your “Bank Accounts” page. You can connect one or more banks to fund your Emburse account. - Credit accounts: Choose “credit option” with Emburse cards and connect at least one bank account to be used as an automatic payment source for your line of credit.
- Account and routing number: If your bank isn’t on the list above or you want to connect your bank manually, follow the steps below:
- Select “Connect to any US bank manually” in your Settings page
- Find your bank account and routing numbers at the bottom of a check in your checkbook or your online banking profile
- Business apps: Emburse offers a portfolio of business apps, such as Emburse Spend and Emburse Abacus. See our Emburse Abacus review for its detailed features and pricing.
- Unlimited rewards: Earn 1% cash back on all purchases, regardless of spending categories.
- Amount restrictions: You can set amount restrictions depending on your business needs. There are four modes, namely: Budget, Daily, Weekly, and Monthly.
- Expense management system: Emburse Spend is available on iOS and PC (Windows and Mac). You can track real-time expenses, categorize vendors, and approve or reject transactions. The system is free to use if your company has fewer than 100 employees, but it also has a premium version—request a demo to ask for more information.
The expense management system can help prevent policy violations, identify anomalies, and keep all expenses compliant with company standards. You can also set limits on both virtual and physical cards, capture receipt and expense details for immediate reconciliation, and manage transactions with enterprise resource planning (ERP) and accounting integrations with NetSuite, Intacct, QuickBooks Online, and Xero.
Important Considerations
- It doesn’t allow for ATM withdrawals.
- It does not have a sign-up bonus.
- United States-based Emburse Cards are charged a foreign transaction fee of 1% plus 30 cents per transaction.
You can qualify for an Emburse Spend Card even if you have a low credit score, making it one of our best business cards for bad credit. To learn more about it, read our Emburse Spend Card review.
dashTM Prepaid Mastercard®: Best for Low Daily Spend Limits With No Setup & Monthly Fees
Why we like it: If you anticipate the daily spend of each card to be under $1,000, then this may be the best choice for your business because it has a maximum spend limit of $1,000 per day. With no setup and monthly fees, it’s essentially free to use, as the provider takes a percentage of each sale from the merchant. Plus, there’s no limit to the number of cards you can order. It even integrates with QuickBooks and other major accounting software. Note that the card is issued by Sunrise Banks, N.A. (Member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
- ACH transfer: You can load up to $100,000 via ACH transfer from your chosen bank account.
- Control employee spending: Owners can add team members, approve requests remotely, remove funds, and suspend users through the dashTM app.
- Easy bookkeeping and tracking of expenses: Accountants can easily export reports, create customizable categories, conduct automatic fund reloading, and record paperless receipts through the dashTM app.
- Ease of categorizing purchases: Employees can request funds on demand, have their requests automatically approved, and categorize their own purchases.
Important Considerations
- It doesn’t let you fund your Dash prepaid card through cash deposits or direct deposits.
- You can only load each company card a maximum of $10,000 at a time from your Dash account.
Brink’s Business Expense Card: Best for Free Starter Package
Why we like it: If you don’t need more than two prepaid cards for your business, this is a great option, as its starter package offers free cards for the business owner and a team member. You get a 60-day free trial and no setup fees and can choose between two cards: fixed value and spending limit. Fixed values are pre-funded cards that are ideal for per-diems or one-time spend requests, while spend limit cards are suitable for regular day-to-day expenses. Note that Brink’s Business Expense Card’s banking services are provided by Bancorp Bank (member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
You can add money to your Brink’s Business Expense Card through:
- Brink’s transfer: You can load your Brink’s account by navigating to the Funds tab on your mobile app. Then, click the Brink’s transfer icon, enter the amount, and select “add fund.” The maximum deposit limit is $10,000 per day. Fund transfers may take up to three business days.
- Automatic deposit via Brink’s transfer: You can schedule a daily, weekly, or monthly reload. Just go to the Funds tab, click “Scheduled Reload,” enter the amount of your desired deposit and its frequency, and save the transaction. Additionally, you can schedule an automatic reload if your account balance meets a certain threshold. To do this, go to the Funds tab, click “Low-Balance Reload,” enter the desired deposit amount, set the balance threshold, and save the transaction.
- Bank transfer: You can transfer funds from your bank through ACH transfer. Your funds will be available in your Brink’s account within one to two business days, but some banks offer same-day ACH functionality.
- Wire transfer: You can initiate a wire transfer with your bank. Funds are usually available the same day or the next banking day when transferred through wire.
- Real-time dashboard: You will have access to a centralized dashboard to track top-spending employee cards and detect suspicious transactions. It also allows you to monitor expenses by spend categories, employee cards, and date ranges.
- Admin controls: You can designate leaders who can oversee spending and help assist with day-to-day account management.
- Customizable reports: Brink’s mobile app allows employees to scan and upload electronic copies of receipts, making it easier for reconciliation and audit. Also, you can set custom tags for easy bookkeeping and to ensure budget accuracy.
- Automatic transfers: With automatic transfers, you don’t need to worry about having a low card balance. You can schedule reloads to your Brink’s account at a specific frequency (daily, weekly, or monthly) or when your available balance reaches a certain threshold.
- Virtual cards: Brink’s allows you to create and access virtual cards instantly. Your information will be readily available as soon as you create a virtual card. What’s more, your card information is securely stored, and you have the option to create either single-use virtual cards or cards for recurring purchases.
Important Consideration
- It charges a monthly fee (depending on the number of team cards needed) after the 60-day trial.
PEX Prepaid Business Card: Best for Custom Payment Platform
Why we like it: If you need to customize your business’s spending per department, employee, and merchant category, this card is a great option. It offers a 60-day free trial, and you can choose from a variety of monthly packages depending on your needs. You can also set the time and days when the card can be used. PEX’s platform instantly approves or declines transactions based on your settings. Note that PEX Prepaid Business Card is issued by either Fifth Third Bank, N.A. or The Bancorp Bank, N.A. (members FDIC)
How To Load Funds
The ideal way to fund your PEX account is to add funds directly from your bank, credit union, or other financial institution. Alternatively, you can send funds through a wire transfer from your business checking account or initiate a debit of funds from your bank account through the PEX ACH Service.
The maximum balance for any single PEX card is $25,000. When there are unused funds on an individual card, you can transfer them back to the main PEX account, where they can be redistributed to other employees’ cards.
Note that each bank has its own time frame on how long it will take to transfer funds. Typically, most banks will need 1–2 business days to process transfers.
- Account management and reporting: You can track your company spending anywhere because PEX reports transactions in real time. Cardholders can submit receipts and accounting codes through a mobile app, while administrators can manage card restrictions online or via a mobile app.
- Physical and virtual cards: With PEX Prepaid Business Card, you have the option to use physical or virtual cards. You can distribute physical cards to employees and use virtual cards for online purchases and subscriptions.
- Accounting integration: You can integrate your PEX account with QuickBooks and other major accounting software to provide an automated payment platform based on your needs.
Important Considerations
- It does not offer ATM access.
- It charges a foreign transaction fee of 0.8% to 1.5% of the value of each transaction, depending on the country where the transaction occurred.
- It does not come with rewards.
- It has a monthly fee depending on the number of card accounts needed for your business.
Netspend Prepaid Debit Card: Best for Earning Cash Back Through Payback Rewards
Why we like it: With this card, you can earn cash back rewards on some of your purchases through its Payback Rewards feature. Netspend will provide personalized reward offers based on your spending habits—you can visit its rewards page to see customized offers. Note that funds deposited on your Netspend Prepaid Debit Card are insured up to the standard maximum deposit insurance limit by Pathward, N.A. (member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
There are several ways to load funds onto the Netspend Prepaid Debit Card:
- Direct deposit: You only need your Netspend Prepaid Account number and routing number to set this up. Tax refunds can also be deposited to your Netspend Prepaid account when you e-File your annual return, saving you the hassle of waiting on a paper check.
- Mobile check load: Simply download the latest version of the Netspend Mobile App and choose “Mobile Check Load” from the menu. Follow the on-screen instructions to successfully load your check to your Netspend Prepaid Account.
- Reload centers: Go to the nearest reload center to add funds to your Netspend Prepaid Debit Card.
- Send money: There are three ways to send money to your Netspend Prepaid Debit Card:
- Bank transfer: Link your financial banking account with your Netspend Card Account for a seamless transfer.
- Western Union: Send or receive a Western Union Money Transfer® to over 200 countries and territories using your Netspend Card.
- PayPal: Transfer money from your PayPal account to your Netspend account.
- Anytime Alerts™: You can get notified of your transactions with Netspend’s Anytime Alerts feature, which will notify you through text and email. Plus, you can manage your preferences to only receive the important alerts and customize how often you want to get notified. Netspend supports most major mobile phone service carriers, including:
- AT&T
- BOOST
- Cricket
- Metro PCS
- Nextel
- Sprint
- US Cellular
- T-Mobile
- Verizon,
- Virgin Mobile
- Payback Rewards℠: Netspend Payback Rewards lets you earn cash back on some of your everyday purchases. This offer is personalized based on your spending habits, and the rewards that you redeem will be automatically credited to your account at the end of the following month. Note that this is an optional program, and you may opt out at any time by visiting the Payback Rewards page.
- Zero liability: Netspend ensures that cardholders are protected from fraudulent transactions.
- Purchase cushion: Netspend will cover up to $10 if you fall short on your purchase.
- Customizable Netspend cards: You can customize your Netspend card by adding a photo to help merchants know when it’s not you.
- Tax refunds: The IRS can electronically deposit your refund directly to your Netspend card account.
Important Considerations
- If you want to waive purchase transaction fees, you will need to upgrade your plan from Pay-As-You-Go to Monthly Plan, which will incur additional costs.
- There are no mentions of integrating your financials with accounting software.
- There is no information on the load limit for Netspend Prepaid Debit Card.
Mesh Prepaid Visa Card: Best for High Balance Limit & Earning a Welcome Bonus
Why we like it: It offers a high balance limit of $10 million, which is the highest among all cards in this guide. Moreover, it’s the only business prepaid card on this list that offers a welcome bonus. You can earn $200 when you spend at least $3,000 on a Mesh card and get an additional $300 when you link recurring marketing or cloud expenses to Mesh within your first two months.
What’s more, you can earn rewards for every transaction, starting at 1% cash back. Plus, the Mesh platform is completely free. Note that the Mesh Prepaid Visa Card is issued by Metropolitan Commercial Bank (member FDIC).
How To Load Funds
You may add funds to your Mesh card at any time via reload locations. You may also load your card through a direct deposit by providing Mesh’s routing number and the account number to your bank. Note that you cannot load your card by check or money order.
Note that there is a deposit limit of up to $20,000 per day for the Mesh Prepaid Visa Card.
- Cash back with every payment: For every transaction you make using your Mesh card, you can earn 1% cash back on qualified expenses
A minimum $50,000 monthly spend is required to obtain the cash back. Note that Mesh can determine the expense type or transaction excluded from eligibility for earning cash back rewards at any time.
. - Smart virtual cards: Mesh allows you to create unlimited virtual cards free of charge. You can easily set up your virtual cards online, assign cards to employees, and set controls on your virtual cards based on the amount, vendor, number of transactions, and other custom filters.
- Plug & Pay™ cards: Mesh Plug & Pay™ cards are physical cards that have all the benefits of virtual cards. These cards are numberless, making them more secure and safe to use. Additionally, you can track all your payments in real-time using one platform.
- Spend visibility and optimization: Mesh Card features one centralized payment platform. This allows you to manage your company expenses from one centralized hub and monitor your financial transactions in real-time. Moreover, it connects directly to your business tools, including QuickBooks, Xero, and Okta.
- Accounting system agnostic: Mesh inherits your accounting software setup to streamline the transition of data between platforms.
Important Considerations
- A minimum of $50,000 monthly spend is required to obtain the cash back rewards.
- It does not let you withdraw cash to any ATM.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Prepaid business cards work like regular business credit cards—you can use them to make purchases and pay for other business expenses. Unlike credit cards, you need to load funds to your prepaid card to be able to use them. When you make purchases, the amount of your purchase will be deducted from your card’s balance automatically.
These are easier to qualify for than business credit cards since there’s no credit check. Once approved, there are often several ways to load funds onto the card. The most common is to transfer funds from your bank account directly to the card. Using the issuer’s online or mobile dashboard, you can set spending limits, select which merchants can be paid with the card, and freeze cards in case of fraud.
Remember that most prepaid cards don’t offer rewards, and fees are often associated with account setup, monthly maintenance, and withdrawing funds from ATMs. To learn more, read our article about what prepaid business cards are and how they work.
You have the following options as alternatives to prepaid business cards:
- Small Business Credit Cards: Small business credit cards allow you to float expenses while growing your business. Grow your credit score and save money with low introductory and ongoing interest rates and relevant rewards. See our guide to the best small business credit cards.
- Purchasing Cards (p-cards): Purchasing cards are for business-to-business purchases. Like a charge card, the balance must be paid in full monthly. Our roundup of the top purchasing cards is a good place to start looking for one that fits the bill.
- Secured Business Credit Cards: Secured business credit cards are a good option for those who cannot qualify for a non-secured card due to poor or low credit or no credit history, as you only need to make a security deposit to qualify. With consistent on-time payments, you can grow your credit score and qualify for a non-secured card. For options, check out our list of the leading secured business credit cards.
Bottom Line
The best business prepaid cards give your organization the freedom to skip the paperwork of expense reports, purchase orders, check reimbursements, and petty cash. As long as you have cash on hand to continuously reload the cards, prepaid cards are a convenient method of paying for business expenses for both you and your employees.
