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August 1, 2022
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This article was last updated August 1, 2022 . Terms and conditions may have changed. For the most accurate information, please consult the issuer website.
| Best Secured Business Credit Cards of July 2022 | |
| Best overall secured business credit card | Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card |
| Best secured business card for a high credit limit | FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card |
| Best secured business card for a low interest rate | Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card |
| Best unsecured business card for fair credit | Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business |
Most small business credit cards require good to excellent credit to qualify. But what if you own a business, need a credit card to manage cash flow and are recovering from some financial missteps? A secured business credit card might be just what you need.
With a secured card, you’ll submit a security deposit — typically in the amount of your desired credit limit — which protects the issuer if you don’t pay off what you charge to the card.
While secured credit cards are more common in the consumer credit card world, there are some secured small business credit cards available if you know where to look. We’ve rounded up three such cards worth considering, as well as one unsecured business credit card available to business owners with fair credit.
The Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card allows a credit limit of $500 to $25,000, based on your security deposit. There’s a $0 annual fee, and you can get up to 10 employee cards.
This card’s rewards program is unique, in that you can choose between earning cash back or points. Earn 1.5% cash back on every $1 spent OR Earn 1 point on every $1 spent and receive 1,000 bonus points when your company spend is $1,000 or more in any monthly billing period. If you go with the cash back option, that’s a competitive earning rate, even compared to some popular unsecured small business credit cards.
The APR is reasonable at Prime + 11.90%. Plus, if business travel takes you abroad, you can take the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card and have peace of mind knowing the foreign transaction fee is $0.
If you’re a small business owner with Fair/Poor credit, the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card could work for you. There’s a lot to like about the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card: It has a $0 annual fee, a $0 foreign transaction fee and a rewards program. Plus, Wells Fargo periodically reviews your account and recent credit history to see if you qualify for graduation to an unsecured business credit card.
Note that you must have a Wells Fargo business checking or savings account open before you can apply for this card. If approved, funds for your security deposit will be transferred from the bank account.
The Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card allows a credit limit of $500 to $25,000, based on your security deposit. There’s a $0 annual fee, and you can get up to 10 employee cards.
This card’s rewards program is unique, in that you can choose between earning cash back or points. Earn 1.5% cash back on every $1 spent OR Earn 1 point on every $1 spent and receive 1,000 bonus points when your company spend is $1,000 or more in any monthly billing period. If you go with the cash back option, that’s a competitive earning rate, even compared to some popular unsecured small business credit cards.
The APR is reasonable at Prime + 11.90%. Plus, if business travel takes you abroad, you can take the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card and have peace of mind knowing the foreign transaction fee is $0.
If you’re a small business owner with Fair/Poor credit, the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card could work for you. There’s a lot to like about the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card: It has a $0 annual fee, a $0 foreign transaction fee and a rewards program. Plus, Wells Fargo periodically reviews your account and recent credit history to see if you qualify for graduation to an unsecured business credit card.
Note that you must have a Wells Fargo business checking or savings account open before you can apply for this card. If approved, funds for your security deposit will be transferred from the bank account.
With the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card, you can request a credit limit ranging from $2,000 to $100,000 (in multiples of $50). Assuming you have the cash available for a big security deposit, you could potentially get a very high credit limit with this card compared to others on the list.
Be aware that your security deposit amount must be 110% of your credit limit, which is unusual. The typical practice is for your deposit amount to match your credit limit — however, with the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card, a $2,000 credit limit would require a $2,200 deposit, for example.
The card’s annual fee is $39 and the foreign transaction fee is 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
The regular APR is 20.99% variable — it’s a bit on the high side, so you should pay off your card in full every billing cycle to avoid interest charges.
If you need a high credit limit and have the money for a big security deposit, the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card offers a higher maximum credit limit than the other secured cards on this list. Be aware, however, that your deposit must be 110% of your desired credit limit. So, for example, a $110,000 deposit would be required to secured a $100,000 credit limit.
With the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card, you can request a credit limit ranging from $2,000 to $100,000 (in multiples of $50). Assuming you have the cash available for a big security deposit, you could potentially get a very high credit limit with this card compared to others on the list.
Be aware that your security deposit amount must be 110% of your credit limit, which is unusual. The typical practice is for your deposit amount to match your credit limit — however, with the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card, a $2,000 credit limit would require a $2,200 deposit, for example.
The card’s annual fee is $39 and the foreign transaction fee is 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
The regular APR is 20.99% variable — it’s a bit on the high side, so you should pay off your card in full every billing cycle to avoid interest charges.
If you need a high credit limit and have the money for a big security deposit, the FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card offers a higher maximum credit limit than the other secured cards on this list. Be aware, however, that your deposit must be 110% of your desired credit limit. So, for example, a $110,000 deposit would be required to secured a $100,000 credit limit.
The Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card allows for a credit limit ranging from $500 to $25,000, based on how much you deposit. There’s a $30 annual fee.
Where this card stands out is its low interest rate. Many cards aimed at people with less-than-stellar credit have interest rates upwards of 20% — the Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card, however, has a 14.74% variable APR. That said, it’s still best practice to pay your card off in full every billing cycle.
The foreign transaction fee is 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
Sometimes carrying a balance is unavoidable — so when you need to roll over a balance month to month, a credit card with a low interest rate can be a little less painful. The Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card stands out from the crowd with a low 14.74% variable APR, as some competing cards have APRs above 20%.
The Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card allows for a credit limit ranging from $500 to $25,000, based on how much you deposit. There’s a $30 annual fee.
Where this card stands out is its low interest rate. Many cards aimed at people with less-than-stellar credit have interest rates upwards of 20% — the Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card, however, has a 14.74% variable APR. That said, it’s still best practice to pay your card off in full every billing cycle.
The foreign transaction fee is 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
Sometimes carrying a balance is unavoidable — so when you need to roll over a balance month to month, a credit card with a low interest rate can be a little less painful. The Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card stands out from the crowd with a low 14.74% variable APR, as some competing cards have APRs above 20%.
Maybe your credit isn’t pristine — but what if you don’t want to tie up $500 or more in a deposit for a secured credit card? Luckily, the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business is an unsecured card available to small business owners with fair credit. It charges a $0 annual fee and you’ll earn 1% cash back on every purchase.
Plus, you can take this card abroad without worrying about a foreign transaction fee — there is none.
Note that the APR is very high at 26.99% (variable), so you’ll want to avoid carrying a balance on this card.
If you want to earn flat-rate cash back on every purchase and avoid a security deposit and annual fee, the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business fits the bill.
Note that this card is aimed at applicants with fair credit, however, so you might have a better chance at getting a secured card if your credit has been severely damaged by past missteps.
Maybe your credit isn’t pristine — but what if you don’t want to tie up $500 or more in a deposit for a secured credit card? Luckily, the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business is an unsecured card available to small business owners with fair credit. It charges a $0 annual fee and you’ll earn 1% cash back on every purchase.
Plus, you can take this card abroad without worrying about a foreign transaction fee — there is none.
Note that the APR is very high at 26.99% (variable), so you’ll want to avoid carrying a balance on this card.
If you want to earn flat-rate cash back on every purchase and avoid a security deposit and annual fee, the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business fits the bill.
Note that this card is aimed at applicants with fair credit, however, so you might have a better chance at getting a secured card if your credit has been severely damaged by past missteps.
| Credit card | Best for | Minimum deposit | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card | Overall secured business card | $500 | $0 |
| FNBO Business Edition® Secured® Visa Card | A high credit limit | $2,200 | $39 |
| Union Bank® Business Secured Visa® Credit Card | A low interest rate | $500 | $30 |
| Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business | Unsecured card for fair credit | No deposit | $0 |
A secured card gets its name from the fact that you must submit a security deposit (typically in the amount of your desired credit limit) to the issuer.
Note that the deposit doesn’t take care of payments, and you’ll still need to pay off whatever you charge to the card. Instead, the deposit serves to protect the issuer should you default on what you owe. For this reason, secured cards are typically available to people with poor or fair credit, when such applicants might struggle to get other credit cards. When it comes to using a secured card, it functions just like any other credit card.
Minimum deposit amounts vary by card. With secured consumer credit cards, the minimum deposit is often $200. However, for the secured business credit cards on this list, two require a minimum deposit of $500, while the other requires a minimum deposit of $2,200.
Typically, if you pay off your credit card in full and close the account, you can get your security deposit back. Some issuers will also offer you the opportunity to graduate from a secured card to an unsecured card after you demonstrate responsible behavior, and your deposit will be refunded if that happens.
Yes, it’s likely that an issuer will check your personal credit history before approving or denying you for a business credit card. As the business owner, you’ll ultimately be responsible for guaranteeing what’s owed on the card.
In general, business credit cards only report to your personal credit if there’s negative information on your account — for example, if you’ve paid late or missed payments. There are exceptions, however: For instance, most Capital One small business cards will report activity to the cardholder’s personal credit, even when the account is in good standing.
When selecting the cards on this list, the most important criterion was that each card be aimed at small business owners and accessible with a security deposit.
In addition, whether or not each card charges an annual fee was considered. Note that our top overall pick for best secured business card, the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card, charges a $0 annual fee.
Other factors that weighed on the selection included rewards, maximum possible credit limit and interest rate.
The above offers and/or promotions may have since changed, expired, or is no longer available. Check the Issuers’ website for more details.
