By revenued
Small businesses can get a lot of benefits out of business credit cards. They can offer a great way to separate personal and business spending, offer a solution for managing cash flow, help build business credit and offer reward programs that can have real value for your business.
Citibank offers a couple of credit card options for small businesses, and each is targeted to businesses with specific needs.
One, the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard®, offers benefits for small businesses that need to fly often with American Airlines. The second, the Costco Anywhere Visa Business Card By Citi, offers perks for businesses that shop at Costco, as well as those that spend a lot of money filling up on gas.
Here’s a look at some of the features of each, and what online reviewers have to say about these cards. Take a look to see if either one would be a good fit for your business.
If your business uses American Airlines frequently, the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard® could be an attractive card for you. This card’s travel-related perks include:
This credit card does carry an annual fee of $95 (waived the first year) and has an APR of 17.24 percent to 25.24 percent depending on your creditworthiness.
In terms of earning miles for purchases, you can earn double miles for American Airlines purchases as well as purchases in select business categories, including gas stations. You’ll earn one mile for every $1 spent on other purchases.
For a limited time, you can also earn 60,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Other features include:
Here’s what online reviewers had to say about the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard®:
From ValuePenguin:
“The best and only worthwhile feature of the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard® is its American Airlines perks. The AA benefits this card provides are the best of any business card we’ve seen. The CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard® is one of the few cards to qualify for AA’s reduced mileage redemptions, which give a 7,500 mile discount each time you book a flight with AAdvantage miles, on select destinations. While these benefits may not seem like a big deal individually, they certainly add up – especially if you or your staff are in the air with either American Airlines of US Airways on a regular basis.”
From NerdWallet:
“Frequent fliers of American Airlines — especially those who check bags — can get a lot out of the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard®. You’ll enjoy perks like priority boarding and a companion fare after hitting the spending requirement, and you’ll even rack up points on your purchases of gas and telecom services. If all that sounds like a good deal for your business, apply and start working toward hitting the spending requirement for the sign-up bonus.”
From CreditCards.com:
“Though there are far better airline cards for business owners, frequent fliers of American Airlines will find plenty of value in the CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Mastercard to justify the card’s high annual fee.”
From Credit Karma:
“Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite™ Mastercard® is pretty much a no-brainer for people who fly a lot and fly exclusively with American Airlines. While some travel rewards cards require you to keep track of spending categories, this one keeps it simple: You get two miles for every dollar spent on American Airlines purchases and one mile for every dollar spent elsewhere. That makes it really easy to plan your spending to maximize rewards.”
The Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi offers the most benefit to businesses that are already regular Costco customers. The card offers generous purchase rewards, including:
You should note that reward certificates are only issued once a year after your February billing statement closes, and are redeemable through the end of the same year for Costco merchandise or cash.
The standard APR on this card is 16.74 percent, and there is no annual fee with a paid Costco membership. There are no fees for foreign transactions.
Here’s what some online reviewers have to say about the Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi:
From ValuePenguin:
“We think the Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi will be good for most businesses. If you already shop and buy most of your supplies from Costco, this card is a must-have. Even if you don’t, however, the extra savings this card gets you on travel, gas and dining can be enough to justify signing up.”
From NerdWallet:
“It’s the ability to earn a whopping 4% back on gas, whether you fill your tank at Costco or a regular gas station, that makes this card such a good deal. You’ll only earn the higher rate on the first $7,000 you spend on gas annually, and there are limitations on which types of gas stations are eligible. But this benefit could save car commuters and road trip vacationers a lot of money.”
From CreditCards.com:
“Business owners who frequently buy in bulk will love the Costco Anywhere Visa Business card’s substantial rewards, but those who’d rather shop around or want lots of options for redeeming their rewards are probably better off with a more flexible card.”
From Credit Karma:
“To get the most out of the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi, you’ll have to examine the cash back categories and see how your spending measures up. The card’s website has a spending calculator to show you how much cash back you stand to earn based on your spending in each category.”
From Credit Card Insider:
“They are very good when it comes to store cards, and they’re actually quite good even compared to the broader selection of general reward cards. The cash back categories have the potential to earn you quite a bit back, especially if you spend a ton of money on gas.”
Citi’s small business credit cards may not be for everyone, but if your business is already a strong American Airlines or Costco customer, the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Mastercard® or the Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Card by Citi are certainly worth looking into.
Do you have these Citi business credit cards? Let us know how you’d rate them on Twitter @Revenued_com.
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