The Capital One Spark Cash Plus is an unlimited 2% cash back credit card for business expenses with a simple rewards structure and an annual fee of $150. Although it is similar to other business credit cards in that it provides perks for companies like free employee cards and expenditure reports, it is slightly less generous than some of its rivals.
Several other business rewards cards, some of which carry no annual fee at all and others which can cost as much as $550, are equivalent to Spark Cash Plus. Some examples include the American Express Blue Business Cash Card (no annual cost) and the Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Card (annual charge: $95).
How Does the Capital One Spark Cash Plus Card Compare?
Considering applying for a Capital One Spark Cash Plus Card? Be sure to compare this card to others that cater to small businesses before moving ahead with your application.
The Chase Ink Business Unlimited Card is a great option to consider if you’re looking for a suitable alternative to Spark Cash Plus. Similar to Spark Cash Plus, Ink Business Unlimited is a flat-rate cash-back card, but it’s distinct enough to earn its own analysis.
| Spark Cash Plus | Ink Business Unlimited |
| $150 annual fee | No annual fee |
| $200 annual cash-back bonus when you spend over $200k in a year | No annual spend bonus |
| Up to $1,000 in bonus cash is available, $500 after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months, and another $500 after spending $50,000 in the first 6 months. | Get a $750 incentive after making $7,500 in purchases during the first three months after signing up. |
| Pay in full every month | Allows you to carry a debt; introductory purchase APR of 0% for 12 months; thereafter, a variable regular APR of 15.49% to 21.49% |
Capital One Spark Cash Plus Card Highlights
What you just read about the Spark Cash Plus card’s main benefits is accurate. Take note of the excellent first spending incentive, simple rewards program, and yearly cash-back bonus, among other features.
Bonus for Spending Early
Up to $1,000 in bonus cash is available, $500 after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months, and another $500 after spending $50,000 in the first 6 months.
Completing the Cash-Back Earning and Redeeming Process
For most transactions, the Capital One Spark Cash Plus card offers a flat, limitless 2% cash back. When you use Capital One Travel to book a qualifying hotel or car rental, you’ll receive a 5% cash back bonus. As long as your account is active, your rewards will stay valid indefinitely.
Any amount of cash back earned can be redeemed for either a physical check or a credit to your account statement. You also have the option of setting a redemption barrier of $25, $50, $100, or $200 to trigger automatic redemptions (statement credits or checks).
Bonus Cash Every Year
Every year you spend $200,000 or more, you’ll get a $200 cash bonus.
Important Charges
Payment of $150 per year is required. Additional cards issued to employees are issued at no cost and are eligible for limitless 2% cash back on any purchases made with the card. No annual percentage rate or minimum payment is required.
Quarterly and Year-End Reports
Periodically, you’ll get summaries of your expenditures and, if relevant, your workers’, that are detailed, classified, and itemized.
Purchase Records that are Downloadable
Purchase reports may be downloaded and exported to popular accounting software like QuickBooks, Quicken, or Excel, simplifying your company’s end-of-year bookkeeping and tax filing.
Additional Advantages
The supplementary features of this card are rather extensive and include:
- During non-business hours, replacement cards are available in case of
- Completely risk-free automobile rentals with no hidden fees for loss or damage coverage
- When the total cost of your airline ticket, train ticket, or any other type of travel ticket is charged to your credit card, you’ll be covered for up to $3,000.
Credit Required
The minimum credit requirement for this card is good. Minor flaws in your application are usually not going to be a deal breaker, but major ones definitely aren’t.
The Benefits of the Capital One Spark Cash Card
What makes Spark Cash Plus appealing is as follows. The category-leading early expenditure incentive, high cash-back rate as a default, and yearly bonus for heavy spenders are the highlights.
- Excellent Bonus for Initial Investment. The incentive for making an initial purchase with this card is excellent. In fact, it’s among the finest introductory deals for new cardholders of any business credit card.
- There will be no fees for making a foreign purchase or transferring your balance. There are no balance transfer or international transaction fees with Spark Cash Plus. Those who do business outside the United States and those who seek to transfer high-interest balances from other credit cards will both profit greatly from this feature. The overseas transaction costs of some well-liked alternatives might go as high as 3 percent. Balance transfers often incur costs of at least 3%, or $5.
- Profitability Return Rate to Start High. This card offers unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases. Businesses with high spending demands across several categories might benefit greatly from a card that offers a constant rate of two percent or more.
- The straightforward flat cash back scheme. In contrast to Capital One Travel’s hotel and car rental bookings, Spark Cash Plus’s cash back rewards program is ridiculously easy to understand: 2% cash back on all purchases, every day. The good news is that consumers who don’t want to have to deal with spending limits and tiers or, even worse, rotating spending categories, may now relax. There are a lot of other business reward cards out there, and many of them feature more sophisticated agreements that involve tiers and limitations, such as the Chase Ink and American Express business card families.
- Large Purchasers Get An Annual Cash Reward! Those who use their card to rack up annual purchases of $200,000 or more will receive a $200 cash incentive. That’s an excellent year-end bonus sum to receive.
- Ability to Redeem Points for Any Amount All you have to do to cash in your cash back rewards is accept a paper check or a statement credit in exchange for the amount you want to redeem.
The Capital One Spark Cash Card’s Drawbacks
Prior to applying, think about the cons listed above. Pay attention to the rising annual charge, the lack of alternatives to cash, and the lack of business perks in comparison to other leading small company credit cards.
- Includes a yearly price tag. However, company owners who don’t spend enough each year to justify the card’s $150 annual charge may find it to be a deterrent. Capital One Spark Cash Select is a no-annual-fee credit card that offers comparable perks.
- Few Alternatives to Cash Payouts. You shouldn’t get this card if you don’t plan to cash in your rewards for money. Gift cards are your only alternative choice, which might reduce the value of your points. In comparison, the Ultimate Rewards and Membership Rewards shopping portals are rather broad and may be accessed through the use of the Chase Ink and American Express business credit card families. There is a vast range of products available for redemption through these portals, with some offering redemption rates as high as $0.01 per point.
- Almost little Value to Organizations. Only the ability to obtain your transaction history and quarterly expenditure reports is really useful for company owners using this card. That’s a drawback in comparison to other business cards out there.
Bottom Line
Unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases with Spark Cash Select, the no-annual-fee sibling of Spark Cash Plus. It’s essentially identical to the Capital One Quicksilver Card, with the exception of a few business features that aren’t accessible with the consumer cards, and the absence of balance transfer fees is a significant feature that’s unique to the Spark Cash Select.
The Capital One Spark Cash Plus is similar to a supercharged Quicksilver in that it offers a flat, unrestricted 2% cash back rate on all purchases and charges no interest or fees for transferring a balance. Spark Cash Plus may not have the most robust set of perks compared to other business credit cards, but its base earning rate is hard to beat. If money is everything to you, then this card should be priority number one.
