Choosing the right business credit card for your company can be a challenging task, especially when considering the variety of options available in the market.
Two such options that have gained popularity among small and medium-sized businesses are the American Express® Business Gold Card and The Plum Card® from American Express.
The Business Gold is great for earning valuable Membership Rewards points to transfer to airline and hotel partners. Whereas the Plum Card is a good option for businesses that prefer flexibility in payment terms and cash flow management.
This article will compare each card based on several factors to help you make an informed decision on which card is the best to add to your wallet.
Full Reviews: American Express® Business Gold Card and The Plum Card® from American Express.
Card Overviews
- bonus_miles_full
- 4X Points on Purchases in Your Top 2 Business Categories (up to $150,000 in Combined Purchases Per Calendar Year)
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- $295 Annual Fee (Rates and Fees)
Welcome Bonus
The Amex Business Gold currently offers the following welcome bonus:
bonus_miles_full
Unlike most cards, the Amex Plum Card does not offer a welcome bonus for new applicants.
Winner: Amex Business Gold clearly wins this category with a large welcome bonus compared to no welcome bonus.
Earning Rewards
The Amex Business Gold earns 4 Membership Rewards points per dollar in your top 2 categories each billing cycle, including:
- Airfare purchased directly from airlines
- U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
- U.S. purchases made directly from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions
- U.S. gas stations
- U.S. restaurants, including takeout and delivery
- U.S. shipping purchases
The Amex Plum Card has a unique way of approaching rewards. You have two options:
- Earn an unlimited 1.5% Early Pay Discount on eligible charges within 10 days of your statement closing date and see the discount applied to your next statement when you pay at the least the Minimum Payment Due by the Please Pay By Date; OR
- You can carry the balance interest-free for 60 days if you pay the minimum monthly amount by the due date.
The minimum monthly payment is 10% of the balance from new activity on your current billing statement plus the entire amount of any previously deferred balance, as long as your account is current.
This interest-free option could be a good choice for businesses that need extra flexibility with their cash flow.
Winner: The Amex Business Gold is a points earning machine and clearly wins this category over the 1.5% cash back for the Amex Plum.
Card Benefits
The Amex Business Gold offers the following benefits:
- Trip Delay Insurance.*
- Baggage Insurance Plan.*
- Secondary Rental Car Insurance.*
- Purchase Protection.*
- Extended Warranty.*
- No foreign transaction fees.
- No preset spending limit.
* Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions, and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.
The Amex Plum Card offers the following card benefits:
- Purchase protection.*
- Extended warranty.*
- Secondary Rental Car Insurance.*
- No foreign transaction fees.
- No preset spending limit.
* Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions, and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.
Winner: Amex Business Gold. It offers more important travel protections like trip delay insurance and baggage insurance.
Value of the Annual Fees
The Amex Business Gold Card has an annual fee of $295 (rates & fees).
The annual fee is quite large, but you can earn a lot of rewards with the 4x points categories and using the travel and purchase protections.
You can add up to 99 employee cards at no additional cost, allowing you to earn points on their purchases with the card.
The Amex Plum card has a $250 annual fee (rates & fees) and you can additional employees for no fee.
Winner: It depends. Some businesses need the payment flexibility of the Plum American Express and it can save you a lot in interest if you were not planning on paying the card statement in full each month.
But if you are planning on paying off the balance each month, the Business Gold’s annual fee is a better value.
Redeeming Points
The Business Gold earns American Express Membership Rewards points.
American Express Membership Rewards is a popular rewards program that offers a variety of redemption options, including travel, merchandise, gift cards, and more.
However, to get the most value out of your rewards, it’s important to use them strategically.
One of the best ways to use Amex Membership Rewards is through transfer partners.
The program partners with over 20 airline and hotel partners, including ANA, Air Canada Aeroplan, Iberia Avios, and Avianca LifeMiles.
By transferring your points to these partners, you can often get more value per point and enjoy a wider range of redemption options.
Membership Rewards Transfer Partners [1 to 1]
|
|
|---|---|
Aer Lingus Avios
|
AeroMexico [1 to 1.6]
|
Air Canada Aeroplan
|
Air France/KLM Flying Blue
|
ANA
|
Avianca LifeMiles
|
British Airways Avios
|
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
|
Delta SkyMiles
|
El Al [1,000 to 20]
|
Emirates
|
Etihad Guest
|
Hawaiian Airlines
|
Iberia Avios
|
JetBlue [250 to 200]
|
Qantas
|
Qatar Airways
|
Singapore KrisFlyer
|
Virgin Atlantic
|
Choice
|
Marriott Bonvoy
|
Hilton Honors [1 to 2]
|
The Amex Plum’s rewards are automatically credited to the following billing statement, assuming you took the cash-back option over the extra time to pay off the balance.
Winner: Amex Business Gold. Membership Rewards points can be really valuable if used correctly to unlock luxury travel.
The Verdict
For most small businesses, the Amex Business Gold is a better option than the Amex Plum Card.
The Business Gold’s 4x points on your top categories is enticing and a quick way to rack up points if your business spends a lot of money each year.
But if your business needs payment flexibility, then the Amex Plum could be a good way to save hundreds of dollars each year on interest payments.
