The Best Business Credit Cards for Advertising Purchases (From Facebook Ads to TV)
Full Disclosure: We may be compensated when you click on links to credit card products from our advertising partners, such as American Express, Chase & Barclays. Opinions on this site are ours alone, and have not been reviewed or approved by the issuer. See our Advertiser Disclosure for more details. Thanks!
Online advertising has become the major strategy for growing businesses in today’s marketplace.
Estimates vary by source, but according to data research company Statista, in 2017, 90% of U.S. businesses were using social media for marketing.
This was an increase from 86.2% in 2013, and it is expected to increase to 91% in 2019.
Chances are, your business spends money on advertising. Whether you use Facebook, Google, Twitter, or more traditional media platforms such as TV or radio — if a big share of your business expenses falls in this category, you’ll want make sure you’re earning the highest rewards possible.
Fortunately, several of the best credit cards available have been designed to reward common types of business spending inherent to businesses today.
In our article, we’ll cover:
- Which credit cards are best for earning rewards on advertising purchases
- Which advertising categories are eligible for bonus earning
- The benefits of different reward currencies
- Alternative credit cards for earning rewards on advertising purchases
Let’s get busy making sure every advertising purchase your business makes earns rewards.
Table of contents
Table of Contents
Best Overall Credit Cards for Advertising Purchases
Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card
| CHASE CARD | BENEFITS & INFO |
|---|---|
Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card |
|
How to Earn on Advertising Purchases
No need to select a specific bonus category with the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card — all of the business spending bonus categories automatically earn 3 Ultimate Rewards points per $1 spent.
Advertising purchases on social media and search engines are included in the bonus earning categories and also receive 3 points per dollar spent.
You’ll also receive this same level of earning on travel, shipping, and internet/cable/phone services.
There is a $150,000 annual limit on total 3X category earnings, after which you will earn 1 point per dollar spent. If you’re reaching this level of spending on Google and Facebook Ads or other 3% category, that’s a total of 450,000 Ultimate Rewards Points!
Once earned, Ultimate Rewards points are deposited in your Ultimate Rewards account at the end of each statement period and are available for use.
Here’s how the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card rewards advertising purchases.
| Best For: | Example of Bonus Earning Merchants | Rewards |
|
|
|
Why We Like Earning Ultimate Rewards Points
We like to earn Ultimate Rewards points because of their flexibility and value.
- Redeem Ultimate Rewards points for travel, cash-back, gift cards, merchandise, or services
- Maximize the value of your points by transferring Ultimate Rewards points to airline and hotel travel partners
- Redeem points via Chase’s travel portal, and points are worth 25% more in value
Hot Tip: If your business spends a lot on Google Ads or Facebook Ads, the Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Card is an excellent choice for those advertising purchases. Maximizing the $150,000 purchase limit for 3% categories will generate $5625 in travel value when redeemed via the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.
American Express® Business Gold Card
| AMEX CARD | BENEFITS & INFO |
|---|---|
American Express® Business Gold Card |
|
How to Earn on Advertising Purchases
You have more productive things to do with your time than trying to determine which bonus earning categories you should select on your business credit card.
With the American Express® Business Gold Card, elevated earning is simple. All of the 4X bonus earning categories are eligible, but your actual spending determines which 2 categories receive the bonus each statement period.
For example, if this month’s statement shows that shipping and radio advertising were your biggest expenses, those are the categories that will receive 4X bonus earnings.
Next month’s spending could change, with airline tickets and computer hardware being your largest expenses. Those will then be the categories earning the 4X bonus.
This process ensures your greatest expenses receive the greatest rewards. If advertising is always your biggest expense category, you’ll always receive 4X earnings for those purchases.
If your business spends a lot on Google Ads or Facebook Ads, the American Express Business Gold Card is an excellent choice. If you maximize the $150,000 annual purchase limit in this 4X earnings category, that’s 600,000 Membership Rewards Points earned each year!
Here’s how the American Express® Business Gold Card rewards advertising purchases:
| Best For: | Examples of Bonus Earning Merchants | Rewards |
|
|
|
Why We Like Earning Membership Rewards Points
Membership Rewards points are one of the most valuable rewards currencies, as there are so many ways to earn the points and a variety of good value redemption options.
The value you receive for your points will depend on which redemption option you select. You can purchase travel through Amex Travel, redeem your points for gift cards, or donate to charity to easily receive 1 cent per point in value.
Transferring Membership Rewards points to travel partners (especially airlines) can yield even greater value and be the best option for maximizing your Amex points.
While there are several other redemption options, choices such as statement credits, shopping at Amazon, Best Buy, or the American Express shopping mall will yield significantly less value for your points.
Hot Tip: If your business needs online recruiting services to help find new hires, the American Express® Business Gold Card could save you thousands of dollars. The card comes with a free year of ZipRecruiter, which is valued at nearly $3,000.
SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express
| AMEX CARD | CARD INFO & BENEFITS |
|---|---|
SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express |
|
How to Earn on Advertising Purchases
If advertising is your greatest expense, you can consistently earn 3% cash-back by selecting this bonus category within the first 2 months after card approval. After that, you can change your bonus category once per year.
Bonus earning in 3% categories is limited to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year.
Additionally, you can earn 5% cash-back on wireless phone services and at U.S. office supply stores. There is no requirement to select these categories; bonus earning happens automatically. There is a $50,000 separate annual limit for combined 5% categories.
Here’s how the SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express earns cash-back on advertising:
| Best For: | Examples of Bonus Earning Merchants | Rewards |
|
|
|
Why We Like Earning Cash-Back
If you’re operating your business on a tight budget and traveling is not a priority, cash-back can be a valuable way to bring capital back into the business.
No need for complicated redemption strategies — cash-back earned on the SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card is applied automatically to subsequent statements, helping to offset expenses and improve your bottom line.
Hot Tip: Have a large business purchase coming up that you won’t be able to pay off right away? The SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express has a stellar introductory 0% APR period for purchases. This 0% APR period will allow you to make that large purchase and pay the debt back over 15 months without incurring interest charges.
Alternative Credit Cards for Advertising Purchases
If you want to earn rewards on all of your purchases including advertising, you can accomplish this with several credit cards.
Let’s take a look at several no-annual-fee credit cards that deliver earnings on every purchase you make.
The Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express
| CREDIT CARD | BENEFITS |
|---|---|
The Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express |
|
The Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express earns 2 Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on the card on everyday business purchases, including advertising like Google Ads and Facebook Ads.
There is an annual $50,000 limit on total 2X purchases so if you maximize that limit, you’ll earn 100,000 Membership Rewards points, an excellent value for a no-annual fee credit card. After that, all purchases will earn 1 point per dollar spent.
Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card
With 1.5% cash-back on every purchase your business makes, including advertising, this no-annual-fee credit card is worthy of consideration.
Cash-back rewards are earned in the form of Ultimate Rewards points, which can be redeemed for cash-back at 1 cent per point.
You can, however, transfer the Ultimate Rewards points to premium Chase credit cards such as the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve® for 25%-50% more value when redeemed for travel.
There is no limit on how much cash-back (in the form of Ultimate Rewards points) you can earn with the Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card.
Citi® Double Cash Card
There are no complicated earning structures to keep track of with the Citi® Double Cash Card. You’ll earn 1% cash-back when you make a purchase and 1% when you pay off your purchase.
With 2% cash-back on every purchase, including advertising like Google Ads and Facebook Ads, the Citi® Double Cash Card makes earning easy. There’s also no limit on the amount of cash-back you can earn.
Hot Tip: If your advertising expenses exceed the bonus category limits that come with a specific credit card, a combination of 2 cards that match up with your spending levels may be the ultimate solution. For example, the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card and the American Express® Business Gold Card, cards with elevated advertising earnings, have a $300,000 annual limit combined.
Final Thoughts
If your business is heavy into advertising and the expense is significant, selecting a credit card that earns rewards for these purchases makes good business sense.
It’s also prudent to look at your other major expenses and select a card that matches as much of your spending mix as possible.
For example, if your 2 largest business expenses are for travel and advertising, the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card might be a better choice than the American Express® Business Gold Card, which limits earning to just airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines.
If your business is small and you have a lot of office supply and wireless phone expenses, the SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express will have you earning plenty at 5% cash-back on up to $50,000 per year. Plus, you’ll receive 3% additional cash-back on your advertising expenses — it’s a win-win for a small business.
Selecting the best credit card for earning rewards on your business advertising expenses should involve looking at all of your expenses to determine which card is the best one overall for your business bottom line.
*Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock.com
