Business Credit Cards Vs. Personal Credit Card – a Look at the Pros and Cons

Pros and Cons of Business Credit Cards and Personal Credit Cards

In recent years, Americans have readily embraced the practice of ecommerce and cashless transactions.  The advent of Paypal, Click2Pay and almost every kind of credit card imaginable has made paper money almost irrelevant.

Cash, in fact, has become the exception rather than the norm.  Very rarely do you see people with thick stacks of money inside their pockets, and if you do, it most often is a cause for alarm.  In fact, store clerks and tellers have been trained to alert authorities whenever they encounter customers who pay for expensive purchases with cash.  But I digress.  Going back to the subject of credit cards – that wondrous contraption which allows you to shop with just one easy swipe – its widespread popularity has prompted banks to make this work to the advantage of business owners or the corporate industry.

And why not? Considering the countless financial transactions that a small to medium business makes, running out of petty cash for major or secondary supplies procurement, bills payments, or a host of other business expenses is a common experience.  A good number of these entrepreneurs have initially tried using their personal credit cards to cover these expenses, but more and more have been shifting to business credit cards for different reasons.

Would You Choose a Personal or Business Credit Card?

What sets a personal credit card apart from a business credit card, and why is one being compared to the other?

In terms of credit limit, personal credit cards have a lower credit line, while the latter can have a credit limit of up to $50,000. Also, a month-end repayment is compulsory for a personal card, while a business credit card allows you to pay just a smaller minimum amount.

In both cases however, interest rates increase for the remaining unpaid amount which is added onto next month’s card bill.

Let’s Weigh the Advantages

A business credit card, when simply used for important business transactions, can offer a wealth of advantages that would benefit the whole company.

First of all, business transactions of all sorts can arise anytime, and in times like these, the business credit card is the answer to every businessman’s prayers.

A business credit card can help a company overcome challenging financial trials. This paves an easier way to facilitate expansion.

Personal credit cards and business credit cards must be distinguished from another by more features. Business credit cards are much stricter in conducting character reference tests – and require a host of other relevant documentation to be submitted before the actual application processing occurs.

What will happen if you both you use your personal and business credit cards?  Simple, you have just made yourself credit card payment overload bait. Unless otherwise specified, you may find telemarketers calling you for different debt consolidation or debt settlement contracts.  Worse, you may actually run across some who carry the same Hershey’s Kisses wrappers you have been holding onto for so long.