Amex Credit Card Challenge: Blue Business Cash vs. Blue Business Plus

In addition to its stability Excellent personal credit cardSAmerican Express also offers great card options for small business owner.

Those who cannot easily recoup the high annual fees on certain Amex business cards through their premium benefits, or who cannot easily take advantage of the rotating bonus spending categories session, should see two of the best underrated card for daily spending in the Amex product line: American Express Blue Business Cash Card™ and Blue Business® Plus credit card from American Express.

Related: American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card Review

While these two cards are very similar, including their names, there are some significant differences between them to note. Here’s what you need to know if you’re trying to decide between Amex Blue Business Cash card and Amex Green Business Plus Card.

Related: Blue Business® Plus credit card from American Express review

with American Express Blue Business Cashyou can earn a total of $250 cash back through statement credit after spending $3,000 on purchases during the first three months of your card membership.

The Blue Business Plus card offers 15,000 Rewards® Membership points after cardholders spend $3,000 on qualifying purchases within the first three months of card membership.

Based on current TPG point pricing, Membership bonus points are worth 2 cents each, so the Blue Business Plus bonus is the same as earning $300 in bonus money. Membership Rewards maybe transfer for more than 20 airline and hotel partners for better value. Compared to other Amex cards, these welcome offers may not seem like much. However, these cards previously had even lower – or even non-existent – welcome offers.

Related: Amex transfer partner guide

Currently, both cards offer a 0% annual referral percentage (APR) on purchases during the first 12 months of account opening. Then it will be a variable rate from 16.99% -24.99% based on various factors (see rates and fees – Amex Blue Cash; see prices and fees – Blue Business Plus).

Winner: Blue business plus. But this will depend on whether you just want refunds or if you’re more interested in the travel options that earning Membership Points opens up. However, our money is on point because so many other credit cards offer Refund Referral Bonus with lower spending requirements Blue Business Cash.

The Blue Business Plus card with $0 annual fee (see rates and fees). Likewise, the Amex Green Corporate Cash card has one $0 annual fee (understand rates and fees).

Winner: Tie.

Income

The two cards have similar earnings structures.

The Blue Business Plus earn 2 points per dollar on the first $50,000 spent each calendar year and 1 point per dollar on other purchases thereafter.

The Blue Business Cash earn 2% cash back on your first $50,000 purchase each calendar year, then 1% cash back is automatically credited to your statement.

No card has another card bonus itemso they are an easy way to earn rewards without much effort.

Winner: Tie. Again, this will depend on whether you prefer cashback or Amex points.

Related: Best cashback card

Cashback rewards you earn with Blue business cash automatically appear as a credit statement on your bill each month. While that simple formula may be appealing to some, it also means that your reward options are very limited.

On the other hand, Blue business plus card that earns Amex Membership bonus points, which can be redeem in many different ways. In general, you can get the best valuable by forwarding them to one of the American Express hotel or airline partner.

If you choose not to redeem your Membership Rewards points for travelingyou can also redeem them for gift cards, to cover charges on your billing statement, shop with them directly on Amazon or through Membership Rewards online shopping mall, donate to charity, or use Pay with Points at checkout with various merchants. However, none of these options will give great value to your points (a penny or less), so you want to avoid them.

Winner: Blue business plus. You can’t beat the versatility of Amex Membership Rewards Points over basic cashback.

Benefit

While none of the cards are premium options, they’re not entirely without benefits either.

Both cards are among the few that offer Amex’s Extended Purchasing Power feature. This allows you to exceed your card’s preset spending limit without being denied or penalized over-limit fees and penalties. Purchases that go over your credit limit can even earn you rewards as usual as long as you keep paying at least your minimum balance.

Cardholders can add up to 99 additional users for free with either Blue Business Plus (understand rates and fees) or Blue business cash (understand rates and fees), also.

Both cards also have other benefits, such as Car rental loss and damage protection,* purchase protection up to $1,000 per occurrence and $50,000 per account per year, ** and Warranty extension Up to an extra year of protection on items purchased in the United States with a warranty of five years or less. **

Both Blue Business Cash and Blue business plus comes with access to Amex’s Global Support Hotlineprovides cardholders with 24-hour emergency assistance when you are more than 100 miles away from home.^

Finally, business owners can take advantage of expense management tools like QuickBooks and Bill.com’s Vendor Pay, which help businesses automate the way they bill and pay.

Winner: Tie.

Related: What is the best American Express card for you?

*Eligibility and benefit levels vary by card. Not all types of vehicles or rentals are covered and geographic restrictions apply. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for details. The policies are underwritten by the AMEX Insurance Company. Coverage is provided through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

** Eligibility and benefit levels vary by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. The policies are underwritten by the AMEX Insurance Company.

^ Eligibility and benefit levels vary by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Cardmembers are
responsible for the costs charged by the third party service provider.

There are only two main differences between Blue Business Plus and Blue business cash cards: their welcome offer and their rewards. If you’re trying to decide between them, think about whether you want cash back or Amex Membership Rewards Points and the travel options they open up.

In particular, the Amex Green Business Plus can be paired with other cards that earn Membership Rewards points such as American Express® Business Gold Cardto earn extra points on the categories where you spend the most.

For your part, the Amex Green Corporate Cash much more rigid in that you can only redeem its reward in the form of cashback. That might be well worth it for some as you’ll be able to reduce your monthly bill with a statement credit automatically added to your account. That’s a pretty effective way to save money.

These are both solid options for everyday spending. However, if you are looking for a little more flexibility and greater redemption potential, Blue Business Plus is probably a better choice.

Official app link: American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
Official app link: Blue Business® Plus credit card from American Express

For Amex Blue Business Cash card prices and fees, click here.
For Amex Blue Business Plus card rates and fees, click here.

Additional reporting by Ryan Wilcox.