It is incredibly smart to have a business credit card as a real estate agent. Credit cards can reward you for your spending and help you track and manage cash flow. However, you have to choose the right credit card that most aligns with your business expenses and financial needs. Here’s our selection of the best credit cards for real estate agents:
- Chase Ink Business Cash®: Most flexible rewards program
- Capital One Spark 1% Classic: Best for credit building
- Blue Business® Plus Credit Card: Best for expanded buying power
- U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards: Best reward structure for realtors
- American Express Gold Card: Highest level of rewards
- Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards: Best for cashback rewards
Best credit cards for real estate agents compared
| Credit Card | Annual fee | APR | Intro offer | Rewards |
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 | $0 | 0% for 12 months, then 17.49 - 25.49% | Earn a total of $750 in the first six months of having this card if you spend $3,000 in the first three months and $6,000 in the first six months |
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 | $0 | 29.74% variable APR | N/A |
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 | $0 | 0% for the first 12 months, then 17.49 - 27.49% | 15,000 rewards points when you spend $3,000 in the first three months |
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 | $0 | 0% for 12 months, then variable rate of 17.99 - 26.99% | Earn a bonus of $750 cash back if you spend $6,000 in 180 days |
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 | $375 | 0% for six months, then 18.49 - 27.49% variable APR rate | 200,000 bonus points when you spend $15,000 in the first three months |
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 | $0 | 0% for the first nine billing cycles, then 17.49 - 27.49% | $300 statement credit offer when you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days |
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Chase Ink Business Cash®: Most flexible rewards program
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The Chase Ink Business Cash® card is the best credit card for realtors who want to maximize their spending power and take advantage of rewards in a variety of ways. All cardholders have the opportunity to earn up to 5% cash back on purchases at office supply stores, internet services, and phone services. Points never expire, and you can redeem your points for cash, travel, or even gift cards.
Capital One Spark 1% Classic: Best for credit building
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The Capital One Spark 1% Classic is the best real estate agent and business credit card for those wanting to increase their credit score to qualify for cards with better rewards and more stringent requirements. Although there are a limited number of rewards for your purchases, it has a $0 annual fee. This is an ideal choice for agents who need to focus on creating a real estate budget and paying credit card statements on time as they grow their business.
American Express Blue Business® Plus: Best for Expanded Buying Power
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The American Express Blue Business® Plus Credit Card is the only card on this list that offers Expanded Buying Power, which gives you the ability to spend above your credit limit when necessary. This makes it one of the best credit cards for realtors who are growing their business and may have an increase in expenses.
This credit card is also great for newer agents who are avoiding additional expenses because it charges a $0 annual fee and 0% APR for the first 12 months. It also offers more rewards than some other cards on this list, with double points on all purchases up to $50,000.
U.S. Bank Business Triple Cash Rewards: Best reward structure for realtors
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The U.S. Bank Triple Cash Rewards Visa® Business Card is an ideal real estate agent and business credit card because of its reward structure. It offers 3% cash back at gas stations and electric vehicle charging stations, office supply stores, restaurants, and cell phones — it’s as if this credit card was designed for the expenses of real estate agents!
This obviously ranks as one of the best credit cards for real estate agents because it rewards you for typical expenses, like printing real estate marketing materials, your cell phone plan, meeting with clients over coffee or lunch, and traveling back and forth from showings. In fact, it actually won an award for “Best Gas Rewards Credit Card” from WalletHub.
American Express Gold Card: Highest level of rewards
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The American Express® Business Gold Card is one of the best business credit cards for realtors who have a higher level of expenses and want a high-earning rewards card to match. Cardholders can get 4x rewards points in two categories of their choice (software and electronic goods, monthly phone services, transportation, restaurants, or gas stations).
Although this card has the highest annual fee on our list, it also offers a 0% APR rate for the first 6 months and multiple bonus benefits, like Walmart+ and credits for FedEx and office supply stores. Another benefit of the Gold Card is that you can redeem points for travel, business expenses, or even statement credits.
Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Mastercard: Best for cash back rewards
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The Bank of America® Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Mastercard® is ideal for agents who want to get the best cashback rewards and minimize costs. Similar to the Gold Card and Chase Ink Business Cash, it allows you to choose one category to receive the maximum reward of 3% cash back.
Regardless of which category you choose, you get 2% back on all dining purchases and 1% on all remaining purchases. Plus, when you open a Business Advantage credit card, you can earn a $300 statement credit after spending $3,000 in the first three months.
How to choose the best credit card for realtors
As a real estate agent, you have unique expenses and financial needs. By choosing the right credit card, you can earn valuable rewards, increase your credit score, and become an even more successful real estate agent. However, it’s important to carefully consider which of the best credit cards for real estate agents is right for you.
Here are some important factors to consider when you’re choosing a real estate business credit card:
- Your credit score: Many high-reward credit cards require a good or excellent credit score
- Rewards & benefits: Many credit cards offer cash back or rewards points. Think about which type of reward would be best for your business. You may want to rack up travel points for a vacation, but if you are just starting your business with a limited emergency fund, then a cashback rewards structure might fit you better.
- Introductory offers: Look at cards with welcome offers, such as those that offer additional rewards points or cashback credits when you spend a certain amount within the first few months. Make sure to compare your business expenses with those criteria to ensure that you’ll be able to take advantage of this offer.
- Interest rates: Unfortunately, many people don’t even look at the interest rates or APR of credit cards before signing up. While APR rates are generally pretty similar between credit cards, there are many cards that give you six to twelve months with 0% interest. This could save you hundreds or thousands of dollars, especially if you aren’t accustomed to managing a credit card.
- Annual fees: Annual fees on business credit cards can range from $0 to $700. Consider the annual fee and whether the card rewards make it worth the cost.
- Security features: Make sure you choose a credit card with fraud protection measures and read the specifics before signing up.
- How you’ll use it: Think about your business expenses. Will you use the credit card for traveling, marketing, advertising, dining, office supplies, or technology? Try to match your expenses with a card that has rewards for that category.
Our Methodology
At The Close, we have a team of professionals, researchers, writers, and real estate experts who do thorough research to give you accurate information. To help you find and choose the best credit card for real estate agents, we carefully evaluated a wide range of credit cards and reward cards on the market.
Our detailed criteria includes:
- Annual fees: Although we prioritized credit cards for realtors that had a $0 annual fee, we selected cards with an annual fee that balanced out the potential rewards.
- Interest rates: We confirmed the APR rates of every credit card, favoring cards that offered a certain period of time with 0% interest.
- Credit requirements: Since real estate agents can have a huge range of experience, credit history, and financial backgrounds, we looked for credit cards available for fair, good, and excellent credit scores.
- Rewards structure: The best business credit cards for realtors will reward categories where they most often spend money (like gas stations and office supplies), so we evaluated the rewards opportunities that aligned the most.
- Introductory offer: Credit cards with introductory offers help agents get the most benefit out of their cards, so we selected cards with strong welcome offers.
- Additional benefits: We favored credit cards that offered additional rewards like fraud protection, a variety of methods to redeem points, travel assistance, and cell phone protection.
For more details about how we evaluate tools and resources, read more about The Close methodology.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What is the best Chase credit card for real estate agents?
We chose the Chase Ink Business Cash® credit card as one of the best credit cards for realtors because of its versatile rewards structure. However, Ink Business Unlimited and Ink Business Preferred are similar options with slightly different rewards structures for agents who want more travel rewards or a simpler cashback system.
Why do real estate agents need specific credit cards?
As a realtor, it’s important to take the time to choose a credit card that best fits your business needs. When you choose a specific credit card, you can get rewards for making necessary business expenses.
Are annual fee credit cards worth it for realtors?
Although many realtors favor credit cards with a $0 annual fee, some annual fee cards can be worth it. For example, the American Express Gold Card has a relatively high annual fee, but it also rewards cardholders with more points per purchase than any other card on our list. It also offers additional benefits (like a Walmart+ membership and credits toward FedEx and Grubhub) that may ultimately save more money than the annual fee costs.
What expenses should realtors put on their credit cards?
Real estate agents should use credit cards for their business-related expenses. This can include printing flyers, ordering signs, online advertising, CRM software, gas and transportation, office supplies, dining, and technology.
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