The Best Business Credit Cards for Balance Transfers

Managing your finances is one of the most difficult parts of running a business. That’s why many business owners find themselves with credit card debt—potentially on one or multiple cards and at a high interest rate. If you’re in this situation, a business credit card balance transfer may help.

A balance transfer is a form of refinancing where you transfer the balance on one (or multiple) of your business credit cards to another, ideally at a lower APR. This makes it easier and more affordable to pay off your debt on that single card. The best business balance transfer cards offer features like:

• A lengthy 0% intro APR. Your best option for balance transfers, 0% APR cards let you transfer your existing balance to a new card and potentially pay it off interest-free.
• No balance transfer charges. Balance transfer cards with 0% APR are rare. If you can’t qualify for one, or would prefer different features overall, look for cards that don’t charge a fee to transfer balances.

This guide breaks down the best business credit cards for balance transfers—discussing their balance transfer offers, as well as other features including reward programs, annual fees, and welcome bonuses—so you’ll have everything you need to decide which card is right for you.

• U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card
• Capital One® Spark® Miles for Business
• Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business
• Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business

Best for: 0% introductory offer.

The first of our best balance transfer business cards comes from U.S. Bank. The bank’s Business Platinum card offers a lengthy 0% intro APR period that includes balance transfers as well as purchases.

For this card, the 0% intro APR period is 15 months—but only balance transfers made within the first 30 days after opening your account qualify. After the intro period is up, your APR will set in at a rate that varies based on the Prime Rate and your creditworthiness.

While you may potentially save on interest costs, the U.S. Bank Business Platinum Card does charge a fee for balance transfers. You’ll pay 3% of the transfer amount or $5, whichever is higher.

Additionally, the U.S. Bank Business Platinum card has no annual fee and offers zero fraud liability protection, but no ongoing rewards program. Nevertheless, if your main focus is a business credit card balance transfer offer to help you recover from business credit card debt, this is certainly a card worth considering.

Best for: Travel rewards. 

The Capital One Spark Miles Select card does not charge for balance transfers, letting you transfer as many card balances as you’d like without paying a fee. However, transfers aren’t eligible for this card’s 0% introductory period, so they’ll be subject to the APR designated by the card issuer

If you want to avoid balance transfer fees and earn travel-specific rewards, the Capital One Spark Miles Select card may be a good choice.

With this card, you’ll earn an unlimited 1.5 miles on every dollar you spend. Plus, if you spend $3,000 during your first three months with Spark Miles Select, you’ll earn a 20,000 miles welcome bonus. You’ll be able to redeem your miles to fly on any airline, anytime, with no blackout dates or seat restrictions.

Additionally, within your first nine months with this card, you’ll be able to carry a credit card balance on purchases (but not on balance transfers) from month to month without accumulating any interest. After that, a variable APR that will depend on the market Prime Rate will set in, so you’ll want to check the issuer’s terms and conditions for the latest APR information.

The Spark Miles Select has no annual fee, no foreign transaction fees, and even though you might be taking on interest from a balance transfer, you will also be taking on the opportunity to earn unlimited travel rewards.

Best for: Welcome bonus and cash rewards.

Similar to the Spark Miles Select, the Capital One Spark Cash credit card is one of the best business cards for balance transfers if you’re looking to avoid a balance transfer fee.

The Spark Cash card also has no foreign transaction fees and no annual fee for the first year—after that year, however, you’ll have to pay a $95 annual fee.

This being said, the Spark Cash is one of the best flat-rate rewards business credit cards on the market—offering 2% cash back on every purchase with no limits.

You’ll get a warm welcome with the Spark Cash—Capital One will give you a substantial $500 cash welcome bonus if you spend $4,500 on your card within your first three months as a cardholder. Moreover, the Spark Cash includes $0 fraud liability and free employee cards, which also earn an unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases.

Although the Spark Cash earns impressive cash back rewards and won’t charge you a balance transfer fee, you will be charged an APR on all balances you carry—including both purchases and balances transferred. Therefore, you’ll want to evaluate whether the rewards you earn can make up for the possible extra debt you’ll incur if you need to transfer a previous balance with this card.

Capital One also has a Spark Cash Select card for businesses. This card offers a smaller welcome bonus ($200) and a lower cash back rate (1.5x). However, it eliminates the annual fee and comes with a nine-month 0% introductory APR for new purchases, potentially letting you put extra money toward transferred balances accruing interest during that time. Once the intro period has ended, your APR will vary depending on your creditworthiness and the Prime Rate.

Best for: Business owners with fair credit.

Finally, you might consider the Capital One Spark Classic as the best business balance transfer credit card if you have fair personal credit. Like the other Capital One Spark cards above, the Spark Classic doesn’t have a 0% intro APR period that applies to balance transfers, but it does have a lower credit threshold and does not charge a balance transfer fee.

Therefore, if you don’t have the greatest personal credit and aren’t sure you can qualify for some other options, this might be the card for you.

In addition to not charging a balance transfer fee, the Spark Classic has no annual fee, no foreign transaction fees, and even earns 1% cash back on every purchase.

Once again, it’s important to note that any balance that you transfer will be subject to an APR designated by Capital One; however, if you can pay off your spending and previous balances responsibly with this card, it’s a great tool for rebuilding personal credit and business credit.

A balance transfer is exactly what it sounds like—you transfer a balance you have on one credit card to another and then pay the balance off from there. However, a balance transfer doesn’t only have to refer to business credit cards; most credit card issuers will let you transfer any account that requires a monthly payment, including various types of installment loans.

Most business credit card issuers will have restrictions on how much you can transfer and when you can transfer it, especially if you’re opening a card with a 0% intro APR offer. Other details can influence what business credit card balance transfer offer is right for you. For example, you won’t be able to perform a balance transfer between cards of the same issuer—therefore, if you have existing debt on a Wells Fargo business credit card, you won’t be able to open a new Wells Fargo card and transfer that existing balance, you would have to open a card with Chase, Bank of America, or another financial institution.

After you’ve opened a new business credit card to perform a balance transfer, check your credit limit, fees, and any amount restrictions before initiating the balance transfer from your old card. Once you’ve done this, completing the balance transfer is relatively simple. Many credit card issuers will allow you to initiate the process online, or you may have to call using the number on the back of your card.

After you’ve initiated the balance transfer, you should see your balance reflected in your new account within about a week, but this time can vary based on the credit card issuer.

Using a balance transfer credit card is a common method for small businesses to pay off their existing debt in a faster and more cost-effective way. If you have pre-existing, high-interest credit card debt that you’re looking to pay down and can qualify for a better rate, consider a balance transfer business credit card.

On the other hand, if you don’t have pre-existing debt that you’re looking to pay off, you really have no reason to choose a business credit card specifically for its balance transfer offers.

However, all the cards on this list are great options in their own right. You may find that any of our best business credit cards for balance transfers have other features—rewards, no annual fee, and more—that make them compelling choices nonetheless.

If you need a business balance transfer card, you’ll want to choose a card that makes it easier for you to pay off your debt and improve your credit history. Consider all of your options carefully, so you don’t end up with the wrong business credit card.

Ultimately, only you can decide which balance transfer credit card is best for your small businesses. This being said, consider not only how any balance transfer offer can help you now, but also how the card’s ongoing features—annual fee, foreign transaction fees, rewards programs—will work for your business. If you can, get a card with a lengthy 0% intro APR. Such a card may charge a fee to transfer your balance, but you’ll be able to pay off this balance interest-free during the intro period.

Due to the complex nature of balance transfers, interest rates, and 0% intro APR periods, take the time to read the terms and conditions for any balance transfer business credit card offers you’re considering. If you have questions, reach out to the issuer for clarification. This way, you can ensure that whatever card you do choose, you know exactly what offer you’re getting, how it works, and how you can use it to pay off your existing credit card debt.