A certain love of Amazon-centric shopping is required to make the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card* a great fit for your business spending. In addition to using the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card* to shop on the online giant’s website, the card also gets more access to the cloud platform Amazon Web Service (AWS), upscale grocery chain Whole Foods and a growing number of self-checkout stores. Multi-reward is called Amazon Go.
Most businesses find the best value in maps targeting the areas where they spend the most. If your business can pay for all or most of the fees within the Amazon ecosystem, and you have an existing Prime membership, you’re looking for a needle in a haystack. This card gives you unlimited and generous 5% back up to the first $120,000 in spend per calendar year or financing options on these purchases.
But for businesses with significant business expenses outside of physical goods or using AWS cloud services, the rewards of the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card* are less impressive. 2% reimbursement for U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, and wireless phone service purchased directly from U.S. service providers, and 1% for all other charges.
If you don’t already have a personal Amazon Prime account, you must purchase a Business Prime membership to apply for the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card*. Memberships range from $69 per year for one user to $10,099 per year for 100 or more users.
At first glance
- No annual fee (but requires a consumer or business Prime membership)
- 5% refund on Amazon purchases (including Amazon Web Services, Whole Foods, and Amazon Go locations), up to the first $120,000 of purchases per calendar year, then 1%
- 2% refund on U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, and wireless phone service purchased directly from U.S. service providers
- 1% back on all other purchases
- 90-day financing option with 0% APR (followed by recurring APRs from 14.49% to 22.49%) Buy Amazon instead of earning rewards.
Compensation
Earn rewards
In addition to earning rewards, the Amazon Business Prime American Express Credit Card also offers a welcome offer: Amazon.com Gift Cards (after Amazon Business Prime American Express Card approval).
Redeem rewards
Rewards earned on the card can be redeemed against your balance for any amount at any time, for qualifying purchases at the time of purchase or as statement credit. A penny is worth every penny. You cannot redeem rewards for actual cash back. If you don’t have enough rewards to cover your purchase, you can use your Amazon Business Prime Rewards card to pay the difference.
The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card offers a unique financing offer: You can forgo rewards when you shop on Amazon and instead provide 90-day financing for those expenses without incurring additional interest. If you usually have a balance, this may be more valuable to you, as even the 5% bonus rate is offset by the card’s double-digit financing costs.
Reward Potential
Get 5% back on Amazon-centric purchases, which is a very high rate. The main question to ask yourself about this card is, are you earning enough rewards to cover your last year’s Business Prime membership fee?
There are six levels of Business Prime membership:
- Duo: One user, $69 per year
- Essentials: Up to three users, $179 per year
- Small: Up to 10 users, $499/year
- Medium: Up to 100 users, $1,299 per year
- Enterprise: 100+ users, $10,099 per year.
For those who purchased a Duo Business Prime membership, the $125 Amazon gift card exceeds the first-year Business Prime fee. But in the second year and beyond, and beyond, you won’t come out on top with a welcome gift card alone.
For example, someone with a $69/year Duo membership would need to spend at least $1,400 a year in the 5% category to cover the cost of that membership. Essentials membership requires $3,600 per year, Small membership requires $10,000 per year, Medium membership requires $26,000 per year, and Enterprise membership requires $619,900 per year – category requirements (on the first $120,000 spent, income ratio drops to 1%) to achieve Business Prime membership Break-even of costs.
Depending on your business spending levels, reaching these breakeven spending thresholds may or may not be a problem. You’ll also want to consider having a 90-day window to pay for Amazon-related purchases instead of getting rewards.
0% introductory price
This card does not offer an introductory period of 0% APR, but instead of earning a 5% bonus on eligible purchases, you can opt for 90 days of 0% APR on Amazon purchases. After the 90-day interest-free period, you must pay interest on purchases at the card’s regular APR (14.49% – 22.49%).
More card benefits
There are a few benefits to owning this card beyond the bonus structure. As an American Express card, the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card offers travel protection and insurance, including:
- Rental Vehicle Loss and Damage Insurance: If you pay rent with a credit card and decline collision damage insurance rental counter
- Global Assistance: Visit the American Express Global Assistance Hotline
- Return Protection: Up to $300 per item within 90 days of purchase and up to $1,000 per calendar year based on purchase date
- Baggage Insurance: Up to $1,250 per person if luggage is damaged or lost during drop shipping.
It’s important to note that while the card’s homepage highlights shipping and pricing benefits, these features are a feature of Business Prime members and not related to the Amazon Business Prime American Express credit card itself.
Beautifully printed
Interest expense
- 14.49% – 22.49% Variable
Cost
- Annual membership fee: $0
- Cash Advance Fee: $5 or 3% of each cash advance amount, whichever is greater
How the cards are stacked
Amazon Business Prime American Express Card* and Amazon Business American Express Card*
If your business spends a reasonable amount on Amazon Business or AWS services, but the Prime Business membership fee is objectionable, consider using the Amazon Business American Express Card. Amazon-related spending incentives have dropped from 5% to 3%, but you won’t have to pay a Prime membership fee.
This version of the card also only offers a 60-day funding window for the 90 days of the Business Prime card. But if you’re looking to save some money on Amazon purchases, this card can help you do just that.
Amazon Business Prime American Express* and Ink Business Cash® Credit Cards
If you’re looking for great returns, but don’t want to commit to making most of your spending online, consider the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card with no annual fee.
It has an incentive structure and can also offer generous rewards in areas that businesses may find attractive. Earn 5% cash back on the first $25,000 on office supply store purchases and Internet, cable, and phone service purchases during each anniversary year of your account. The card also earns 2% cash back on the first $25,000 in gas station and restaurant purchases each anniversary year in the account. 1% cash back on all other purchases.
The Chase Ink Business Cash Card allows free use of employee cards like the Amazon Prime Business Card, but rewards can be redeemed for cash back, gift cards, or travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program. Plus, it offers new customers the chance to earn a fantastic welcome bonus: $750 in bonus cash back after spending $7,500 within the first 3 months of account opening.
Amazon Business Prime American Express* and
If the idea of tiered rewards for different categories sounds like an Amazon headache, check out a card that offers the same flat rate for all your spending, like .
With an annual fee of , you’ll get unlimited 2% cash back on all fees, which you can redeem for any amount at any time. Since you receive cash back directly, you can use it however you want, not just for future job purchases. It also comes with a nice welcome offer: .
In the second year and beyond, you’ll need to spend at least $4,750 to offset the annual fee. But you can have as many employee cards as you want at no additional cost. This might make you prefer it over a higher tier Business Prime membership.
Is this card right for you?
If you already have a Business Prime membership, adding the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card to your arsenal can save you money on items you’ve already purchased. However, if you’re considering signing up for Business Prime membership to get the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card, consider whether most of your business spending falls into the 5% category. You may find another card with a lower fee and/or spending category more suitable for your purchase.
SEE ALSO!
- American Express Centurion Black Card Review
- X1 Credit Card – Check how to apply.
- Destiny Credit Card – How to order online.
- Delta Skymiles® Reserve American Express Card Review – See more.
- American Express focuses on customer experience with new checking account and redesigned application
- Discover it® Rewards card rewards see how it works