The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage® Visa Signature® Card is a good credit card for business owners with
good credit who want to earn cash back rewards at competitive rates. You can get an initial bonus of $
750 by spending at least
$7,500 in the first
120 days, plus ongoing rewards of
1 - 5% cash back on purchases. The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card is easily worthwhile because it has a
$0 introductory membership fee the first year and only charges
$95 per year after that.
On the downside, you might assume that a credit card with “Leverage” in its name would have a good financing offer, but that’s not the case here. The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card has a fairly high regular APR and no low-interest introductory deal.
U.S. Bank Business Leverage® Visa Signature® Card Review Highlights
$750 initial bonus
New cardholders can earn this initial bonus by spending at least
$7,500 in the
120 days after opening an account. Only the primary account owner can contribute to reaching the required spending amount. Purchases by authorized users don’t count.
The $
750 that you can get from the
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card far outpaces the average cash back credit card’s initial bonus offer of
$228. However, most credit cards don’t require you to spend quite so much to earn their bonus. It’s a reasonable amount for a high-end business card, though.
5% back on prepaid hotels and rental cars
The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card’s maximum ongoing rewards rate of
5% back applies only to prepaid hotels and rental cars booked through U.S. Bank’s Travel Rewards Center. Fortunately, you can find the major hotel chains and rental car companies represented there.
2% back on purchases in your two biggest spending categories
You will earn 2% back on purchases in whichever two of U.S. Bank’s
48 purchase categories the lion’s share of your spending falls in each month. This happens automatically.
1% back on all other purchases
The
1% cash back that this card provides in return for all purchases that fall outside of its bonus categories is about average for a rewards card’s base rate. You don’t have to settle for it, though. Instead, consider using a different bonus rewards credit card for purchases that would yield only
1% back with the
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card.
Points advertised as cash back
The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card actually provides its rewards in the form of points, which you can then redeem for cash back at a rate of 1 cent per 1 point. If the value of the points changes in the future, though, this card could become more or less attractive.
Annual fee: $0 intro for the first 12 months, $95 after
The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card has a
$0 introductory annual fee the first year, then the fee jumps up to
$95 per year. That’s still easily worthwhile, though, given the value provided by the card’s initial bonus and ongoing rewards. Moreover, there is no annual fee for employee cards.
21.24% - 26.24% (V) APR
The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card is not a great source of leverage for your business, considering that carrying a balance from month to month will be pretty costly. The card’s APR could be anywhere from
21.24% to 26.24% (V), depending on your overall creditworthiness. But if you’re able to qualify for this card in the first place, you should also be able to get a
card with a 0% introductory APR for financing purposes.
700+ credit score needed
The
U.S. Bank Business Leverage Card requires at least
good credit for approval, which means you need a credit score of
700+ to have good approval odds. Furthermore, it’s your personal creditworthiness that matters most, as is the case with other small business credit cards. You can
check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub.
Note: This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. Opinions and ratings are our own.