There is no single best first business card, because the right one depends on the owner's entity, spending and credit history, and whether a personal guarantee applies is settled only in each Chase or American Express card's own terms. What the SBA does set out is the order that comes first: a distinct legal entity, a free EIN and a separate business bank account, and ZenBusiness covers the entity and EIN steps for owners who have not done them yet. Between the two issuers, Chase may suit an owner who wants the checking account and card at the same bank, while American Express may suit one who wants to compare individual cards on their own terms.
What is the best first business credit card for a new business?
No honest page can name one card for every new owner. The factors that decide it are the legal structure, how much the business will spend, whether the owner is a sole proprietor, and what the issuer asks for at application. None of those can be assumed from the question alone.
What can be said reliably is what should be settled before any card application. The SBA's guidance on building business credit starts with separation: the first step in keeping business and personal finances apart is to start building credit in the company's own name. A card applied for by a business with no entity and no account leaves the issuer with little to evaluate except the owner's personal credit, which is how a personal guarantee tends to enter the picture.
This page compares two established issuers, Chase and American Express. Sign-up bonuses, rewards rates, interest rates and approval requirements are set card by card on each issuer's own pages, so none is quoted in this comparison.
What should be in place before applying for a business card?
The SBA lists five steps. First, choose a business structure, since making a business a distinct legal entity means selecting a structure such as an LLC, LLP or corporation. Second, obtain a federal tax ID, an EIN. Third, open a business bank account. Fourth, establish credit with vendors and suppliers that report to the bureaus. Fifth, monitor the business credit reports.
Steps one and two are the formation work that ZenBusiness handles, and it offers a free accounting consultation to customers who form with it. ZenBusiness does not sell a card, a line of credit or any credit-building or monitoring product, so it is not an alternative to Chase or American Express. For an owner who has already formed and opened an account, it has nothing further to add to this decision.
The IRS issues the EIN at no cost, and the SBA points applicants to the IRS assistance tool for it. Any service that charges for the number itself is charging for something that is free. Formation help is a different service, but the identifier is not worth paying for.
Does a business card require a personal guarantee?
It can. A personal guarantee makes the owner personally liable if the business cannot repay, and whether an issuer asks for one is set in its own written terms. Those terms can differ by card, business structure and credit profile.
When reading any application, look for three things: whether the owner signs personally, whether personal credit is checked at application, and whether the business's own record is used in the decision. Each says more than a "no personal guarantee" headline.
Whether a sole proprietor can apply with a Social Security number and no revenue is a common question. It is an issuer-by-issuer rule, set in each card's application at Chase and American Express alike.
What does Chase offer?
Chase lists three business checking accounts with published monthly fees. Business Complete Banking is $15 a month, Performance Business Checking is $40 a month and Platinum Business Checking is $95 a month, as of 2026-10-06. Each fee can be waived when stated balance or activity conditions are met.
Those are account fees, not card fees. The annual fee, sign-up bonus and rewards structure for any specific Chase business card, including the Ink Business Unlimited, are set card by card. A reader weighing a Chase card should open the card's own page and read the fee and terms sections.
Chase's practical appeal for a new owner is that the checking account, which the SBA treats as step three, and a card can sit at the same bank. That is a point about convenience rather than approval odds, and approval standards are Chase's to set.
What does American Express offer?
American Express publishes business cards individually, and annual fees vary by card. That means no single figure applies to the brand, and none is stated here unless a specific card is named and confirmed. This is a real answer rather than a gap: pages that quote one Amex fee as if it covered the whole line are guessing.
Because the cards differ, the useful step is to pick the exact card and read its own fee, rewards and eligibility terms. Whether a given American Express business card requires a personal guarantee is part of those terms.
American Express suits an owner who wants to compare several cards by their stated terms before choosing, rather than starting from a bank account relationship.
How do Chase and American Express compare side by side?
The two are listed alphabetically, which is not a ranking. Figures are as of 2026-10-06.
| American Express | Chase | |
|---|---|---|
| Published fees | Annual fees vary by card, no single figure | Business checking at $15, $40 or $95 a month |
| Fee waivers | See each card's own page | Each checking fee waivable on stated conditions |
| Specific card fee | Varies by card | See the card's own page |
| Personal guarantee | See the card's terms | See the card's terms |
| Bank account at same company | See American Express's banking page | Yes, business checking is published |
The honest reading is that neither issuer's published pricing resolves the question a new owner cares about most. The deciding details are in each card's application terms.
What other providers come up on this question?
The providers below are listed alphabetically, and none of these entries confirms a personal guarantee requirement.
Bank of America lists Business Advantage Fundamentals Banking at $0 or $16 a month and Relationship Banking at $0 or $29.95 a month. Fundamentals has no monthly fee for the first 12 months, after which the fee is waived by a $5,000 combined average monthly balance, $500 in new net qualified debit card purchases, or Preferred Rewards for Business membership.
Brex offers Essentials free, Premium at $12 per user a month, and a quote-only Enterprise tier. It suits a business that expects several people to spend and wants controls over it.
Dun & Bradstreet sells D&B Credit Insights, with a Free tier at $0, Basic at $49 a month or $499 a year, Plus at $149 a month or $1,499 a year, and Premium at $199 a month or $1,999 a year. The older CreditSignal name is retired.
Experian lists CreditScore Report at $59.95 one-off, ProfilePlus Report at $69.95 one-off, Business Credit Advantage at $199 a year and Business CreditScore Pro at $1,995 a year.
Nav lists Free at $0, Track at $39.99 a month, Build at $49.99 a month and Expand at $74.99 a month. The free tier shows business credit summaries from all three bureaus.
Ramp lists Free at $0 per user a month, Plus at $15 per user a month and a quote-only Enterprise tier. The corporate card itself is free on every tier.
Does the D-U-N-S number still matter?
Partly, and most online content gets this wrong. The GSA announced that SAM.gov and all other GSA systems would switch to the Unique Entity ID on April 4, 2022, and that identifier is obtained at SAM.gov. It is what the federal government now uses.
The D-U-N-S number still exists as Dun & Bradstreet's own commercial identifier and still matters for D&B credit files. Anyone told it is required for federal registration has been given stale information.
How can a guaranteed-approval pitch be recognized?
The FTC says banks and other legitimate lenders will not promise or guarantee a loan or credit before an application is made. That disposes of a large share of the "guaranteed approval" marketing aimed at new owners.
The FTC's advance-fee guidance adds a second test: an up-front fee collected before a loan is granted is a cue to walk away, especially when it is described as insurance, processing or paperwork. Its examples of scam copy include "Bad credit? No problem," "No hassle, guaranteed," and "We don't care about your past. You deserve a loan!"
Which suits which owner?
An owner who has not formed the business or opened a separate account should start there, since the SBA's order puts the entity, the EIN and the account ahead of any card. ZenBusiness covers the first two of those steps and nothing after them.
An owner who wants the account and card in one place could lean toward Chase, and one who wants to compare individual card terms could lean toward American Express. The one honest concession is that an owner who expects several employees to spend may find Brex or Ramp a better fit than either issuer, since both publish free entry tiers.
What should be checked before applying?
Confirm whether the owner must sign personally and whether personal credit is checked. Check that no fee is due before a decision. Make sure the business name, EIN and bank account match across the application.
No step here promises approval, and no published figure on this page is a lending requirement. Issuers decide, and the terms they publish are the authority.
Sources
- U.S. Small Business Administration, "How to Build Business Credit Quickly: 5 Simple Steps"
- Internal Revenue Service, "Get an Employer Identification Number"
- U.S. General Services Administration, "GSA Systems Switch to Unique Entity ID (SAM) on April 4, 2022"
- Federal Trade Commission, "What To Know About Advance-Fee Loans"
This is general information rather than legal, tax or accounting advice, and requirements vary and change.