American Express Business Edge Card Review

Are you looking for an American Express Business Edge Card review? This Amex card doesn’t get a lot of attention compared to other cards available, but it has a few unique quirks that make it worth considering. It’s one of the few business credit cards that give you an increased earn rate on select categories and has a low annual fee.

Depending on your situation, this card could be good for personal and/or business use. Read my American Express Business Edge Card review now and find out if this is the perfect business card for you.

American Express Business Edge Card

Welcome bonus and earn rate

The welcome bonus for the American Express Busiess Edge Card has been pretty consistent since it launched. You’ll get 45,000 American Express Membership Rewards points when you spend $5,000 in the first three months of cardmembership. You can earn another 1,000 points each month where you spend $3,0000. That extra 1,000 points per month is an ongoing benefit and not restricted to the first year.

Recently, there’s been an increased earn rate as part of the welcome bonus. For six months, you’ll earn 10 points per dollar spent on office supplies, electronics, gas, public transportation, rideshares, taxis, dining, and drinks. This promo rate caps at 75,000 points ($25,000 spent).

The regular earn rate is 3 points per dollar spent on office supplies, electronics, gas, public transportation, rideshares, taxis, dining, and drinks (caps at $25,000 spent). All other purchases earn your 1 point per dollar spent. It’s worth mentioning that this card has the highest earn rate for office supplies.

Benefits and perks

With an annual fee of $99, the American Express Business Edge Card doesn’t have many benefits. You only get the following:

Business benefits

• Business and expense management tools
• Supplementary cards for employees
• Employee card misuse protection

The business benefits are lacking. You don’t get an extended period for interest-free purchases and since this is not a charge card, you get a defined credit limit.

Travel insurance

• Car rental theft & damage insurance – $85,000 – 48 days

The only travel insurance you get is for car rentals. There’s no travel medical or any other type of extended travel insurance included.

Purchase insurance

• Purchase protection
• Buyer’s assurance

When you charge purchases to your American Express Business Edge Card, they’re protected from loss, theft and damage for 90 days ($1,000 per occurrence). With buyer’s assurance, your purchases will see their manufacturer’s warranty doubled, up to one additional year.

American Express experiences

Just by being an American Express cardholder, you’ll get access to some exclusive deals and events, including:

• Front of the line presales – Cardholders can purchase tickets in advance to some of the hottest events such as concerts, theatre productions and event restaurant experiences.
• Reserved tickets – American Express has exclusive partnerships with many venues where cardholders get access to reserved tickets.
• American Express offers – Occasionally, you’ll get dining and retail offers in the app. Once you meet the minimum spend requirement, you’ll receive a statement credit

How to redeem your points

American Express Membership Rewards is a simple rewards program that offers a lot of flexibility. You can redeem 100 points for $1 in travel or a statement credit. That effectively makes your points worth 1 cent each. This is significant since many other programs offer a lower value for its points when you use them for a statement credit.

Another reason Membership Rewards points are valuable is that you can transfer them to Aeroplan at a 1:1 ratio. Generally, one Aeroplan point is worth about 2 cents. That means you can easily double the value of your points. Alternatively, you can transfer your points to Marriot Bonvoy at a 1:1.2 ratio. I personally value one Marriott Bonvoy point at .9 cents, so there can be some value.

Another redemption option for your points is the Amex Fixed Travel Program. With this option, you can get increased value from your points, depending on your destination. If you maximize the base fare value of your ticket, you can get a value of 2 cents per point. This option is excellent if you need to purchase a last-minute flight where the base fare is significant.

American Express Business Edge Card eligibility

The main eligibility requirement for the Business Edge Card is that you’re a Canadian resident and at least the age of majority where you live.

Like all the other banks in Canada, American Express doesn’t list a credit score requirement to be approved. However, it’s safe to assume that your credit score should be at least 660 since that puts you in at least good standing. Of course, it’s not just your credit score that determines eligibility.

Interestingly, American Express has no formal income requirement to be approved for the card. However, you will notice during the application that they’ll ask you for your business information. That implies you need a business to be approved, but I’ve seen people be approved without a formal business.

How the American Express Business Edge Card compares

It’s time to compare cards in my American Express Business Edge Card review. What’s interesting is that this card doesn’t have any direct competition since it’s pretty unique. Since this is a regular credit card instead of a charge card, I’d argue that the closest competition is the American Express Cobalt Card.

With the Cobalt Card, you’ll earn 5 points per dollar spent on eats and drinks, 3 points on streaming services, 2 points on travel and 1 point on everything else. Each category caps at $30,000 in spending. When you think about it, the Business Edge Card is a lighter version of the Cobalt Card. That said, the Business Edge Card does offer 3 points per dollar spent on office supplies.

If you’re looking for a business card to compare to, then check out the American Express Business Platinum Card. To be fair, they’re completely different products, but I do think it’s worth knowing what’s out there. The Business Platinum Card has an annual fee of $499, but you’ll earn 1.25 points per dollar spent on all purchases. However, this card offers you great travel benefits, such as unlimited airport lounge access for you and a guest and hotel status upgrades with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors.

Understandably, you may want to consider a non-American Express Card. There’s the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Business Card. It gives you 1.5 Scene+ points per dollar spent and has no foreign transaction fees. However, Scene+ is not as valuable as Membership Rewards points.

Final thoughts

My American Express Business Edge Card review is positive. It’s a unique business card that will appeal to people in the following situations:

• You’re a freelancer or a new small business owner – The categories where you earn extra points are aimed at freelancers and those with a side hustle.
• You spend a lot on office supplies – This card offers the highest earn rate for office supplies at 3 points per dollar spent (caps at $25,000 spent)
• You want to earn some points fast – If you’ve exhausted many of the other American Express and Aeroplan cards, this card is worth getting since the welcome bonus is often worth 45,000 to 55,000 points.

Not many business credit cards offer an increased earn rate on select categories, but the Amex Business Edge Card does. Combine that with the fact that you can now transfer your points directly to airline loyalty points, and this card is a winner. Whether you’re looking for a business credit card with a low annual fee or want to continue accumulating many points, the American Express Business Edge Card could be good for you.