Select the business credit card that aligns with your needs

Remember that list of features you rated? We’re going to put that to use with real business credit cards. 

A note on applying for more than one credit card:

While you have the option to get multiple credit cards for your freelancing business (which could be a natural expansion over time), most freelancers start with just one. 

However, there are reasons you may want multiple credit cards, including:

• Increasing your overall credit limit.

• Adding a card with higher acceptance rates at retail locations.

• Having a card for multiple businesses under one entity umbrella (such as a writing LLC and design LLC under a single parent company).

If you do decide to apply for more than one card, it’s important to be aware of how that impacts your credit.

You can apply for two cards in a single day (preferably from different issuers), which will likely only incur one hard inquiry on your credit score. This could be better for your credit than spacing out the applications over a course of a couple of months. 

If you do this, try to limit your applications to just two. If someone ever reviews your credit history for financing or another reason down the line, they may become suspicious of the fact you applied for a handful (or more!) of credit cards all at once. It can look like you were trying to get out of a financial bind!

As you move forward in this step, think about whether you’ll need one or two cards to start, which will depend on your freelancing business operations and the specific cards you’re interested in.

Evaluating different credit cards based on features

Yasmin has a list of features that are a priority for her, with her most important features being cash back and a monetary early spend bonus. She evaluates cards and comes up with two that meet her most important criteria: Capital One Spark 2% Cash Plus and Chase Ink Business Unlimited (you’ll see how these particular cards cater to Yasmin’s unique needs when you look at the evaluation rubric in the workbook).

Since Yasmin wants to prioritize liquid cash flow in her freelance graphic design business, these cards align with her goals.

Fill out your business credit card evaluation rubric

Using your highly rated features from Step 2, you’re going to assess real business credit cards and determine which one checks off the most (or most important) boxes. At the end of the exercise you’ll have a winner that you’ll apply to in the next step. Make a copy of this spreadsheet, where you’ll evaluate various business credit cards to find the ones that align with what you rated as essential in Step 2. 

Now, select two top cards (aka “winners”) in case you want to add a second card, preferably with different feature offerings.

In the spreadsheet, add any cards we didn’t include that you’d like to consider. You’ll also find a space to include a credit card from a local bank or credit union. It can be helpful to sign up with a local financial institution because you can meet with their teams and go in person. But sometimes the tech is lacking and the card’s rewards and features are more restrictive. Consider this as you evaluate your options. 

You just made a huge leap in your journey to your first business credit card: finding the card that’s right for you! This instilled in you what you value most in your freelancing business, whether it be the refinement of your existing services, scaling, or something else entirely. Time for a mini-celebration, but keep the momentum going!