With its ultra-competitive prices for flights, Spirit may be the airline of choice if you are a particularly frugal business owner. Could this not-so-comfortable but extremely affordable travel experience work for you?
A direct step to improve your flight with Spirit could be to choose the commercial credit card Spirit Airlines World Mastercard® as their business credit card.
Could the Spirit Credit Card Be a Business Owner’s Best Friend?
Read this latest Spirit credit card review, plus its top alternative, to find out.
Everything you need to know about the Spirit Business credit card
Can’t get through this whole Spirit Airlines credit card review?
Don’t worry, we’ll condense all the essentials into one synopsis for you.
First of all, the Spirit Business Credit Card is a World Mastercard® provided through Bank of America.
With this business credit card, you can access the following advantages:
- A welcome bonus of 15,000 free Spirit Miles with your first purchase
- 5,000 additional bonus miles once you spend $ 10,000 in your first year after account opening
- 2x miles for every dollar you spend with the card
The card comes with a $ 59 annual fee that is waived during your first year as a cardholder, along with a $ 20 fee for each additional authorized user.
However, be sure to review your top alternatives before deciding on the Spirit credit card. With Spark Miles Select, Ink Preferred, or Amex Business Platinum, you can access even greater travel rewards without having to pay a particular airline.
Spirit Business Credit Card Basics
First things first, let’s take a moment to cover the basics of the Spirit credit card.
Who are the various entities that you will work with should you decide to spend your business expenses on this business travel credit card?
Well, the most obvious thing is that you and your company will be linked to Spirit Airlines; Anytime you want to take advantage of the benefits this credit card offers, by definition you will have to do so with a Spirit flight. In addition, Spirit Airlines does not have an associated airline, so the miles you accumulate with this card will not be transferable to any other flight.
The other entities involved in the Spirit credit card?
Both Mastercard® and Bank of America – one of the nation’s dream credit card issuers and banking associations. This Bank of America Mastercard® card allows you to work with two of the most reputable financial institutions possible at the same time.
So, to finish with the fundamentals of the Spirit credit card, in practice, you will actually be interacting with Spirit Airlines. However, if you are experiencing a complication with your Spirit credit card, then you may be working closely with Bank of America or Mastercard® to resolve it.
Spirit Business Credit Card Details
With all the basics of the Spirit credit card covered, let’s get into the details of this card.
So for starters, the Spirit Credit Card is a travel rewards card. This means that you will earn rewards that come in the form of miles that can be redeemed for free rides.
When you do business with the Spirit credit card, you will have the following opportunities to earn miles:
- A welcome bonus of 15,000 free Spirit Miles with your first purchase
- 5,000 additional bonus miles once you spend $ 10,000 in your first year after account opening
- 2x miles for every dollar you spend with the card
These miles have a value that varies depending on the type of flight you want to book with them, but in general, they have much more value if you use them to book direct domestic flights.
Furthermore, you will have access to the following travel benefits that do not depend on how much you spend with the Spirit credit card:
- Spirit Airlines Priority Boarding
- Spirit Airlines domestic priority check-in at select airports
- There are no deadlines when redeeming miles
For all these benefits that the Spirit credit card brings, you will have to pay an annual fee of $ 59. That said, Bank of America won’t charge the annual fee for its first year, so it’s a perfect test to see if this card is right for you.
However, it’s crucial to note that you’ll have to pay an additional $ 20 annually for each additional employee card you get with your account, so be sure to factor in that additional cost as well.
Your Top Alternatives to the Spirit Business Credit Card
Simply put, Spirit credit cards have some pretty significant flaws, most of which are included in their definition as an airline-specific card.
Because you will be indebted to Spirit Airlines with this business travel credit card, you will be indebted to all its peculiarities, especially those of its mileage program.
Spirit Airlines miles are extremely unpredictable in value, so much so that there is no easy way to quantify the value of a mile.
There are tons from other business credit cards that will not link you to a specific airline and its corresponding rewards program. Plus, most rewards programs that come with business travel credit cards come with a uniform value of one mile, so it’s less work for you to find the best way to find the best deal.
Ready to learn more about your top Spirit credit card alternatives that will not link it to Spirit?
Let’s take a look:
The Capital One Spark Miles Selection of Miles
The first of your main alternatives to the Spirit credit card is the Spark Miles Select. This is one of the few free business travel credit cards available on the market. Unlike the Spirit credit card, Spark Miles Select will not charge you an annual fee neither a fee for foreign transactions.
Additionally, the miles you earn with Spark Miles Select are generally redeemable at around 1 cent per mile and can be redeemed for anything from hotels to taxis to flights. You can earn these miles in the following ways:
- A welcome bonus of 20,000 miles once you spend $ 3,000 on purchases within three months of opening your account
- 1.5 miles for every dollar you spend with the card
Even better?
This card also comes with a 9-month introductory APR period, after which your APR will be set at a rate based on your creditworthiness. See the issuer’s terms and conditions for the latest APR information.
Chase Ink’s business of choice
The next alternative to the Spirit credit card is the Ink Preferred. This Chase business credit card offers the most generous welcome bonus on the market.
If you spend at least $ 5,000 in the first three months after opening your account, you will earn a whopping 80,000 points.
And while, by default, these points are generally worth a penny per point, if you redeem them through the Chase travel portal, they will be worth 25% more. This means that, if redeemed strategically, the Ink Preferred Signing Bonus is worth $ 1,000 of free travel.
Not to mention, you’ll also earn 3x points for every dollar you spend (up to $ 150,000 in purchases):
- To travel
- Shipping purchases
- Advertising purchases made with search engines and social media sites
- Internet / cable / phone services
That said, you will have to pay an annual fee of $ 95 for this business credit card, so make sure you can get enough value from the Preferred Ink to offset this additional cost. However, it is worth noting that you will not have to pay an annual fee for additional employee cards. So if you need two or more employee cards, opting for the Ink Preferred will end up being the same yearly amount as the Spirit credit card.
The American Express Business Platinum
Last on the list of top alternatives to the Spirit credit card is the Amex Business Platinum.
If you are looking for luxury benefits for high quality business travel, then look no further than the Amex Platinum. If you opt for this business travel card, you will have access to a long list of travel services, not the least of which is:
- An annual Pre-Check or Global Entry credit from TSA
- A $ 200 airline credit
- Access to the airport lounge and Priority Pass Select
- Hilton Honors Gold status
Plus, you will earn Amex membership rewards all the time. When you spend with the Amex Platinum Charge Card, you will earn with the following rates:
- 5 Membership Rewards points for every dollar you spend on prepaid flights and hotels booked on Amextravel.com.
- 1.5 Membership Rewards Points for every dollar spent on every purchase worth $ 5,000 or more, up to 1 million additional points per year.
- 1 Membership Rewards point for every dollar you spend elsewhere.
This all sounds pretty good, right?
Well, the benefits cost $ 595 a year, to be exact. The Amex Business Platinum annual fee is certainly substantial, but the value of your travel benefits – far less than the rewards you earn for your spending – more than outweighs the annual lump sum fee.
Apply for these business credit cards
What is the verdict on the Spirit Business credit card?
So, now that we have all the pertinent information in front of us, what is the verdict on the Spirit credit card?
Of course, at the end of the day, the answer to this question is for you, the one who knows your business best, to decide. Plus, now that you’ve made your way through this Spirit credit card review, you have the knowledge to make the best decision possible.
However, if you want my advice, I suggest you look beyond the Spirit credit card for your business travel rewards.
There are so Many business credit cards that are willing and eager to reward you for your business expenses without limiting your rewards to a specific airline.