We compared the UK’s main expense-card platforms against the leading company credit and charge cards to settle which one your business actually needs.
You’re not picking the best card here. You’re picking between two tools. An expense card hands your team controlled access to your own cash. A credit card hands you borrowed money to pay back later.
Get that wrong and you feel it. When you hire staff who pay for software and travel, the wrong card means chasing receipts at month-end and a VAT return that won’t reconcile.
You either hand staff a borrowing line you never wanted, or you starve a growing business of the cash-flow buffer a credit card gives you.
You’ll see “company credit card” and “business credit card” used interchangeably here. They’re the same product. We checked every figure below against each provider’s own pages in July 2026.
The Core Difference Between Expense Cards and Business Credit Cards
| Feature | Expense card | Business credit card |
|---|---|---|
| Where the money comes from | Your own balance (prepaid float or bank debit) | Borrowed, up to a credit limit |
| Hard credit check to open | No (identity checks only) | Yes |
| Personal guarantee | No | Usually, for limited companies |
| Who is liable | The company, up to loaded funds | The company, with the director on the hook via the guarantee |
| Spend controls | Per-card limits, merchant locks, virtual cards | Basic app monitoring, shared limit |
| Accounting software | Built in (receipt capture, Xero/QuickBooks/Sage sync) | CSV export or basic feed |
| Rewards | Rare | Cashback, points, Avios |
| Foreign-exchange cost | Low (0 to 1.5% on most platforms) | Often near 2.99% |
Prepaid Float vs Borrowed Credit: Where the Money Comes From
The whole decision turns on one thing: whose money you’re spending. An expense card spends yours. You load a wallet or link a business account, and every purchase draws down cash you already hold.
Because no credit is extended, providers skip the hard credit check and don’t ask a director to sign a personal guarantee. Your downside is capped at the funds you’ve loaded.
When you reach for a business credit card, you’re spending the lender’s money. You apply, the issuer runs a hard search on your business and usually your own credit file, and for a limited company you usually sign a personal guarantee.
Miss a balance you can’t clear and that guarantee bites: the lender can pursue your personal assets. That’s the price of the buffer.
When an Expense Card Makes More Sense
An expense card wins the moment other people spend on your behalf. If staff buy software, travel or stock, you want to cap each card, lock it to certain merchants, and see the receipt before month-end.
You hand a new starter a virtual card on Monday, cap it at £500 for one subscription, and the receipt is photographed at the till before you’ve finished your coffee. The VAT lands in Xero on its own.
If you have more than a couple of card users, we rate that control above any rewards rate. The discipline is the product. Speed and control beat a points rate here.
If you buy from overseas suppliers, foreign exchange is the second reason an expense card wins. Equals Money charges 0% in 21 currencies and about 1.5% beyond, with Soldo and Pleo in the same low band.
A standard credit card can charge close to 2.99% on the same spend. On heavy overseas procurement, that gap quietly saves you real money every month.
What you give up is borrowing. An expense card can’t float you through a bad month, because it only spends what you’ve loaded. When cash is tight, that limit bites exactly when you least want it to.
When a Business Credit Card Makes More Sense
A business credit card is the right call when you need a cash-flow buffer or want rewards on spend you’re making anyway. Carrying a balance is a timing tool, even if you rarely use it.
If your income is lumpy, picture an agency that bills clients on 30-day terms but pays freelancers weekly. In a good month the money lands before the statement is due.
In a bad month a client pays late and you carry £6,000 for a fortnight. A credit card lets you do that. An expense card, funded from your own balance, simply declines the spend you can’t yet cover.
If you spend heavily anyway, rewards are the other pull. Capital on Tap pays 1% uncapped cashback on a card with no annual fee, rates from 13.86% APR (variable), and a 34.9% representative APR set by your credit profile.
American Express Business cards earn Membership Rewards points you can move to Avios. You won’t find that earn rate on a prepaid expense card. Borrowing is the one thing prepaid can’t fake.
The cost is real: a credit check, usually a personal guarantee, and interest if you revolve. Treat the card as a buffer rather than a borrowing habit and it earns its place.
Why Many Businesses Run Both
If you both have a team and want a buffer, the honest answer isn’t either-or. You run a credit card for the float and the rewards, and expense cards for everyone else’s day-to-day spend.
When an invoice slips on a Friday, the credit card carries the shortfall while your team’s expense cards keep running on the cash you loaded that morning. The buffer sits with you; the control sits with them.
That split also keeps your borrowing on one accountable line and off your credit file in a dozen places. You see the whole exposure in one statement.
If a prepaid platform offers you credit, watch the overlap. Pleo now offers an optional overdraft for eligible customers, and Payhawk issues a Visa Credit card alongside its debit product.
You should still treat them as two jobs. The moment a prepaid platform lends you money, the credit check and the liability come back with it.
UK Expense Card Providers and Business Credit Card Options
Expense Card Platforms
These give your team prepaid or debit cards plus the software to control them. Pricing is per month and checked against each provider in July 2026:
- Pleo: Mastercard expense cards from £9.50/month (Starter), rising to £39, £99 and £199 on higher tiers. FX 1.99 to 2.49%. Optional overdraft for eligible customers. Check current pricing at pleo.io.
- Soldo: prepaid Mastercard, Standard £21/month and Plus £33/month (plus VAT), three users included. FX fee applies to overseas spend: check Soldo’s fees page for the current rate.
- Equals Money: prepaid Mastercard from an FCA-authorised e-money firm. £25/month (up to 20 cards) or £35/month (up to 50). 0% FX in 21 currencies, 1.5% beyond.
- Spendesk: prepaid cards plus approval workflows; pricing is quote-based. The wallet is pre-funded, with no credit line. Request a quote at spendesk.com.
- Payhawk: issues both Visa Debit and Visa Credit, so you can switch as you grow. Unlike most credit-card issuers, its corporate card does not require a director’s personal guarantee. Pricing is quote-based and aimed at larger teams.
Company Credit and Charge Cards
These lend you money and, in most cases, reward your spend. Figures checked in July 2026:
- Capital on Tap: revolving Visa credit card, rates from 13.86% APR (variable) and a 34.9% representative APR, limits up to £250,000, 1% uncapped cashback, no annual fee on the free tier (£299/year on Pro), and no FX fees.
- American Express Business Gold and Platinum: charge cards by default, with an optional Pay Over Time feature that lets you carry a balance at 29.1% APR (variable). Strong Membership Rewards earn. Check the current annual fee at americanexpress.com/uk.
- Barclaycard Select Cashback: 25.5% representative APR (variable), no annual fee, 1% cashback once your monthly spend tops £2,000, and up to 56 days’ interest-free credit when you clear in full.
How to Choose Between an Expense Card and a Business Credit Card
To choose, work through two things about your business. First, who spends. If the answer is your team, you want an expense card’s per-card limits and receipt capture, whoever else you hold.
Second, whether you need to borrow. If your cash flow is lumpy and you want a buffer, you need a credit card’s revolving line, which no prepaid card gives you.
If both answers point your way, that’s the signal to run both, not to force one card to do both jobs badly.
One more thing to weigh before you decide: how your money is protected differs by product. We set it out below.
Protection: safeguarding vs Section 75
Prepaid expense cards from e-money firms (Soldo, Equals Money, Pleo) are not covered by the FSCS. Instead your funds are “safeguarded” under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011: kept separate from the firm’s own money so they’re returned to you first if it fails. Business credit cards work differently. Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act makes the provider jointly liable for faulty purchases between £100 and £30,000, but it’s a consumer protection, and most business cards are not regulated consumer-credit agreements. For business card disputes you usually rely on Mastercard or Visa chargeback instead. Check your own card’s terms.
Final Verdict
If you have employees or contractors spending on behalf of the business, start with an expense card. Soldo is the strongest choice for incorporated businesses: per-card limits, merchant category controls, and native Xero sync from £21/month. Pleo is the right starting point if your team is three or fewer, with a free Starter tier and AI receipt capture built in.
If you need a cash-flow buffer or want rewards on spend you are making anyway, a business credit card earns its place. Capital on Tap is the clearest pick: 1% uncapped cashback, no FX fees, and no annual fee on the free tier. American Express Business Gold is the alternative if Membership Rewards points and Avios transfers matter more than cashback.
Many UK businesses end up running both: a credit card for the director’s float and rewards, and expense cards for controlled team spend. That split is not over-engineering. It is the correct tool for each job.
If you are still unsure, the deciding question is simple: does anyone other than you spend on behalf of the business? If yes, you need an expense card. Everything else is secondary.
Expense Cards vs Business Credit Cards FAQs
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Is an expense card a credit card?
No. An expense card is a prepaid or debit card funded from your own business balance, so you’re spending money you already hold. A company credit card lends you money up to a limit, which you repay later. That’s why expense cards skip the hard credit check and the personal guarantee.
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Do expense cards run a credit check?
Usually not. Because you fund the account yourself and no credit is extended, providers such as Soldo, Spendesk and Equals Money rely on standard identity and anti-money-laundering checks on the business rather than a hard credit search. A business credit card does run a hard check.
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Which is better for paying overseas suppliers?
Usually an expense card. Platforms such as Equals Money charge 0% FX in 21 major currencies and about 1.5% beyond, while a standard business credit card can charge close to 2.99% on foreign spend. On heavy overseas procurement that gap adds up quickly.
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Can I get rewards or cashback on an expense card?
Rarely. Rewards live on the credit-card side. Capital on Tap pays 1% uncapped cashback and American Express Business cards earn Membership Rewards points. Expense cards compete on control and low FX, not rewards.
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Do I need a personal guarantee for a company credit card?
For a limited company, usually yes. Most SME credit-card issuers ask a director to sign a personal guarantee, which lets them pursue your personal assets if the business defaults. Payhawk is a notable exception: its corporate card does not require a personal guarantee. Expense cards, funded from your own balance, never require one.
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Should I get an expense card or a business credit card?
Choose an expense card if your team spends and you want control and low FX. Choose a business credit card if you need a cash-flow buffer or rewards. If both are true, run one of each: a credit card for the float and rewards, expense cards for controlled team spend.
How we put this guide together
Pricing, FX rates, and product terms were verified against each provider’s own published pages in July 2026. Providers covered: Capital on Tap, Soldo, Equals Money, Pleo, Spendesk, Payhawk, American Express, and Barclaycard. Equals Money’s e-money status was confirmed against the FCA Register. All figures should be verified directly with the provider before applying, as pricing changes regularly.
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