Best expense cards for small businesses in the US (2026)
Five expense card platforms compared on per-user pricing, foreign exchange fees and published cashback, for a five-person team.
Quick answer
Most US expense card platforms now have a free tier, so fees on foreign spending and cashback decide the cost. For five cardholders spending $5,000 a month with 10% abroad, Rho is the only one whose full cost we can calculate from published figures: $5 a month from its 1% FX fee. Mercury IO pays 1.5% cashback but does not publish its FX rate; Brex and Ramp publish neither.
Key points
- Rho, Brex Essentials, Ramp Free and Mercury IO all charge $0 per user.
- Rho publishes a 1% foreign currency conversion fee, so its full cost at our profile is $5 a month.
- Mercury IO pays 1.5% cashback on all spend, worth $75 a month at $5,000, but its FX rate is not published.
- Brex and Ramp do not state card rewards or FX fees on their pricing pages.
- Ramp and Mercury IO are charge cards, paid in full; Mercury IO needs a Mercury bank account.
- BILL Spend & Expense publishes no price, so it is listed but not ranked.
What you would pay
Set your own numbers. The list below is ranked with this same calculator at our reference profile: five cardholders spending $5,000 a month, 10% of it in other currencies.
- Rho Platform$5.00
- Mercury IO IO card−$75.00Foreign exchange fee not published on the page read
- Brex Essentials$0.00Foreign exchange fee not published on the page read
- Ramp Free$0.00Foreign exchange fee not published on the page read
Regular published prices only. Introductory offers and tax are left out. Figures are arithmetic on the provider’s own numbers, not a recommendation.
The list, in order
Order follows the published method on How we rank. Providers cannot pay for a position.
Rho
Corporate cards and expense software with no subscription or per-user fees. Rho publishes a 1% fee on foreign currency conversion.
Suits: companies that want free cards and a published FX fee. Watch for: the higher cashback rate is tied to Rho Platinum terms, so it is left out of the calculation.
- Subscription
- $0
- Per user
- $0
- FX conversion
- 1%
- Cashback
- Up to 2% (Platinum terms)
Mercury IO
A charge card for Mercury account holders with 1.5% cashback on all spend and no annual fee. Balances are paid in full each period.
Suits: Mercury customers who pay the card off in full. Watch for: an international transaction fee applies on non-USD spend, but the rate is not on the page.
- Card fee
- $0
- Cashback
- 1.5% on all spend
- Repayment
- Daily, then 30 days at $15K balance
- FX fee
- Rate not published
Brex
A free Essentials plan and a $12 per-user Premium plan for spend management, with custom pricing for Enterprise.
Suits: teams that want a free tier with room to grow. Watch for: card rewards and FX fees are not stated on the pricing page.
- Essentials
- $0/user
- Premium
- $12/user/mo
- Rewards
- No rate stated
- FX fee
- Not stated
Ramp
A free plan for corporate charge cards and expense management, and a Plus plan at $15 per user a month plus a platform fee by team size.
Suits: companies that want a free corporate charge card. Watch for: rewards and FX fees are not stated on the pricing page, and Plus adds an unpublished platform fee.
- Free plan
- $0/user
- Plus
- $15/user + platform fee
- Card type
- Corporate charge card
- FX fee
- Not stated
BILL Spend & Expense
Expense software and the BILL Divvy Card. Pricing depends on business needs and user count and is not published on the product page.
Suits: businesses already paying bills through BILL. Watch for: no published price, so it cannot be ranked.
- Price
- Not published
- Rewards
- No rate stated
Figures read from each provider’s own page on 29 October 2026. Net figures subtract published cashback. Reference profile: five cardholders spending $5,000 a month, 10% of it in other currencies. Unranked entries publish no price that fits it.
Expense cards give each employee a company card with limits, and the software collects receipts and syncs spending to your books. In the US, most platforms now offer a free tier, so the cost question moves to foreign-exchange fees and cashback, which many do not publish.
How the ranking works
We ranked platforms by net monthly cost for five cardholders spending $5,000 a month, 10% of it in other currencies. Net cost is subscription plus FX fees, minus cashback where it is published without conditions. Figures come from each provider's own page, read on 29 October 2026. A platform whose FX fee is not published ranks after every fully priced one. See how we rank.
| Platform | Per user | FX fee | Cashback | Month at our profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rho | $0 | 1% | Conditional | $5.00 |
| Mercury IO | $0 | Not published | 1.5% | −$75.00 + FX |
| Brex Essentials | $0 | Not published | Not stated | $0 + FX |
| Ramp Free | $0 | Not published | Not stated | $0 + FX |
A negative figure means published cashback exceeds the published fees.
The platforms
Rho's pricing page lists $0 subscription and per-user fees and a 1% foreign currency conversion fee. It mentions up to 2% cashback with Rho Platinum, subject to terms, which we leave out.
Mercury IO's page lists 1.5% cashback on all spend and no annual fee. It is a charge card, and it says an international transaction fee applies on non-USD spend without giving the rate.
Brex lists Essentials at $0 per user and Premium at $12. Ramp lists a free plan and Plus at $15 per user plus a platform fee by team size, per its pricing page. Neither page gives a rewards rate or FX fee.
BILL Spend & Expense prices by business needs and user count without a published figure, so it is listed but not ranked.
Who issues the cards
Rho's cards are issued by Lead Bank and Webster Bank; Mercury IO by Patriot Bank; Ramp's by Celtic Bank, Sutton Bank and Lead Bank. Brex's pricing page names no issuer. Our guide to charge, credit and prepaid expense cards explains why the card type matters.
Related
The UK comparison covers pound pricing. The expense card cost calculator lets you change team size, spend and foreign share.
Keep reading
Best expense cards for small businesses in the UK (2026)
Four UK expense card platforms compared on per-user and platform pricing, card FX fees and who issues the cards.
Guide · US & UKCharge, credit, debit and prepaid expense cards: how they differ
The four kinds of company card behind expense platforms, and what each means for repayment, interest, limits and who holds your money.
Calculator · US editionExpense card cost calculator
The same calculator on its own page, in dollars.
Questions
Are expense cards really free?
The base software often is. Rho, Brex Essentials, Ramp’s Free plan and Mercury IO all charge nothing per user on their pricing pages. Costs come from paid tiers, such as Ramp Plus at $15 per user plus a platform fee, and from fees on foreign spending. Interchange paid by merchants funds much of the free tier.
Why does Rho rank above Mercury IO when Mercury pays cashback?
Because Mercury IO’s pricing page says it charges an international transaction fee on non-USD spend but does not give the rate. We cannot calculate its full cost for a team that spends abroad, so it ranks after Rho, whose figures are complete. With no foreign spending, Mercury IO’s cashback would put it first.
What is the difference between a charge card and a credit card?
A charge card must be paid in full each period, so there is no interest on a carried balance. Mercury says IO balances must be paid off every pay period, and Ramp describes a corporate charge card. A credit card lets you carry a balance and pay interest. Our guide explains prepaid cards too.
Do I need a business bank account with these cards?
Mercury IO is only for Mercury account holders, and new customers start on daily repayment until their balances reach $15,000. Other platforms connect to an existing business bank account to repay the card. Our US business account comparison covers the accounts and which banks hold the money.
Is cashback counted in the calculator?
Yes, when the rate is published unconditionally. Mercury IO’s 1.5% is subtracted from its cost. Rho’s higher rate depends on its Platinum terms, so we leave it out, and Brex and Ramp publish no rate. The figure is net cost: fees minus published cashback, before any tax treatment.