- Recently, Capital One rolled out enticing welcome offers on its two popular Spark business credit cards.
- Both the Capital One® Spark® Miles for Business and Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business let you earn bonuses worth at least $2,000 in rewards if you can meet a high minimum spending requirement.
- While these cards work very similarly, there are some differences in the benefits they offer and how you rack up points.
- Compare the two cards before you apply. The Capital One Spark Miles may be a better deal for business owners who travel, while the Capital One Spark Cash offers a similar rewards scheme for those who prefer cash back to travel miles.
- See Business Insider's list of the best rewards credit cards you can get »
Recently, Capital One rolled out some very exciting signup bonuses on two of the top business credit cards
available today. With the Capital One Spark Miles and the Capital One Spark Cash, you can earn up to 200,000 miles or $2,000, respectively, provided you can meet a pretty hefty minimum spending requirement.
While the welcome bonuses on these cards are similar, there are some distinct differences between these two cards when it comes to their earning structures and how you can redeem your rewards. Before you sign up, take the time to see how each one stacks up and how they might help you earn the type of rewards your business needs this year.
Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which will far outweigh the value of any points or miles. It's important to practice financial discipline when using credit cards by paying your balances in full each month, making payments on time, and only spending what you can afford to pay back.
Capital One Spark Miles vs. Capital One Spark Cash: The biggest differences
Welcome offer
The first detail you'll notice with these two cards is that they're both offering similar welcome bonuses. For a limited time, the Capital One Spark Cash is offering $500 in bonus cash when you spend $5,000 within three months and another $1,500 in bonus cash when you spend $50,000 within six months.
Likewise, the Capital One Spark Miles will give you 50,000 miles when you spend $5,000 within three months and another 150,000 miles when you spend $50,000 within six months.
Considering points earned with either card are worth 1 cent each when redeemed for statement credits, this means the sign-up bonus on each is worth $2,000 if you can meet the high minimum spending requirement.
Earning rates on purchases
A big difference between these two cards is how you can rack up points. The Capital One Spark Cash card is really just a cash-back credit card for businesses, and it doles out rewards in the form of 2% cash back on everything you buy.
The Capital One Spark Miles takes a different approach, however. You do get 2 miles for each dollar you spend, but you can also earn 5 miles per dollar spent on car rentals and hotels booked through Capital One Travel with your card.
Annual fee
Both cards waive the annual fee for the first year, giving you a full 12 months to earn and spend the sign-up bonus and try out the card's benefits. After the first year, the annual fee is only $95 on either card, which is pretty low compared to the annual fees some other business credit cards charge.
Redeeming rewards
How you can redeem rewards with these cards is probably the biggest factor to consider as you decide between the two. Keep in mind that the Capital One Spark Cash is a cash-back credit card, and that the Capital One Spark Miles is a travel credit card that earns Capital One miles. Whether you travel or not will be the biggest determinant in finding the right card for your needs.
With the Capital One Spark Cash, you can redeem your rewards to cover any purchases made to your account in any amount.
With the Capital One Spark Miles, on the other hand, you have several different options to consider. For starters, you can redeem your rewards for travel purchases charged to your account.
The Capital One Spark Miles also lets you transfer points to the following airlines:
Aeromexico
Air Canada
Air France & KLM (Flying Blue)
Alitalia
Avianca
Cathay Pacific
Emirates
Etihad
EVA
Finnair
Hainan Airlines
JetBlue
Qantas
Qatar Airways
Singapore Airlines
With most of these airlines, you'll only get 1.5 miles for every 2 miles you transfer from your Capital One account. With Emirates, JetBlue, and Singapore Airlines, however, you'll only get 1 mile for every 2 Capital One miles you transfer over.
Cardholder benefits - What's different?
While both of these cards share a handful of benefits, there is one perk that might be important to you if you travel often.
The Capital One Spark Miles comes with up to a $100 credit toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. Both of these programs let you avoid lengthy airport security lines, saving you both time and stress. Keep in mind, however, the Global Entry membership comes with TSA PreCheck. If you plan to travel internationally often and want to avoid lengthy lines for customs and immigration, using this credit for Global Entry is your best bet, since you'll get membership in both programs.
Cardholder benefits they share
The Capital One Spark Miles and Capital One Spark Cash share most of their benefits, and both come with a surprising number of perks considering their low annual fees. Here are some of the cardholder benefits you can look forward to if you sign up for either card.
Free employee cards
Both cards come with free employee cards, which is a big deal if you want to earn rewards on all the purchases your small-business employees make. Giving each of your workers their own credit card can help you rack up cash back or miles faster, and it can definitely help you meet the enormous minimum spending requirements to earn the initial bonuses on these cards.
No foreign transaction fees
Both cards also come with no foreign transaction fees, making them attractive cards if you travel often and like using credit cards overseas. This perk will save you from having to pay an additional 3% (on average) for purchases made abroad.
Purchase protection and extended warranties
The Capital One Spark Miles and Capital One Spark Cash offer the same purchase protection and extended warranty coverage. With purchase protection, you'll get protection against damage or theft for eligible items purchased with your credit card for up to 90 days. This coverage is good for up to $10,000 per claim and up to $50,000 per cardholder.
With the extended warranties offered through these two credit cards, on the other hand, you'll receive double the extended manufacturer's warranty on eligible items for up to one additional year on warranties of three years or less. This coverage is good for up to $10,000 per claim.
Auto rental damage waiver
You'll also receive auto rental coverage for rental periods up to 31 days when you pay for your rental car with your credit card. This coverage is good for up to the cash value of most rental vehicles, and this coverage is primary when you rent a car for business purchases.
Which card is best for you?
If you travel often and want to have more ways to redeem your points for travel, the Capital One Spark Miles for Business is probably your best bet. Keep in mind that this card gives you a $100 credit toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, which is extremely important to have if you travel often and hate waiting in lines. You'll also have the option to transfer miles to airlines, which can be incredibly useful if you fly often and want to save on airfare.
The Capital One Spark Cash for Business is also pretty flexible considering you can redeem your rewards for statement credits to cover any purchase including hotels, airfare, and other travel.
Both of these cards are good ones, and the current sign-up bonuses can be insanely lucrative if you're able to spend $50,000 within six months. That's a little over $8,333 per month in business expenses, which may or may not make sense for your situation.
If you want to earn a big bonus but can't quite spend that much within the first few months of account opening, check out other top business credit cards that let you earn a big bonus with a much smaller spending requirement upfront.
Click here to learn more about the Capital One Spark Miles for Business »
Click here to learn more about the Capital One Spark Cash for Business »
- More credit card coverage
- What's the best airline credit card?
- The best cash-back credit cards
- Southwest credit card review
- Best rewards credit cards
Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Personal Finance Insider team. We occasionally highlight financial products and services that can help you make smarter decisions with your money. We do not give investment advice or encourage you to adopt a certain investment strategy. If you take action based on one of our recommendations, we get a small share of the revenue from our commerce partners. This does not influence whether we feature a financial product or service. We operate independently from our advertising sales team.
Business Insider may receive a commission from The Points Guy Affiliate Network, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.
Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.