Costs & Pricing

Metric	Spark 1.5% Cash Select	Local/Regional Credit Union Business Cards
Annual fee	$0	CATEGORY: Often $0; some charge $15–$25 waived with spend — confirm Schumer, not marketing. EXAMPLE A BECU Low Rate and Cash Back: None (rates PDF 1 Sep 2026). EXAMPLE B NFCU GO BIZ: None.
Employee card fee	$0	CATEGORY: Usually $0; some premium tiers charge per extra card after N cards. EXAMPLE A BECU: not disclosed as a dollar fee; employee cards offered with spend-limit controls. EXAMPLE B NFCU: offered; dollar fee not disclosed publicly.
Purchase APR	16.74%–26.74% variable after intro (based on creditworthiness)	CATEGORY: Variable, Prime + margin, often ~11%–29%. EXAMPLE A BECU Low Rate: 14.49%–26.49% variable (WSJ Prime + 7.74%–22.24%), rates PDF 1 Sep 2026. EXAMPLE A Cash Back: 16.99%–28.99% variable (same Prime + margin method). EXAMPLE B NFCU: 16.65%–18.00% variable as of 1 Jul 2026 product footnote; will not exceed 18.00% (agreement); adjusted quarterly off Prime. FAQ also printed 16.90%–18.00% as of 1 Dec 2025 — use 1 Jul 2026 footnote unless a newer PDF is issued. Illustrative: CU1 (AK) 10.25% (Prime + 3.50%) as of 3 Apr 2026; SDCCU 11.74% (Prime + 4.99%, floor 9.99%) effective 30 May 2026.
Intro APR (purchases)	0% for 9 months, then 16.74%–26.74% variable	CATEGORY: Common on some local CUs (6 months typical); not universal. EXAMPLE A BECU: not offered. EXAMPLE B NFCU GO BIZ: not offered.
Foreign transaction fee	$0	CATEGORY: Split — many advertise $0; others 1–3%. Official rates table wins. EXAMPLE A BECU: None (rates PDF). EXAMPLE B NFCU: None. Illustrative SDCCU: 3%.
Late payment fee	Not disclosed on public product page (aggregators: up to $39; cash-back hub footnote mentions 2.99% — unresolved)	CATEGORY: Often $20–$35. EXAMPLE A BECU: $25. EXAMPLE B NFCU: $20 if min payment missed (can assess each month past due). Illustrative CU1: $30; SDCCU: $25.

Rewards & Value

Metric	Spark 1.5% Cash Select	Local/Regional Credit Union Business Cards
Base earn rate	Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase (no category restrictions)	CATEGORY: Most CU business cards are flat 1%–1.5% cash back or 1 point per $1 (≈1¢). Category bonuses uncommon. EXAMPLE A BECU Low Rate: no rewards (APR positioning). EXAMPLE A Cash Back: 1.5% on qualified purchases, no category caps. EXAMPLE B NFCU GO BIZ: 1X = 1 point per $1 eligible purchases; unlimited; no category bonuses; cash redemption 1¢/point (= 1%).
Welcome bonus	$750 cash after $6,000 purchases in first 3 months	CATEGORY: Modest ($100–$300 or 2,500–25,000 points) or none. EXAMPLE A BECU Cash Back (time-limited): $300 statement credit after $3,000 qualifying purchases in first 3 months; offer now through 30 September 2026. Not available to current cardholders of this card; prior holders who received this bonus in last 12 months; current Business Credit Card holders who switch to Cash Back; anyone who opened a different Business Cash Back account in previous 12 months. EXAMPLE A Low Rate: no published welcome bonus. EXAMPLE B NFCU GO BIZ: none on current public page as of 3 Sep 2026. Do not import Cash Preferred / consumer GO REWARDS bonuses.
Redemption value	Face-value cash (statement credit or check); any amount; does not expire while account is open	CATEGORY: Statement credit (auto monthly/quarterly) or points catalog; transfer partners generally not offered. EXAMPLE A Cash Back: accrued cash automatically credited to statement each month; no portal / transfer partners. EXAMPLE B NFCU: every 1 point worth $0.01 when redeemed for cash; catalog illustrations exist — treat cash at 1¢ as contractual floor. Visa SavingsEdge on Visa GO BIZ is a merchant-discount program, not card earn rate.
Transfer partners	Cash itself does not transfer. If you also hold a Capital One miles card, cash can convert at 1¢ = 1 mile (widely documented; not on the Select product page).	Generally not offered on CU business cards. Do not import consumer Flagship / GO REWARDS transfer or lounge perks onto GO BIZ.

Credit & Eligibility

Metric	Spark 1.5% Cash Select	Local/Regional Credit Union Business Cards
Personal guarantee	Not quoted on product page; market practice = required for Capital One small-business revolving cards	CATEGORY: Typical Yes. EXAMPLE B NFCU: Yes, we require personal guarantees for all business lending products; guarantor must be an NFCU member. EXAMPLE A BECU: not disclosed on product/eligibility pages — Unclear, read signed agreement; CU lending almost always includes owner liability.
Credit check	Hard pull on apply (commonly all three bureaus). Pre-approval advertised as no impact to personal score.	CATEGORY: Hard pull on owners/guarantors is standard. EXAMPLE B NFCU: Experian on owners and/or guarantors; business credit potentially including the credit profiles of the business. EXAMPLE A BECU: subject to membership and credit approval; hard vs soft not disclosed for the card (do not import consumer membership soft-pull language).
Employee cards	Free; custom spend limits; card lock; account-manager role (primary remains liable)	CATEGORY: Common with per-card limits; not Ramp-class software. EXAMPLE A BECU: yes; individual spending limits; number allowed not disclosed. EXAMPLE B NFCU: yes; count/fee/controls beyond multiple cardholders not fully disclosed; one GO BIZ per business membership, up to 2 total if multiple business memberships.
Product type	Revolving business credit card (fixed credit line)	CATEGORY: Revolving business credit cards. Not charge cards. Not NPSL commercial charge products. Not spend-management platforms. EXAMPLE A: BECU Business Low Rate Credit Card and BECU Business Cash Back Credit Card (two named variants). EXAMPLE B: GO BIZ® Rewards Credit Card (one product, Visa or Mastercard plastic).

Pros & Cons

Spark 1.5% Cash Select

Pros

• $0 annual fee; unlimited 1.5% cash back with no category tracking
• Live $750 / $6,000 / 3-month welcome bonus
• 9-month 0% intro APR on purchases
• $0 foreign-transaction fee; free employee cards that earn the same rate
• Cash back never expires while the account is open; redeem any amount

Cons

• 1.5% trails 2% flats and category-heavy Ink/Amex products at scale
• 5% travel only inside Capital One Business Travel; no lounge/GE credits
• Balance transfers not available
• Revolving Spark cards commonly report to personal credit
• Excellent-credit bar; full Schumer (late fee, penalty APR) not on the public product page

Local/Regional Credit Union Business Cards

Pros

• Annual fee is frequently $0 (BECU, NFCU, CU1, many others)
• APR can undercut big-bank business cards when the CU posts Prime + a small margin (CU1 10.25% as of 3 Apr 2026; BECU Low Rate from 14.49% as of 1 Sep 2026; NFCU capped at 18%)
• FTF often $0 (BECU, NFCU; not universal — SDCCU 3%)
• Employee cards with per-user limits without per-card annual fees (BECU, NFCU)
• Visa/Mastercard Business insurance package on BECU’s posted guide; relationship model — membership + deposits can be the real product

Cons

• Field of membership is a hard gate (BECU geo/association; NFCU military/DoD + all owners must be members)
• Rewards are simple and low vs national business cards (1–1.5%; no transfer partners)
• Limits are modest (NFCU $5k–$25k official; others often unpublished and relationship-sized)
• Personal guarantee is the CU default (NFCU explicit); public Schumer data is uneven — BECU marketing vs PDF conflicts on overlimit and penalty APR
• Expense-ops tooling (virtual cards, QBO-native codes, approvals) is absent

Verdict

Spark 1.5% Cash Select

Spark Cash Select is the clean no-fee 1.5% Capital One option — plus a $750 bonus and 9 months of 0% on purchases. It is not Spark Cash Plus (NPSL, $150) and not Classic (fair credit, 1%). Best as a simple daily driver or year-1 0% tool; once annual spend is high enough that a 2% flat or category card wins, move the volume.

Local/Regional Credit Union Business Cards

This is a CATEGORY PATTERN, not one SKU. EXAMPLE A BECU splits Low Rate (revolve) vs Cash Back (1.5% + $300 through 30 Sep 2026 if paid in full). EXAMPLE B NFCU GO BIZ is a members-only 1% points card capped at $25k with an 18% APR ceiling and explicit PG. Do not average CU terms into a national figure; collect each CU’s Schumer, FOM, PG sentence, and rewards PDF. Poor fit without FOM access or if you need Ink/Amex earn, NPSL limits, or Ramp-class ops.