2020 Review: Brex Ecommerce Card — Built for Bigger Companies

Our Rating: 5 Out of 5 Stars

We’re giving the Brex Ecommerce Card 5 out of 5 Stars.

The card’s rewards (if you choose to earn them) aren’t anything to write home about, but its valuable benefits and business-focused features pack an impressive punch.

Factor in the ability to pick between net 60 and net 30 payment terms, and what you get is a unique corporate charge card that caters to large, relatively successful businesses.

Why We Like It

• Net 60 payment terms offer a bit more flexibility than your usual charge card
• 1X point per dollar spent if you opt for net 30 payment terms
• Thousands of dollars in statement credits for popular business tools and services
• Proprietary expense management technologies, including receipt-matching, intelligent reconciliation, and more, help simplify recordkeeping
• No personal guarantee, credit check, or Social Security number required to apply
• Reports to two major business credit bureaus, Dun & Bradstreet and Experian Business, allowing you to build business credit
• Easily integrates with prominent enterprise resource planning (ERP) programs, like QuickBooks, NetSuite, Expensify, and Xero
• Discounted Plastiq fee
• Typically provides a higher credit limit than you’ll get with other business credit cards
• No annual fee
• First five employee cards are free; they’re $5 each afterward
• No foreign transaction fee

Why It Could Be Better

• Strict requirements; applicants must make at least $100,000 in monthly sales to be considered
• Only net 30 customers can earn rewards, and only at a 1X-point-per-dollar rate
• Not available to sole proprietors

The Brex Ecommerce Card is as unique as it is simple.

Designed to appeal to large ecommerce corporations pulling in hundreds of thousands of dollars (or more) in sales, this card offers a net 60 payment cycle, which could benefit businesses that would prefer to have more than a month to pay off their purchases.

If you’d rather earn rewards, you can opt for a net 30 payment cycle instead. But even then, you’ll only earn one point per dollar. This clearly isn’t a card that’s designed to thrill the rewards enthusiast.

Fortunately, a healthy selection of benefits helps make up for the card’s lack of rewards. Perks include thousands of dollars in statement credits for big-league business tools, from Amazon Web Services to Salesforce, plus proprietary expense management technologies and easy integration with popular enterprise resource planning (ERP) programs.

So you’re actually getting quite a lot of value from a card that charges no annual fee and requires no credit check, SSN, or personal guarantee to be approved.

Is this card for everyone? Certainly not. But it’s geared toward a particular audience, and it seems like it can serve that crowd very well.

The Brex Ecommerce Card is one of three Brex cards currently available.

Insider Advice: Getting the Most Out of Your Card

• Sign up for helpful business tools: The impressive variety of statement credits this card comes with encompasses many of the business world’s most widely beloved tools. If you’ve been hesitant to sign up for any of these services in the past, now might be a great time to make it happen.
• Take time to pay: Unlike most charge cards, which require you to pay your full card balance by the due date, the Brex Ecommerce Card lets you choose a net 60 payment term that applies to each individual purchase separately. That gives you roughly two full months to pay off every purchase you make, adding some flexibility to your budget.
• Earn rewards, if it makes sense: Don’t think you’ll need 60 days to pay off every purchase? Opt for a net 30 term when you’re approved for the card, and get a point per dollar spent. If you ever want to switch payment terms, you can do so by contacting Brex.
• Enjoy Brex’s proprietary technology: Brex’s expense management features — which include transaction data cleanup, receipt capture, and more — are designed to help streamline the recordkeeping process to make the drier parts of your job easier.
• Connect your favorite ERP programs: Accounting is made even easier thanks to Brex’s effortless integration with prominent ERP software, like QuickBooks, Expensify, and more.
• Pay with Plastiq: Deal with any vendors that don’t accept credit cards? Plastiq lets you use your credit card to send money via check, ACH, or wire transfer. Plastiq charges a fee, of course, but Brex cardholders enjoy a discount.
• Redeem rewards for travel: If you end up earning rewards, you’ll get the most value by redeeming for travel either through the Brex Travel portal or by transferring rewards to a partner airline. A point transfer is likely your best bet, but Brex Travel’s reported discounts could prove fruitful, so look there, too.

The Rewards

The only way to earn rewards with the Brex Ecommerce Card is by opting for net 30 payment terms, rather than the card’s default net 60 terms.

Even then, you’ll only earn at a flat one-point rate. The good news is that Brex offers quite a few redemption options, which may allow you to boost your return on spend beyond the usual 1%.

Earning

Provided you choose a net 30 payment term, the Brex Ecommerce Card can earn you one point for every dollar spent, with no limits on spending, or on the number of points you can accumulate.

That’s unimpressive when you think about how nearly every other rewards credit card already offers at least a point for every purchase, and often more. But, with that said, it’s safe to assume that most companies who qualify for this card spend a lot of money, so points could add up very quickly.

Either way, this card wasn’t designed to woo potential applicants with its rewards; its other features steal the spotlight instead.

Per Brex FAQs, ecommerce cardholders can also “earn points via referrals and other bonuses,” so that’s something, though there doesn’t appear to be any details about these offers. Try contacting Brex directly if you’d like more information.

Redeeming

Brex offers a few different redemption options, all fairly normal.

You can redeem points directly through Brex Travel at a rate of one cent per point. While that’s nothing special, Brex Travel can reportedly provide significant travel discounts, so you may want to see what the portal has to offer before settling for another redemption option.

Cardholders who don’t often travel for business can instead redeem for statement credits, also at a value of one cent per point.

Transferring Brex Points

Perhaps the most interesting redemption method is via point transfer.

Brex (like many other travel rewards cards) allows cardholders to transfer points to a variety of airline partners. And while the list doesn’t include any notable domestic airlines, Brex partners are all airline alliance members. So, once you transfer points to a Brex partner, you should then be able to redeem those points for flights with other members of that partner’s alliance, offering access to major names from Delta (SkyTeam) to Lufthansa (OneWorld) and beyond.

The best part? You may be able to get a much better redemption value than one cent per point by transferring your points. You just have to pick your flights carefully.

Read more Best Airline Credit Cards

The Benefits

Brex pulls no punches with its benefits. While the heaping pile of statement credits demands a lot of the spotlight, the card has much more to offer.

• Statement credits: $5,000 for Amazon Web Services, $500 for Twilio, $150 for Google Ads, 60% off Salesforce Essentials, 40% off your first year of QuickBooks, 20% off an annual Zoom subscription, and 25% off 12 months of eligible Slack plans, among others
• Brex Travel: Book corporate travel directly through Brex, and you can supposedly reap savings of up to 30%–60%. You can redeem any points you earn via Brex Travel, too.
• Proprietary expense management tech: To help with the expense management process, Brex offers transaction data cleanup, receipt capture, and other proprietary technologies.
• Accounting tool integration: Connect your Brex account with popular software, like QuickBooks, Expensify, and Xero.
• Higher card limit: Brex says applicants may receive credit limits up to 75% of their projected monthly sales, up to $5 million. This is higher than you’re likely to get with many business credit cards.
• Virtual cards: Get immediate access, upon approval, to virtual versions of your Brex Ecommerce Card for online and phone purchases (learn more about how virtual credit cards work).
• U.S.-based support: Phone, email, and chat support options allow you to get help when you need it most.
• Fraud monitoring: With Brex, your personal information is protected 24/7 by machine intelligence and human analysis alike.

The Terms & Fees

The Brex Ecommerce Card requires you to pay off purchases within either 30 or 60 days, depending on your term choice. And, as a cardholder, your business bank account will usually be linked to your Brex account, so your card balance can be withdrawn automatically at the end of the payment period if it hasn’t already been paid.

That completely eliminates the need for interest and late fees.

In fact, this card is almost entirely fee-free, aside from the $5 fee you’re charged for employee cards after you’ve received your first five for free.

The Bottom Line

The Brex Ecommerce Card may be designed for a fairly specific subset of successful ecommerce corporations, but for those businesses, it offers a unique appeal.

Its net 60 payment cycle, ERP integration, and modern expense tracking tools have the potential to make the typical ecommerce professional’s life quite a bit simpler. The same goes for the extensive list of included statement credits.

The card doesn’t offer much for the businessperson who’d prefer to accumulate rewards on every purchase, but the ability to transfer any rewards you do earn to partner airlines makes things a bit more exciting. Just remember that you can’t earn any rewards at all unless you opt for a net 30 payment cycle, rather than net 60.

Tying everything together is the fact that the Brex Ecommerce Card requires no personal guarantee, SSN, or credit check for approval. Though this is becoming a tiny bit more common, it’s still a major reason why this card is worthy of your consideration.

How Do You Apply for the Brex Ecommerce Card?

Applying for the Brex Ecommerce Card is just as easy as applying for any other business credit card, but the standards you have to meet are a bit stricter.

Start by checking the qualifications and requirements section below, and determine whether your business qualifies. If it doesn’t, hold off on applying, and consider an alternative.

If you think your business makes the cut, click “Apply Now” below next to the card name. That’ll take you to the Brex site, and once you’re there, you can click “Open an account” to fill out the application.

What Credit Scores Do You Need for the Brex Ecommerce Card?

Your credit scores will never be factored into the Brex application process. There’s no credit inquiry, and you don’t have to provide a personal guarantee. Instead, your approval depends on your business’ ability to meet Brex’s standards.

Qualifications and Requirements

You must:

• Be based in the U.S.
• Work for a corporation or another non-individual liability company
• Have an employer identification number (EIN)
• Maintain a corporate bank account of at least $20,000 at all times if your bank is connected to Brex (or at least $100,000 if your bank is not connected to Brex)
• Have made at least $100,000 in sales over the last 30 days if your bank is connected to Brex (or at least $250,000 if your bank is not connected to Brex)

You can’t qualify for a Brex card if:

• You are a sole proprietor
• You are involved in any of Brex’s prohibited activities (gambling, prostitution, get-rich-quick schemes, and more)

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can get the Brex Ecommerce Card?

To get the Brex Ecommerce Card, you must work for a U.S.-based company with an Employer Identification Number (EIP). You also have to meet Brex’s cardholder standards. Businesses that may be eligible include:

• C-Corps
• S-Corps
• LLCs
• LLPs

Businesses that aren’t eligible for Brex cards include:

• Consumers
• Sole proprietors
• Unincorporated partnerships
• Unregistered companies
• Companies registered outside the U.S.

How much revenue do you need to get the Brex Ecommerce Card?

Brex features some pretty strict financial requirements. Brex requires ecommerce applicants to show:

• At least $100,000 in sales over the last 30 days if your bank account is connected to Brex
• At least $250,000 in sales over the last 30 days if your bank account is not connected to Brex

And that’s on top of the bank account requirements of:

• A balance of at least $20,000 at all times if your bank is connected to Brex
• A balance of at least $100,000 at all times if your bank is not connected to Brex

Can’t meet these standards? Check out more typical business credit cards, which require personal guarantees but don’t have these restrictions.

How do the Brex Ecommerce Card’s net 30/net 60 payment terms work?

Unlike most credit and charge cards, the Brex Ecommerce Card allows you to choose between net 30 and net 60 payment terms when you’re approved. Fortunately, these terms are fairly easy to understand.

Each individual purchase must be paid off within either 30 or 60 days, depending on which term length you choose.

So you’re not really amassing a single balance that must be paid by a certain period as with most cards. You’re paying off each purchase on its own.

What’s the credit limit of the Brex Ecommerce Card?

You won’t know your credit limit until you’re approved for the card, but Brex says you can typically expect a higher credit limit than you’d be able to get with other business credit cards.

With the Brex Ecommerce Card, your limit is based on your projected monthly sales. Your limit may be up to 75% of that projection, up to $5 million, but it all depends on your business’ circumstances. You may be able to learn more with respect to your unique situation by contacting Brex support directly.

Does the Brex Ecommerce Card have rewards?

The Brex Ecommerce Card only offers rewards if you opt for net 30 payment terms when you’re approved. In that case, you’ll earn 1X point per dollar spent, and that’s it.

If you stick with the card’s default net 60 term length, you’ll receive no rewards.

Try our list of the best business credit cards if you’re after something with a better rewards program.

Do you need personal credit to get the Brex Ecommerce card?

No. Brex never checks personal credit scores during the application process, no matter which Brex charge card you’re applying for. That means there’s no need to provide a Social Security number or a personal guarantee, either.