Plastiq is an online bill payment service that lets you pay almost all of your bills by credit card. The usual fee is 2.85%, but they sometimes run promotions with reduced rates (especially for Mastercard payments). Full details about Plastiq can be found in our guide: Complete Guide to Plastiq Bill Payments, and here we’ll investigate the best credit cards for Plastiq bill payments.
It is often worth paying Plastiq’s 2.85% fee in order to meet minimum spend requirements for a new card signup bonus. It can also be worthwhile when the card is offering a bonus spend promotion or if you receive a good spend-linked card retention offer. For example, if you call to cancel a card you may be offered a deal to keep your card, and that deal may be a bunch of points or cash back after spending a set amount. Another situation where it can be worthwhile to pay for Plastiq is when cashflow is a problem. Plastiq makes it possible to pay your bills with your credit card and then have until the credit card bill comes due to cover those charges (caution: this is very risky if you’re not sure that you can cover the charges).
Aside from the above ideas for when it makes sense to use Plastiq, another question is whether there are cards that earn rewards equal or better than 2.85% for Plastiq payments? In this post I’ll list the credit cards that make sense to use with Plastiq even when none of the above conditions apply. These are the cards that make sense every day for Plastiq bill payments.
Plastiq restrictions by card issuer
Various card issuers and payment networks have imposed restrictions on Plastiq. For example, you can use Plastiq to pay your mortgage with Mastercard or Discover, but not with Amex or Visa. Overall, Mastercard & Discover are the least restrictive followed by business Visa cards.
Here’s a chart that summarizes the types of payments allowed:
| Who Allows It? | What Payments Are Allowed? | Who Doesn't Allow It? |
|---|---|---|
| Most card issuers | Rent, Utilities, Tuition (including daycares & camps), Taxes and government fees | Plastiq payments of any kind are not allowed with Capital One consumer cards. |
| Amex, Mastercard, Discover, Business Visa, Capital One Business, US Bank, Wells Fargo | Membership clubs, condo fees, Inventory purchasing, rental & leasing, select professional and business services* | Consumer Visa Cards* |
| Mastercard, Discover, Business Visa, Capital One Business, US Bank, Wells Fargo | Business services not included above*, insurance, donations, escrow, timeshare, storage, telecom, and internet | Amex, Consumer Visa Cards* |
| Mastercard, Discover | Mortgage, HELOC, Auto loans, Student loans | Amex, Visa, Capital One, US Bank |
The rules for consumer Visa cards are especially confusing. Plastiq maintains details here. The key details to note from Plastiq’s page are as follows:
- The following categories of payments are safe: Rent, Utilities, Tuition (including daycares & camps), Taxes and government fees
- Plastiq will prevent any payments that could incur cash advance treatment. In other words, it can’t hurt to try using your Visa card for a payment because if there’s a chance of it being treated as a cash advance, Plastiq won’t let you finalize the payment.
- Wells Fargo Visa credit cards are not affected.
- Visa cards issued by Alliant, Navy Federal Credit Union, and USAA supposedly won’t earn rewards for Plastiq payments.
Best Cards for Plastiq Payments
The best cards for Plastiq payments are those that offer the best rewards and the fewest restrictions. With that in mind, here are my favorites…
Bank of America Cards with Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards
If you have $100,000 on deposit with Bank of America and/or Merrill Edge or Merrill Lynch, they’ll give you a sort of bank elite status called Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards. With this status, you get a 75% bonus on rewards earned with certain Bank of America credit cards. Each has pros and cons for use with Plastiq…
Bank of America Cash Rewards (5.25%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
No Annual Fee Earning rate: With Platinum Honors Preferred, 5.25% back on your choice of the following: gas and EV charging, online shopping, cable, streaming, internet & phone plans, dining, travel, drugstores, home improvement & furnishings (can choose a new category monthly). ✦ 3.5% back at grocery stores & wholesale clubs ✦ 1.75% back everywhere else. 5.25% and 3.5% rewards are capped at $2500 in combined purchases per quarter Base: 1.75% Travel: 5.25% Dine: 5.25% Gas: 5.25% Grocery: 3.5% Shop: 5.25% Phone: 5.25% Other: 5.25% Card Info: Visa Signature issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. |
This card earns 3% back on the category you choose, capped at $2500 in purchases per quarter. With the Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards 75% bonus, this becomes 5.25% in rewards!
Readers have reported that Plastiq payments count towards the “online shopping” category.
Disadvantages:
- $2500 cap per quarter
- Card is usually issued as a Visa card which means there are many restrictions on what types of bills you can pay. That said, some people have reported success obtaining a Mastercard version of this card. One option if you already have a Bank of America Mastercard is to call to ask if they can convert it to the Cash Rewards card.
Bank of America Business Advantage Cash Rewards Mastercard (Up to 5.25%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
No Annual Fee Earning rate: With Platinum Honors status with Bank of America's Business Advantage Relationship Rewards program, this card earns: 3.5% on dining plus 5.25% on 1 choice from: gas stations (default), office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom & wireless, computer services or business consulting services (for the first $50,000 in combined choice/dining purchases each calendar year, 1.75% thereafter) and 1.75% everywhere else. Base: 1.75% Travel: 5.25% Dine: 3.5% Gas: 5.25% Phone: 5.25% Office: 5.25% Biz: 5.25% Card Info: Mastercard issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. |
This card earns 2% on dining and 3% back on the category you choose, capped at $50K in purchases per year. With the Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards for Business 75% bonus, the 3% category earns 5.25% in rewards! Choices for 3% are: gas stations (default), office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom & wireless, computer services or business consulting services.
Some rent and mortgage payments through Plastiq code as travel and therefore earn 5.25% cash back.
Disadvantages:
- Since this is a business card, you must have Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards for Business. To get this status, you must have $100K on deposit in Bank of America or Merrill Edge business accounts.
Bank of America Premium Rewards (2.62% or 3.5%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
$95 Annual Fee Earning rate: With Platinum Honors status with Bank of America's Preferred Rewards program, earn: 3.5X travel and dining ✦ 2.625X everywhere else Base: 2.625% Travel: 3.5% Dine: 3.5% Card Info: Visa Signature issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. |
This card earns 2% for travel & dining and 1.5% back for all other spend. With the Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards 75% bonus, the former becomes 3.5% and the latter becomes 2.62% in rewards.
Some rent payments through Plastiq code as travel and therefore earn 3.5% cash back.
Disadvantages:
- Card is issued as a Visa card and therefore can’t be used for Mortgage payments. I don’t believe there’s a Mastercard version available.
BOA Business Advantage Travel Rewards World Mastercard (2.62%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
No Annual Fee Earning rate: With Platinum Honors status with Bank of America's Business Advantage Relationship Rewards program, this card earns: 2.625X points for all spend (and 5.25X for travel purchased through BOA's travel center) Base: 2.625X (2.63%) Card Info: Mastercard World issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. |
This Mastercard earns 1.5% back towards travel for all spend. With the Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards 75% bonus, this becomes 2.62% in rewards. Those with a Bank of America Premium Rewards card can transfer points to that card in order to cash out at full value without having to spend points on travel.
While 2.62% falls short of Plastiq’s 2.85% fee, it makes the fee negligible enough to be worth considering Plastiq as a way to give you extra time to pay your bills.
Disadvantages:
- Since this is a business card, you must have Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards for Business. To get this status, you must have $100K on deposit in Bank of America or Merrill Edge business accounts.
- Rewards at 2.62% fall short of covering Plastiq’s 2.85% fee.
Bank of America Travel Rewards (2.62%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
No Annual Fee Earning rate: With Platinum Honors status with Bank of America's Preferred Rewards program, this card earns: 2.625X points for all spend (and 5.25X for travel purchased through BOA's travel center) Base: 2.625X (2.63%) Card Info: Visa Signature issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. |
This card earns 1.5% back towards travel for all spend. With the Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards 75% bonus, this becomes 2.62% in rewards. Those with a Bank of America Premium Rewards card can transfer points to that card in order to cash out at full value without having to spend points on travel.
While 2.62% falls short of Plastiq’s 2.85% fee, it makes the fee negligible enough to be worth considering Plastiq as a way to give you extra time to pay your bills.
Disadvantages:
- Card is usually issued as a Visa card which means there are many restrictions on what types of bills you can pay. That said, some people have reported success obtaining a Mastercard version of this card. One option if you already have a Bank of America Mastercard is to call to ask if they can convert it to the Travel Rewards card.
- Rewards at 2.62% fall short of covering Plastiq’s 2.85% fee.
Discover It Miles: Year 1 (3%)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
FM Mini Review: Great card to get for its first year 3% cash back. No Annual Fee Earning rate: 1.5 miles per dollar for all spend. Base: 1.5% Card Info: Discover issued by Discover. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Noteworthy perks: ✦ No foreign transaction fees ✦ Redeem miles for travel or for cash back (1 cent per mile either way) |
The Discover It Miles card offers 1.5% cash back for all spend, but they double rewards after the first year. This effectively makes the card a 3% everywhere cash back card in year 1. This is a great choice when you consider that Discover cards (along with Mastercards) have the fewest bill pay restrictions.
Disadvantages:
- After your first membership year with this card it is no longer useful.
- Lately Discover has been granting very low credit lines for new cards.
Citi Double Cash Mastercard (2X)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
FM Mini Review: 2X rewards for all spend with no annual fee makes this card a winner. Earn 2X everywhere and redeem for the equivalent of 2% cash back or 2X ThankYou points. Pair with the Premier or Prestige card to make points transferrable to airlines. Click here for our complete card review No Annual Fee Earning rate: 2% cash back everywhere (1% cash back for each purchase + 1% when paying your credit card bill for that purchase). ✦ Earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi TravelSM Portal through 12/31/25. Base: 2X (3%) Card Info: Mastercard World Elite issued by Citi. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: 1X when you make a purchase + 1X when you pay for those purchases ✦ 24 month extended warranty See also: Citi ThankYou Rewards Complete Guide |
The Citi Double Cash card offers 2% cash back for all spend. Even better, cash rewards can be converted to ThankYou points. Combine with the Citi Premier or Prestige card and you get the ability to transfer points to airline partners. By transferring to select partners to book high value awards, it’s possible to average far better than 2% in rewards from this card.
Disadvantages:
- If you plan to use cash rewards rather than transferring points to airline loyalty programs, then you’ll lose money by using Plastiq at 2.85%
Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
$90 Annual Fee Earning rate: 3X Virgin Atlantic ✦ 1.5X everywhere else Card Info: Mastercard World Elite issued by BOA. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Companion award ticket with $25K annual spend ✦ 7,500 bonus points with $15K cardmember year spend + an additional 7,500 points with $25K cardmember year spend ✦ 25 tier points towards elite status per $2,500 spend (max 50 tier points per month). |
This is a great card if you maximize the card’s spend bonuses. By itself, the card earns 1.5 miles for all spend, but you can also pick up the following bonuses:
- Companion award ticket with $25K annual spend.
- 7,500 bonus miles with $15K cardmember year spend.
- Additional 7,500 bonus miles with $25K cardmember year spend.
- Also: 25 tier point towards elite status per $2,500 spend (max 50 tier points per month).
If you spend $2500 per month, you’ll earn 60,000 miles in 12 months plus a companion award ticket. See: Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard Deep Dive.
Amex Blue Business Plus (2X)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
FM Mini Review: 2X rewards for all spend (up to $50K per year) with no annual fee makes this card a winner. Click here for our complete card review No Annual Fee Earning rate: 2X Membership Rewards points on all purchases, up to $50K spend per calendar year (then 1X thereafter). Terms apply. (Rates & Fees) Base: 2X (3.1%) Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. |
This one earns 2X Membership Rewards points on all purchases up to $50K spend per calendar year (then 1X thereafter). Membership Rewards points can be incredibly valuable for transferring to airline partners to book high value awards.
Disadvantages:
- This is an Amex card and so the types of bills that can be paid are quite limited.
Amex Delta Platinum Business (1.5X + Elite Status)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
FM Mini Review: Good choice for frequent Delta flyers who can make use of annual companion certificate $350 Annual Fee Earning rate: 3X Delta ✦ 3X purchases made directly with hotels ✦ 1.5X on transit, eligible U.S. shipping, and purchases of $5K or more (up to $100K per year) Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Earn 1 Medallion Qualifying Dollar (MQD) per $20 spent Noteworthy perks: 15% off when using miles to book an award flight (Delta metal only) ✦ Annual $2,500 MQD Headstart ✦ Domestic, roundtrip Caribbean, or Central American economy companion certificate (subject to taxes & fees) each year upon card renewal ✦ Earn up to $200 as a statement credit each year after booking prepaid hotels or vacation rentals with your Card through Delta Stays on delta.com/stays ✦ Up to $10 per month in statement credits on eligible US purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants [Enrollment required] ✦ Up to $10 per month in statement credits for purchases with select rideshare service providers [enrollment required] ✦ Priority boarding ✦ First checked bag free on Delta flights ✦ Complimentary Upgrade list: get added to the complimentary upgrade list after Delta elite members and Reserve cardmembers✦ Terms and Limitations Apply. (Rates & Fees) |
This is a good choice for those who pursue Delta elite status and have large bills ($5K or more) which can be paid by Plastiq. That’s a pretty limiting combination, but if it fits you then with this card you can earn the following:
- 1.5X on purchases of $5K or more (max 50K extra miles per year)
- Spend $25,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year and earn 10,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs)
- Spend a total of $50,000 in eligible purchases on the Card in a calendar year and earn an additional 10,000 MQMs
- Medallion Qualifying Dollar waiver (up to Platinum status) with $25K spend.
Disadvantages:
- This is an Amex card and so the types of bills that can be paid are quite limited.
- Only optimal for large bill payments (over $5,000) where you’ll earn 1.5 miles per dollar.
- This only makes sense for those chasing Delta elite status.
Radisson Rewards Premier Visa Signature Card (5X + free night)
| Card Name w Details & Review (no offer) |
|---|
This card offers 5X for all spend plus a free night at any US property after each $10K annual spend up to $30,000 for a maximum of 3 free nights. Sadly, there aren’t very many desirable Radisson Rewards properties in the US, but there are a few (the Radisson Blu Chicago is particularly noteworthy).
I only recommend using Plastiq with this card in order to get to one of the three $10K thresholds for earning free night certificates. The 5X points alone aren’t worth the 2.85% fee.
Disadvantages:
- This is a consumer Visa card and so the types of bills that can be paid are quite limited.
- Free night certificates are only good at properties in the United States.
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How about Venmo credit card that gives 3% cash back on certain top categories? Wondering if any rent payments would quality for it?
I did my first ever Plastiq payment over the weekend to UW-Milwaukee for tuition for my wife, just a $100 trial payment to see if it would work 1) to credit easily to her account; and 2) to see if it would earn the online category bonus using my BofA Cash Rewards. When I checked this morning, it is a Pending charge but has a little icon that says “Debit” when I hover over it. Did I just incur a cash-advance charge and not get any rewards out of it? Any way to avoid that? Or am I jumping the gun and it will turn out find in the end?
No, I don’t think you incurred a cash advance. “Debit” probably just means that this is money coming out of your account rather than going in.
Yep, it no longer says “Debit” and now shows as a regular purchase. Unfortunately it appears it did not get the “Online Purchase” category bonus, so it is not going to be worthwhile as a method for paying that tuition bill (unless something changes).
I don’t know if you mention this anywhere, but for the BoA Cash Rewards card, if you redeem the cashback into a BoA checking/savings account, they tack on an additional 10% reward. I don’t remember when this started, but I’ve been using it for several years now. I realize its not points, but it increases the value of the BoA cash rewards card (even without Preferred rewards).
I’ve used my consumer Delta Platinum for the MQM bonus in 2019 and 2020 (extra redeemable miles while Amex still had that plus Delta is rolling over all MQMs for 2021), but probably will change cards in 2021 since I know I won’t get to Platinum or Diamond.
I use my CapitalOne GM BuyPower card up to the $5,000 5% limit.
interesting. I’ve had a GM card since forever…. *tic, mainly use it for temp. balance transfer/cash rotation and/or for the length of credit. But mostly sits in the sock drawer because for the past 20 years, haven’t seen any use for the fruits of all that work…. e.g., who wants to buy a “new” GM product anymore? (and why buy a new car in a state — Virginia — where they tax the …. out cars. If they’d find something else I could use it for, I might be interested.
I’ve been using the Barclays AA card to pay my mortgage with plastiq (it’s a MC). I figure this is a good deal right now as all spend counts toward million miler and if you spend 20k in a year you get a companion certificate. $560 in fees gets 20k miles and a companion fare which in certain circumstances would make up for the fees. There have been quite a few spending bonuses on that card too which netted another 10k this year
I have this card as well and have been debating how to actually maximize this benefit since I’m not flying much this year. I’d be interested to hear other people’s thoughts on utilizing it for Plastiq payments and if they find it worthwhile.
[…] For full details, see: Complete Guide to Plastiq bill payments. Also see: Best credit cards for Plastiq bill payments. […]
Here in Canada, Plastiq was charging 0% this morning for all payments made with an Amex card. ‘Promotion’ only lasted for a few hours. The Canadian personal platinum amex card is currently offering a 2x everywhere promotion and a statement credit promotion where points are worth 2 cents each. Gotta love getting 4% cash back on 50k in taxes! Love when the stars align.
What business cards would you suggest for business rent payments?
The article shows business cards.
True, but American Express doesn’t work for business rent and the BOA card doesn’t interest me. That’s why I figured a more specific question might get more than the one option, and maybe something I missed since the FM crew is pretty sharp. I do appreciate your mentioning that though, since I’ve missed bigger things before this.
I should have figured that you meant that so I’ll apologize for my poor/short answer.
I just checked and my last business rent payment (albeit in October 2019) was using my Amex Blue Biz but I do feel like data points are constantly changed OR they just aren’t published because people don’t want to ruin their good thing.
Interesting. I’ve tried my Biz Platinum repeatedly to no avail. I just tried my personal Hyatt but it would have gone through as a cash advance. By default I’m using one of my UR cards or my AA Aviator Biz but I’m hoping for something better.
The best business Visa card for Plastiq may be the Ink Unlimited (1.5X for all spend). Otherwise, how about using a personal card for business purposes?
Something being overlooked in this post is Bank of America is unique in that rental payments code as travel so the Premium Rewards card can consistently get 3.5% back on those Plastic payments.
Really? Are you sure of that? If so, that’s awesome. And the biz cash rewards card becomes the hands down best
I’ve been doing it since last year without issue, using my cash rewards one month a quarter and premium the other 2. It’s not just plastiq, same experience through my apartments rental portal but that now has higher fees for me. I’ve thought about applying for the business card but I only have personal preferred rewards which I assume doesn’t qualify me but I haven’t been able to find definitive information on that.
That’s awesome. You’re right that having personal preferred rewards doesn’t help with business cards. You need to have $100K in business deposits.
Hi, is your recent payments still coded as travel?
Last year I tried my B of A cash rewards with Plastiq and It didn’t count as an internet purchase.
Visa or MasterCard?
Mastercard
It depends on your valuation of IHG points, but I have been using the IHG premier for mortgage payments. I signed up for the 4x bonus points on all spend for 12 months and it is one of the only Chase mastercards that I’m aware of. Obviously after 12 months It will no longer be worth it…
Where can I find details on the IHG 4x bonus points promo?
I think there was an email sent.
Is anyone else having an issue with Plastiq sending checks late, or they don’t arrive?
Yes, last month, for the first time
Was the payment late or it didn’t arrive?
Never arrived