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Float or an Amex corporate card: which is better for a Canadian business?
Float Charge extends unsecured credit up to $3M with 15 or 30-day interest-free terms and no personal guarantee, so the old "it is prepaid" objection no longer holds for a business that qualifies. Charge is for registered partnerships and corporations with at least $50,000 in cash; everyone else starts on Float's pre-funded cards. The real difference: Float Charge is a charge card that clears each cycle, so it will not revolve a balance.
At a Glance
Most people searching this already have a corporate card and something has become annoying enough to go looking. This is a displacement comparison, written for someone deciding whether to move.
The Short Answer
The old objection to Float, that it is prepaid and therefore a downgrade from a real card, is out of date. Float Charge extends unsecured credit up to $3M with 15 or 30-day interest-free terms and no personal guarantee. It is approved separately from the default Pre-Funded model: Float asks for a registered partnership or corporation that is profitable or holds 12 months of operating funds in the bank, with at least $50,000 in cash, so a sole proprietor or a new or loss-making business starts pre-funded. The genuine remaining difference is that Float Charge is a charge card: the balance clears in full at the end of each cycle. If you deliberately revolve a balance and pay interest to fund working capital, Float does not do that. If you do not, the case for staying is mostly rewards.
What Actually Differs
Underwriting. Bank and charge cards usually assess the business and the owner, often with a personal guarantee. Float requires no personal guarantee and runs no credit check to open an account. Float Charge limits start at $10,000 and are set on factors Float lists as industry, revenue, existing debt, cash balance, liquidity, credit utilization and past credit history. Businesses declined for a bank corporate card frequently still qualify.
Two funding models. Float can run as Charge (unsecured credit, repaid at cycle end) or Pre-funded, which Float also calls prepaid (you fund the balance and earn interest on it: 2.5% on CAD and 2.75% on USD; Charge balances earn none). Most incumbents offer only the first.
Control. An incumbent card gives you a card and a statement. Float gives per-card limits, merchant category restrictions and approval workflows (multi-level on Professional) before the money leaves. Preventative rather than reportive.
Coding. This is where the hours are. A statement gives you an amount and a merchant. Float reads GST, HST and PST off the receipt and applies it, then syncs both ways with Xero and QuickBooks Online.
FX. Float converts CAD to USD at 0.25% inside the account and spends it from a USD card, so planned USD spend costs 0.25% (a CAD Float card used directly for a USD purchase pays a 2.5% foreign transaction fee instead), against the 2.5% foreign currency conversion commission American Express states for its Business Platinum Card. For a business with regular USD spend this usually dwarfs any rewards difference.
Idle cash. Float pays 2.5% on CAD and 2.75% on USD balances (variable rates that Float can change without notice). A card account pays nothing.
Float Professional Free for 12 Months
No personal guarantee and no credit check to open an account; cards are pre-funded from your Float balance, or backed by Float Charge credit if you qualify. New Canadian businesses get the Professional plan free for 12 months through our partner link.
Float vs Amex Business Cards, Side by Side
American Express sells two small business charge cards in Canada, the Business Gold Rewards Card and the Business Platinum Card. Here is what Amex publishes for each on americanexpress.com/en-ca and in the Amex Bank of Canada cardmember agreement that covers both, read October 6, 2026, next to Float.
| Float | Amex Business Gold Rewards | Amex Business Platinum | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | None for cards; Essentials $0, Professional from $100 a month for 10 active users | $199; employee cards $50 each a year | $799; employee Platinum cards $250 each a year |
| Card type | Pre-funded cards, or Float Charge (a charge card, approved separately) | Charge card with no pre-set spending limit; Due in Full and Flexible Payment Option balances | Same: charge card with no pre-set spending limit, same two balances |
| Interest-free period | 15 or 30 days on Float Charge | Up to 55 days | Up to 55 days |
| Carrying a balance | Not possible: Float Charge clears in full each cycle | Flexible Payment Option balance at 21.99%; 30% on a late Due in Full charge | Same rates |
| Who is liable | No personal guarantee | You and the business, jointly and severally (solidarily in Quebec) | Same agreement, same liability |
| Credit file | No credit check to open an account | Applicant must be a Canadian resident with a Canadian credit file | Same requirement |
| USD purchases | 0.25% to convert CAD to USD in the account, then spend on the USD card | Rate not stated on the card page | 2.5% foreign currency conversion commission |
The liability row matters most for a new company. Under the cardmember agreement for both cards, the person who applies and the business are each liable for every charge on the account, which is the same exposure as the TD and BMO cards below. Float asks for no personal guarantee on either of its models.
Where the Incumbents Still Win
- Revolving credit. A credit card lets you carry a balance into future months and pay interest for the privilege. Float Charge must be settled in full each cycle. Even Amex’s business charge cards let you move part of the balance to a Flexible Payment Option at 21.99%. If your card is genuinely funding working capital between receivables, that is a real functional gap.
- Rewards ecosystems. Points, transfer partners, travel insurance and purchase protection on premium business cards are mature and valuable to travel-heavy businesses. Float pays 1% only on card spend above $25,000 a month in each currency, so smaller spenders earn nothing.
- Longer float on the balance. Amex’s Business Gold Rewards and Business Platinum cards offer up to 55 interest-free days. Float Charge’s terms are 15 or 30 days.
Float vs RBC, TD, BMO and CIBC Business Cards
For a new company, the biggest difference is who is on the hook for the card. At TD and BMO the owners are personally liable alongside the business, CIBC points businesses under three years old to personal-liability cards, and RBC publishes both a joint-and-several and a corporate-liability agreement. Float asks for no personal guarantee. Here is what each bank publishes on its Canadian site (read September 25, 2026):
- TD: TD’s business credit card page states that the business and its owners are jointly and severally liable for all charges on each TD Business Card account, and that personal credit is checked for the applicant and any guarantors.
- BMO: the BMO Business Mastercard cardholder agreement makes each owner liable as a primary obligor, individually and together with the business (solidarily in Quebec).
- CIBC: CIBC splits its business cards in two. Personal-liability cards are approved mainly on the owner’s personal finances and, CIBC says, suit businesses under three years old with less than $500,000 in annual revenue. Business-liability cards, where the business is primarily liable, suit businesses over three years old with more than $500,000 in revenue, and they come with Visa Spend Clarity reporting and payment controls.
- RBC: RBC lists two agreements for its small-business Visa, one with joint and several liability and one with corporate liability, and offers a Liability Waiver Program on many business cards that protects the business against certain unauthorized charges by employee cardholders.
Moving the spend to Float is mostly admin. Open the account online (no personal guarantee and no credit check), fund it by EFT or wire from your bank, or up to $25,000 at a time by Interac e-Transfer, issue virtual cards for software, ads and other recurring charges, and switch each vendor to its new card before you close the bank card. Float’s mobile app collects and matches receipts, and transactions sync to QuickBooks Online or Xero. Physical cards arrive in 5 to 10 days; the free Essentials plan allows up to 20, and Professional allows unlimited physical cards. If you want credit rather than pre-funded cards, Float Charge is a separate approval for partnerships and corporations with at least $50,000 in cash. Float Professional is free for 12 months through our link.
A Note on Acceptance
If you are leaving American Express specifically, the network changes: Float issues CAD cards on Visa and USD cards on Mastercard, so a supplier that does not take Amex can still be paid by card if it takes Visa or Mastercard.
What About Brex?
Brex comes up constantly in this search and the answer is short: a Canadian business cannot open a Brex account. It requires a US-incorporated entity and a US EIN, and underwrites inside the US banking system. One nuance, because the marketing is easy to misread: Brex has launched a card and expense product aimed at Canadian employees of US companies. That serves the US parent, not a Canadian business. We cover the alternatives in Brex alternatives for Canadian businesses.
And Ramp?
Ramp is the closest true comparison, and it does serve Canadian businesses directly: it issues CAD and USD cards through Peoples Trust, an OSFI-regulated Canadian trust company, and codes GST, HST, PST and QST. Float's own regulatory footing is documented on its public pages: it is a payment service provider registered with the Bank of Canada under the Retail Payment Activities Act and a money services business registered with FINTRAC, holds client funds in trust at Scotiabank with CDIC coverage of up to $100,000 combined across CAD and USD, and is SOC 2 Type 2 and PCI-DSS compliant. The differences are narrower than Float's own marketing suggests, and we work through them honestly in Float vs Ramp for Canadian businesses.
Ramp suits a registered corporation outside Quebec and the territories with CA$25,000 or more across connected bank accounts: like Float Charge it is a charge card with no personal guarantee, and it pays 1% cashback on every dollar of card spend. Our Ramp review covers who qualifies and what it costs.
The Switching Test
- Do you deliberately carry a balance and pay interest? If yes, keep a revolving credit card. Float Charge clears each cycle.
- Do you actually redeem your rewards? Not earn, redeem. Weigh that against 0.25% in-account conversion versus 2.5% card FX plus the bookkeeping hours.
- Does anyone besides you hold a card? If yes, the control and receipt-capture case is the whole argument and it is strong. A solo operator with tidy habits gains much less.
The CPA Verdict
For a Canadian business with staff spending on cards and someone reconciling statements by hand, Float is a clear improvement, and the saving shows up in hours and FX rather than rewards. For a business that revolves a balance to fund operations, or one whose travel rewards genuinely get redeemed, the incumbent card still earns its place. The prepaid objection, though, no longer holds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Float a credit card?
Float Charge is a charge card backed by unsecured credit of up to $3M with 15 or 30-day interest-free terms. It is not a revolving credit card: the balance is repaid in full at the end of each cycle rather than carried with interest. Float Charge is for registered partnerships and corporations that qualify; every other account runs on Float's pre-funded (prepaid) model, where you fund the balance and earn interest on it.
Does applying for Float affect my personal credit?
Not to open an account: Float states it runs no credit check and asks for no personal guarantee. For Float Charge, its help centre lists past credit history among the factors that set the limit without saying whether that means a credit bureau inquiry, so ask Float before applying if an inquiry would matter to you.
How high can Float limits go?
Up to $3M or more in unsecured Float Charge credit, subject to eligibility. Limits start at $10,000 and are assessed on factors including industry, revenue, cash balance, liquidity, existing debt, credit utilization and past credit history.
Is Brex available in Canada?
No. Brex requires a US entity and a US EIN, so Canadian businesses cannot sign up directly.
How does Float compare to Amex on foreign exchange?
Float converts CAD to USD at 0.25% inside the account and spends it from a USD card, so planned USD spend costs 0.25% (a CAD Float card used directly for a USD purchase pays a 2.5% foreign transaction fee instead). American Express states a 2.5% foreign currency conversion commission on its Business Platinum Card.
What does Float cost?
Essentials is free. Professional starts at $100 a month, which includes the first 10 active users, then $10 per additional active user, billed month to month. Float charges no fee to issue, use or keep a card.
Next Steps
New Canadian businesses can get Float Professional free for 12 months through our partner link. For the full breakdown including where Float falls short, read our Float credit card review, and the current offer is on our Float deal page.
Sebastien ProstCPA, Ex-CRA
Licensed CPA with 10+ years of experience, including work with the Canada Revenue Agency. Founder of LedgerLogic, a cloud accounting firm serving Canadian SMEs. Xero Certified Advisor.