U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card Review

Written by Dayana Yochim
Edited by Carolyn Kimball
Fact-checked by Andrea Coombes

March 12, 2024

Think “rotating rewards card without the need to strategize your spending.” And also “minus a decent rewards rate,” come to think of it.

The U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card doesn’t want you to have to lift a finger to manage your cashback rewards. And that’s cool, especially for busy business owners who prefer to avoid the hassle of keeping track of rotating rewards categories. But we’ll go ahead and say the quiet part out loud: The 2% cashback rate on your top two monthly spending categories (out of 48 the card tracks) isn’t that great. And earning 1% on everything else is just sad, especially starting year two when a $95 annual fee kicks in.

For comparison within the U.S. Bank business card universe, you can skip the (eventual) annual fee and get 3% cashback on lots of business-y purchases and restaurant spending with the U.S. Bank Triple Cash Rewards Visa. When we calculated the potential cashback payoff for a typical small business, the Triple Cash Rewards Visa left the Leverage card in the dust.

The basics: Earn 2% cash back in the top two categories where you spend the most each month automatically and 1% cash back per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. Earn $750 in rewards when you spend $7,500 in eligible purchases on the account owner’s card within the first 120 days of opening your account. No annual fee for the first year and $95 thereafter.

U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card pros and cons

U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card cashback rewards spending categories

The following table shows the cashback rewards rate per $1 spent in the six most common spending categories. The “Bonus Rate” refers to the amount you can earn in excess of the card’s standard rewards rate.

Some cashback cards limit the spending amount eligible for the bonus rate (aka the “Spend Cap”). Once you hit that cap (e.g., $1,500 spending in a particular category during a defined time period), the rewards rate on future purchases in that category reverts to the lower “Default Rate.”

Note: The U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card awards 2% cashback on your top two spending categories each month. The table above and the business card cashback calculator assumes the two categories are "Cell Phone" and "Other."

What we like

You’ll earn 2% cashback (or two points per dollar spent) on your two highest spend categories each month — whether it’s shipping, advertising, airlines, utilities, wholesalers or any of the 48 eligible categories. That’s handy for spending outside the traditional bonus categories on other cards.

No math required! The two bonus categories on the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa are automatically adjusted each month based on where you spend the most. Though you may want to strategically time purchases to get the maximum rewards rate.

Rewards potential is unlimited, as in there are no earnings caps like some other cards that turn off the spigot after $25,000 in spending in a year. (However, see also: Rewards expiration terms in the next section of bummers.)

There’s a $750 bonus offer if you spend $7,500 in the first 120 days of opening the account. That’s a 10% rewards rate right there. 🚨 Only purchases made by the account owner’s card (not those of authorized employees) count toward the $7,500 spending requirement. 🚨

This card does not charge any foreign transaction fees, making it a better choice than the U.S. Bank Triple Cash Rewards Visa Business Card if you deal with international merchants or travel abroad.

Redemptions are available as a card statement credit, direct deposit into a U.S. Bank business checking, savings or money market account ($50 minimum deposit), or by shopping in the Earn Mall (for gift cards or merchandise) or travel (via U.S. Bank’s Travel Rewards Center, which, by the way, may help you earn more cash rewards).

Although it’s not billed as a travel card, you can earn a total of 5% back on prepaid hotels and car rentals booked directly through the Travel Rewards Center.

Employee cards are free, and you can set spending rules to curb temptations.

As a Visa Signature card, cardholders get auto rental collision damage waiver, travel accident insurance, travel and emergency assistance services, lost luggage reimbursement, extended warranty protection and more.

What we don't like

Here’s the thing about the rewards spending categories: Yes, there are lots of them (48, in fact). But consider that airlines, hotels and auto rental/transport providers are considered separate spending categories, thus limiting your earning potential. In other words, the 2% cashback rate will apply only to the two where you spend the most versus other rewards cards that lump all travel-related expenses into a single bonus tier.

U.S. Bank waives the annual fee on the Business Leverage Visa card for the first year. After that, you’ll pay $95. For context, it’ll take $4,750 in spending at the 2% rewards rate to break even.

It’s hard to get excited about earning just 1% cashback on purchases that are outside of your top two spending categories each month.

Some purchases — we’ll call this the “questionable life choices” spending category — are not eligible to earn cashback rewards. Think betting tracks, lotteries, casinos, dating/escort services, massage parlors, pawn shops, political organizations and, relatedly, fines and bail and bond payments.

Here’s a fine print find: “Points expire five years from the end of the quarter in which they are earned.” Points? Wait wut? Explanation: Cash back is tracked as points (each equal to $0.01 when redeemed, in most cases) and, as noted earlier, can be redeemed for actual cash back.

Besides the $750 bonus offer (detailed above), the only other sign-up perk is getting the $95 annual fee waived for the first year.

Not only is there no introductory 0% APR offer on balance transfers, but you’ll pay a higher balance transfer fee 5% ($5 minimum) if you make the request with your application. Wait a little while and that goes down to 3% (same $5 minimum).

Cash advances are costly. You’ll pay 5% ($10 minimum) on each advance and a high variable APR from the moment the ATM spits out your money.

Late payments, returned payments and going over your limit will cost you $39 and may trigger a high penalty APR.

The bottom line

Is the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card the best rewards card for your wallet? The answer depends entirely on your spending patterns. Let the numbers speak for themselves: Use the investor.com Cashback Credit Card Calculator to see which credit card pays back the highest rewards based on how much you spend each month.

U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card fine print

U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card benefits and rewards, and the unvarnished bits (the latter courtesy of the compliance department). Bonus material: The list of eligible spending categories/merchant codes U.S. Bank uses to determine your top two spend categories.

Does the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card charge an annual fee?

Yes, the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card charges an annual fee of $95.

Does the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card offer a welcome bonus?

Yes, the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card has a welcome bonus of $750.

How much cash back can I earn with the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card?

The average business that spends $2580 per month will earn $276.52 in cash back per year using the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card. For comparison, the average annual rewards payout from the business credit cards in the investor.com database is $483.97, and $464.40 is the median.

These calculations are based on average consumer spending data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the reward payout rates from the providers we track. Of course, you’re so much more than an average data point (aka “consumer unit,” in BLS parlance). The amount you can earn in cashback rewards using the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card depends entirely on your unique spending habits.

Find out exactly how much you’ll rake in with the U.S. Bank Business Leverage Visa Signature Card by tailoring the spending inputs in the calculator above.

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Methodology

The results of the investor.com Credit Card Rewards Calculator are based on the monthly spending amounts you enter and the annual dollar value of the rewards each credit card program pays per $1 spent. Credit card companies often express this payout amount as a percentage (e.g., 1.5% of every dollar spent) or on a points basis (e.g. ,1.5 points for every dollar spent). We converted all of them to a dollar amount (“Cash Back Per Year”) to make comparing offers easier.

To calculate the amount of cash back you could earn per year, we factored in:

• Spend category inputs: The default dollar values for each “Spend Category” in the Best Cashback Credit Cards tool — gas, groceries, travel, restaurant, entertainment, pharmacy, other — are based on average American spending data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. We also include additional spend categories (such as streaming services, online shopping, utilities, transit, Amazon and more) to help you see which rewards cards are most closely aligned with your actual spending patterns. We encourage you to customize the monthly spend inputs for the most accurate results.
• Tiered rewards rates: If a rewards credit card pays higher cashback rates on certain spending categories (also called “Bonus Rewards”), that difference is reflected in the total “Cash Back Per Year” tally.
• Rewards spending caps: Some cards impose category- or time-based limits (monthly, quarterly, annually) that affect the amount of rewards you can earn. For example, a card may pay 3% cash back on groceries on up to $1,000 of spending each quarter, then revert to the base/default rewards rate until the following quarter. We accounted for bonus spending caps and timeframe in the calculations.
• Default rewards rates: Purchases that exceed a spending cap are usually subject to a lower default rewards rate (e.g., 1% or 1.5%). We mathed that out too.
• Annual fees: If a rewards card charges an annual fee, we deducted that amount from the “Cash Back Per Year” total to provide a true accounting of a card’s annual rewards payout.

What’s not included in the “Cash Back Per Year” total is the cash value of any sign-up/introductory bonus. We highlight any Welcome Bonus separately. While sign-up bonuses can be the most lucrative part of getting a new cashback rewards credit card, not everyone will want or be able to do what it takes to earn the extra cash. (It usually requires spending a certain amount in a specified time period after the card is activated.)

About the Editorial Team

Dayana Yochim

Dayana Yochim has been writing (articles, books, podcasts, stirring speeches) about personal finance and investing for more than two decades, focusing on bringing clarity and the occasional comedic aside to what is often a murky, humorless topic. She’s written for NerdWallet, The Motley Fool, HerMoney.com, Woman’s Day, Forbes, Newsweek and others, and been a guest expert on "Today," "Good Morning America," CNN, NPR and wherever they’ll hand her a mic.

Carolyn Kimball

Carolyn Kimball is Managing Editor for Reink Media Group and the lead editor for content on investor.com. Carolyn has more than 20 years of writing and editing experience at major media outlets including NerdWallet, the Los Angeles Times and the San Jose Mercury News. She specializes in coverage of personal financial products and services, wielding her editing skills to clarify complex (some might say befuddling) topics to help consumers make informed decisions about their money.

Andrea Coombes

Andrea Coombes has 20+ years of experience helping people reach their financial goals. Her personal finance articles have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, MarketWatch, Forbes, and other publications, and she's shared her expertise on CBS, NPR, "Marketplace," and more. She's been a financial coach and certified consumer credit counselor, and is working on becoming a Certified Financial Planner. She knows that owning pets isn't necessarily the best financial decision; her dog and two cats would argue this point.