Inventory is the biggest cheque most Amazon sellers write, and it usually goes out by wire. PPC and software land on a card and earn points. The supplier invoice, often 70 percent of total spend, earns nothing. Moving that one line onto a card is what turns credit card points on business spending from a nice extra into a few business class trips a year.
We call it the flywheel because it compounds: more inventory, more points, more trips.
Where inventory spend can go on a card
There are four doors. Most sellers use one.
- Suppliers that take cards directly. More wholesalers and distributors do than you would think, especially in North America. Ask before you wire. Some add a 2 to 3 percent surcharge, which changes the math below.
- A payment platform. Plastiq and Melio in the US, Chexy in Canada. They charge your card and pay the supplier by wire, ACH, e-Transfer, or bill pay, so nothing changes on the supplier's side. We covered the mechanics in how to pay Amazon suppliers with a credit card.
- Everything around the product. PPC, freight, prep, software, samples. Smaller lines, no platform fee, all points.
- Welcome bonuses timed to a big order. A spending requirement that takes three months of normal bills takes one container order. Apply for the card right before your next large PO.
The math that decides it
One formula settles every case: divide the fee percentage by the points you earn per dollar. That gives the break-even value per point. Redeem above it and you win. Redeem below it and you paid extra to fly economy.
Take a $40,000 supplier invoice through Plastiq, which raised its card fee to 2.99 percent in January 2026. That is $1,196 in fees.
- US card earning 2 points per dollar: 80,000 points. Break-even is 1.5 cents a point. Transfer partners and premium cabins routinely clear that.
- Canadian Amex Business Platinum at 1.25 points per dollar: 50,000 points. Break-even jumps to 2.39 cents. Still doable with Aeroplan, which takes Membership Rewards 1:1, but there is less room for a lazy redemption.
- Same Canadian card through Chexy at about 2 percent: $800 in fees, break-even 1.6 cents. Canadian fees are usually lower, which matters because Canadian cards earn less.
A supplier that takes your card with no surcharge is free points. A 3 percent fee on a 1x card rarely works. Run the number per invoice, and count the fee as landed cost, like Amazon's seller fees.
Where the flywheel breaks
Carrying a balance. Card interest runs around 20 percent a year. On the $40,000 invoice, one month of interest is about $670, more than the net gain from the points. Pay the statement in full every time. The 30 to 50 days of float is a bonus, not a financing plan.
Cashing out at one cent. Gift cards and statement credits sit at about a penny a point, under every break-even above. If you will never transfer points to an airline, use a flat cashback card and skip the platforms.
Caps and categories. Many cards earn their best rate only up to a yearly cap, and some platforms code payments so they miss bonus categories. Read the terms before a six-figure invoice goes through. US sellers can start with our Amex business card breakdown.
The Canadian angle
Canadian sellers face lower earn rates, fewer premium business cards, and often USD supplier invoices. A Canadian dollar card adds a foreign transaction fee of around 2.5 percent on USD charges, which on its own can kill the trade. Our firm, Jones and Cosman, wrote up the options for a US dollar credit card for a Canadian business. The upside: Aeroplan redeems well, and Chexy's fees run lower.
Points earned on company spending and used for personal travel also have a tax side, especially when the business is a corporation. Jones and Cosman covers that on their Amazon accountant page.
Running it without losing track
With three or four cards in play, we track balances and expiry dates in AwardWallet. The same platform logic covers some government bills, explained in earning points paying taxes with Plastiq. When it is time to spend, positioning flights stretch points to the routes with the best award space.
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay suppliers with a credit card if they don't accept cards?
Yes. Plastiq or Melio in the US and Chexy in Canada charge your card and send the supplier a bank payment. The supplier never sees a card, and you pay a fee of roughly 2 to 3 percent.
Is paying a fee to earn points on inventory worth it?
Only if your redemption value beats the fee divided by your earn rate: about 1.5 cents a point on a 2x card at a 3 percent fee, closer to 2.4 cents on a 1.25x card. If you redeem for gift cards, skip it.
What is the best way to turn business expenses into travel points?
Put every card-friendly cost on a points card first: PPC, software, freight, and suppliers with no surcharge. Use a payment platform only where the math clears, and time new cards to your largest orders.
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