What To Look For In a Construction Credit Card

Key Takeaways:

• Effective construction credit cards help businesses control and monitor expenses, reducing wasteful spending significantly.
• Integration with fleet management and accounting tools is essential for streamlined operations and efficient expense tracking.
• Customizable spending policies and robust security features are critical for preventing unauthorized transactions and ensuring financial control.

Running a profitable construction business is a serious challenge, even for the most battle-hardened contractors.

In a recent Coast survey, over 36% of respondents estimate that wasteful spending costs their company $100–$1,000 a quarter, while almost 6% think it costs over $5,000 a quarter. For small and medium-sized businesses, which make up the vast majority of construction companies, those numbers are a serious hit to their bottom line.

Managing fleet expenses, such as gasoline, vehicle maintenance, and supplies, is nearly impossible without a modern, cloud-connected platform designed to help contractors control, monitor, and manage fleet and business expenses effectively. The best construction credit cards should not only offer significant fuel savings, but also help minimize wasteful spending through enhanced security features and seamless integrations with leading fleet management tools.

Let’s explore why a construction credit card could be a game changer for your construction business.

Why Construction Companies Need Specialized Credit Cards

To put it simply, managing a profitable construction firm is incredibly challenging.

Owners must manage complex projects, balancing timely completion within budget while maintaining high safety standards. Company leaders must also handle fluctuating material costs, labor shortages, and stringent regulatory requirements, making efficient financial and operational management essential to sustain growth and profitability.

To handle these challenges, construction businesses require specialized financial tools, such as construction credit cards, to effectively manage their unique spending and operational demands. Construction credit cards help streamline budgeting and financial oversight, particularly for expenses related to fuel, fleet maintenance, and field operations.

Managing these expenses presents challenges, such as preventing unauthorized spending and efficiently tracking expenses across multiple projects and teams. The best construction credit cards are designed to address these issues by offering tailored solutions that support financial control and operational efficiency.

Features of an Ideal Construction Credit Card

Construction credit cards must balance flexibility and control while still offering financial benefits to construction business owners.

Here are some of the most important things to look for when considering a construction credit card for your business.

Security and Real-Time Alerts

According to Coast’s recent survey of 200 construction companies, well over half (57%) of respondents encounter instances of unauthorized or wasteful spending among field employees at least once per quarter.

Advanced construction credit cards offer a variety of features that help cut down unauthorized expenses and provide a measured level of control to business owners:

• Real-time monitoring and alerts for suspicious activities to prevent unauthorized transactions.
• Ability to set spending limits, restrict usage to specific merchants, and define approved purchase categories.
• Ensures that only authorized personnel can use the card, adding an extra layer of security.
• Comprehensive reports that track spending patterns, helping to identify and address potential misuse quickly.

Ease of Use and Integration Capabilities

48% of survey respondents report spending way too much time dealing with expenses, and nearly 50% of construction companies use accounting software to track expenses effectively.

To help accommodate these needs, a construction credit card should promote ease of use and seamlessly integrate with both fleet and accounting applications:

• An easy-to-use platform that makes it easy for employees to make purchases and for administrators to manage expenses.
• Mobile app availability for on-the-go access to account management and transaction monitoring.
• Compatibility with accounting tools like QuickBooks, as well as fleet management tools like Fleetio, Samsara, and Azuga, allowing for synchronized data and streamlined operations.
• Integration with accounting software to automate expense reporting, reducing manual entry and errors.

Customization Controls

Customizable construction credit cards should offer significant advantages by providing tailored financial controls and adaptive rewards that cater to the unique needs of construction businesses.

Here are some of the customization options your next construction credit card should have:

• Ability to set specific spending policies tailored to different company roles. For instance, administrators can set varying spending limits and purchase categories for different employees, departments, or vehicles.
• Options to restrict card usage to certain merchants or categories to make sure that expenses align with business needs and prevent unauthorized purchases.
• Customized controls for immediate and long-term financial management, such as automating expense tracking and reporting.
• Policies to control purchases specific to individual drivers or fleet vehicles.

Flexibility

Construction credit cards must support the dynamic needs of construction businesses as they grow and evolve. Here’s what to look for:

• Look for cards that feature major networks like Visa to ensure seamless transactions across various merchants and locations.
• Ability to adjust spending limits based on changing business needs.
• Capability of issuing multiple cards with different limits and controls for diverse roles.
• Nearly instantaneous issuance of new cards without having to wait for cards to show up in the mail.

Financial Benefits

The best construction credit cards should offer both immediate and long-term financial benefits such as:

• Programs that provide discounts or rebates on fuel purchases, reducing overall fuel costs.
• Cash-back reward programs for non-fuel-related purchases
• Automation of expense tracking and reporting reduces the need for extensive manual oversight and reconciliation.

Customer Service and Support

When things go wrong, contractors need support in a hurry. Construction cards should offer a variety of customer support features that make solving issues quick and easy:

• Connect with the support via text, email, or phone for quick and efficient resolution of any issues.
• Customer service team that understands the unique challenges of construction businesses

Why Coast Is the Best Card For Construction

Coast offers construction businesses a secure, user-friendly, and customizable solution with seamless integrations, financial benefits, flexibility, and exceptional customer service, making it the ultimate tool for efficient expense management.

Easy Job Costing

Coast is a smart fuel card that makes the laborious task of job costing easier.

Detailed transaction reports allow construction businesses to track fuel expenses accurately and easily collect job codes for costing purposes. Construction managers can also easily monitor fuel usage patterns and identify cost-saving opportunities to enhance fleet efficiency.

Advanced Security Features

With advanced fraud protection, Coast monitors transactions in real-time and alerts administrators to any suspicious activities, preventing unauthorized transactions.

Customizable spending controls allow businesses to set specific spending limits and restrict usage to certain merchants. Employee ID verification ensures authorized use, while comprehensive reporting tracks spending patterns and identifies misuse quickly.

Easy-To-Use Platform

An intuitive platform simplifies the purchasing process and expense management thanks to a user-friendly interface and mobile app that allow for on-the-go account management and transaction monitoring.

Seamless integration with accounting software automates expense reporting, reducing manual entry and errors, saving time, and enhancing financial accuracy.

Extensive Integration Capabilities

Compatibility with leading fleet management tools such as Fleetio, Samsara, and Azuga ensures synchronized data and streamlined operations.

This integration enhances operational efficiency and provides a comprehensive solution for managing all aspects of construction business expenses.

Meaningful Financial Benefits

Significant financial benefits include discounts and rebates on fuel purchases and cash-back reward programs for non-fuel-related expenses. Automation of expense tracking and reporting reduces the need for extensive manual oversight and reconciliation, lowering administrative costs.

Detailed spending insights and extended payment terms help improve cash flow and support better financial planning.

Powerful Customization Capabilities

Customizable features allow businesses to tailor spending policies to different roles and departments, set flexible merchant restrictions, and control purchases for individual drivers or fleet vehicles.

Flexibility Powered By Visa

Flexibility is key, with wide acceptance across various merchants as part of the Visa network.

Adaptable spending limits allow businesses to respond to changing needs, and the ability to issue multiple cards with different controls accommodates diverse operational roles and purchasing needs. The card’s scalability supports business growth, making it an indispensable financial tool for construction companies.

24/7 Customer Service

Outstanding customer service is a hallmark of Coast.

Personalized support is available via text, email, or phone, ensuring businesses receive the help they need without the hassle of phone trees or long wait times. Coast’s customer service team understands the unique challenges of construction businesses and provides tailored solutions to help manage expenses more effectively.

Get Started with Coast Today

Ready to take your construction expense management to the next level? Apply today for a Coast smart Visa card to begin your journey to easy expenses.

Applying won’t affect your personal credit and there’s absolutely no personal guarantee required. We’ve made the process for applying for a Coast Visa fuel card quick and easy so you can start enjoying the benefits of Coast in no time.