The best fuel cards have a massive network of gas stations and truck stops, offer discounts, and are ideal for different fleet sizes. Gas costs keep increasing, trucking businesses can use fuel cards to improve fuel efficiency and profit. When selecting a fuel card, truckers should consider the location, limitations, additional fees, and features. To improve the efficiency of your fleets and business, take a look at this review for the best fuel cards for truckers.
Quicklook: Best fuel cards for truckers
- Best for largest fuel rebate: Fuelman Deep Saver Card
- Best for lowering fuel costs: AtoB Fuel Card
- Best for national network: WEX Fleet Fuel Cards
- Best for total rewards: Coast Fuel Card
- Best for fleets of up to 15 vehicles: ExxonMobile Business Pro -Match now
What is a fuel card?
It’s a specialized credit card that allows truck drivers and trucking companies to purchase fuel and other services at in-network truck stops and gas stations. The main benefits are discount pricing through the card network, enabling fleet owners to more easily take advantage of tax exemptions, and robust expense tracking and reporting.
Major fuel cards are accepted at thousands of truck stops, travel centers, and gas stations across the U.S, while smaller providers may partner with regionally-based merchants. Many fuel card providers negotiate discounts on fuel and services from their merchant networks, or even allow payment for truck maintenance, repairs, and other on-road expenses.
To help control costs, trucking companies and owner operators get detailed reports tracking fuel purchases, mileage, and other expenses for accounting and tax purposes. They can also set purchase limits, product restrictions (fuel only, etc.), and driver limits on cards to keep an eye on spending.
How do fuel cards work?
Fuel cards are issued by companies to their drivers or employees for purchasing fuel. These cards are linked to a specific fuel card account or fleet management system. When a driver needs to refuel, they present the fuel card at a participating fuel station.
Transaction details such as the date, time, location, and amount of fuel purchased are recorded for analysis and reporting purposes. Fuel cards allow companies to better control and monitor fuel expenses while gaining valuable insights into fuel consumption patterns.
Best fuel cards for truckers: The options
In your search for the best fuel credit card, you’ll find that they all offer unique benefits. Your choices may be limited if you’re looking for fuel cards for truckers with bad credit, which can make it tricky to find the right solution.
With this in mind, here are some of the best options for truckers:
Fuelman Fleet Cards
The Fuelman Fleet Card allows you to choose what you pay for different packages, which offer some of the most generous fuel rebates in the industry. You can use the Maintenance Manager feature to monitor and approve maintenance payments from your Fuelman account.
Best for: Largest fuel rebate
Special features
- Package flexibility
- Deepest rebates in the industry
- Credit option available
Benefits
- Rebates of up to 10 cents per gallon
- Carbon-neutral, environmentally friendly options
- Available to use at any gas station
Disadvantages: Coverage gaps in some states outside of the Midwest
Pricing: Starting at $39 a month
AtoB Fuel Card
AtoB fuel cards are taken anywhere that Visa is accepted. You can track your driver’s live transactions and set spending limits within the AtoB dashboard in just a few clicks. Plus, eliminate fuel fraud through the company’s telematics integration and custom card controls. Use AtoB for all vehicle expenses, too. Access exclusive discounts on vehicle repairs, maintenance, tires, vehicle washes and more.
AtoB works with all types of trucking company fuel management strategies, and can handle the needs of any business’s vehicle fleet.
Best for: Lowering fuel costs
Special features
- Discounts on non-fuel expenses
- No out-of-network stations
- Truckers can use the AtoB fuel card for any truck and vehicle-related business expenses, excluding fuel costs
- No additional hidden fees
Benefits
- Secure Card Unlock through the AtoB Driver App to ensure cards are only used by authorized drivers
- Optimal Station Selection to enforce drivers to fuel at the most affordable stations
- No hidden fees
- You can impose spending limits, operational hours, whitelist and blacklist merchants, and more
- No credit score is required to sign up
- Accessible through an app
Disadvantages: Weekly billing
Pricing: $3 per active card per month
WEX Fleet Fuel Cards
Known for its expansive national coverage, WEX offers one of the best fleet cards accepted at 95% of fuel stations in the U.S. Automatic accounting features, like fuel expense tracking and purchase alerts, optimize efficiency. With custom reports and multiple forms of account access, streamlining your operations is always a breeze with WEX. The company offers several different fleet card solutions, making it easy to get one that suits your business needs.
Best for: National network
Special features
- Robust reporting on fuel spending
- Mobile payments
Benefits
- Accepted at every major U.S. fuel station and more than 45,000 service locations
- Ease of payment
- Control of spending
- Great app for drivers
- Specialized cards for different fleet sizes
Disadvantages
- Not the best option for savings
- Unknown fees for certain cards
Pricing: No setup fees; fees for other services not shared publicly
Coast Fuel Card
The Coast Fuel Card is a convenient gas card for truckers that is accepted anywhere that takes Visa. You can use it for gas, restaurants, hotels and more. You’ll even get cash back on non-fuel purchases, as well as discounts on fuel. Coast offers an intuitive platform that allows you to track spending, set controls and manage your fleet cards.
Best for: Total rewards
Special features
- Discounts at select businesses
- Rewards on non-fuel purchases
- Easy controls and security settings for all fleet cards and users
- Spending reports
Benefits
- Centralized fleet spending on one account
- No personal guarantee
- Efficient customer service
- Purchase and expense tracking
Disadvantages: No published APR
Pricing: $4 per user each month
ExxonMobile Business Pro
An ExxonMobile Business Pro fleet card provides fleet owners greater visibility and control when it comes to fuel costs. With their Driver Dash app, paying at the pump is faster and more secure.
Best for: Fleets of up to 15 vehicles
Special features
- No APR
- Accepted at more than 95% of U.S. fueling stations
- Real-time excessive spending alerts
- 24/7 customer support
Benefits
- Earn points to redeem for fuel or convenience store purchases
- Set limits on card use by day, time, location, product, and more
- Real-time reports for managing vehicle-related expenses
- Exxon Synergy gasoline gives better gas mileage with lower emissions
Disadvantages
- $2 per card per month for non-ExxonMobile purchases
- Points expire after one year
- No points or discounts for purchases other than gas
- Cards can’t be used for maintenance, tires, or repairs
Pricing: No monthly fees for in-network purchases
6 things truckers should consider with fuel cards
Choosing the right fuel card for your company can be a tedious, confusing process. Here are some things to consider in your search for the best fuel cards for truckers:
Savings and limitations
Fuel cards will save truckers plenty of money, but some can be restrictive. For instance, some cards only pay rewards if they are used at company-branded gas stations.
Location
Many fuel cards are company branded, which means that their use is restricted to company-owned stations. If you’re located on the East Coast, make sure to choose a card provider that has sufficient terminals or stations in the area that will honor the card.
Fuel
Most fuel cards for truckers are for diesel or mixed-use. But, some companies have unleaded-only fleets. Make sure you understand which type of card they offer. You can also choose a pump-price or fixed-price card.
Hidden costs
Although the card has no monthly fee, there may be other fees involved. Some companies may charge fees for account setup, transactions, invoices, reports, late payments, underspending/overspending, or handling fees.
Taxes
Fuel cards can be a great tool for keeping track of fuel expenditures for tax purposes. The card program will generally provide a printed or downloadable annual or quarterly report to use for tax reports and refunds. This report also simplifies quarterly IFTA filing.
Company vs. personal fuel cards
Fuel cards are offered for companies rather than individuals because the rewards are based on monthly fuel use. The fuel card must be registered with a company. Most cards also have a minimum spend limit per month.
Enjoy lower costs and improved cash flow
Fuel cards assist businesses in controlling fuel expenses and providing a comprehensive view of fleet fuel usage. Select one of the best fleet fuel cards to manage your truck drivers’ fuel usage, prevent unauthorized spending and protect the company against fraud. Fuel cards offer clients discounts, cash back, and other incentives.
FAQ
The main benefit of fuel cards is that they present savings in the form of rewards. They also provide convenience and help companies to manage their fuel expenditures.
Each card may be different. The answer depends on the card’s annual percentage rate vs. the price per gallon and the rewards paid per gallon.
If the card is used to buy fuel for a business, it is not a taxable benefit. If a card is used for personal travel, the company is liable for the taxes charged.