American Express® Backing Small Businesses

Businesses must meet the following criteria to apply:

• The applicant must be an owner of the business.
• The applicant must be at least 18 years of age or older.
• The business must be in a ​“bricks-and-mortar” location and operate in an older or historic main street, downtown, or commercial district in the United States. The business must have occupied their current bricks-and-mortar location since January 1, 2025. (Home-based businesses, even those located in historic neighborhoods, are not eligible. Brick and mortar businesses located outside of historic downtowns and commercial corridors, including, but not limited to, office parks and shopping malls are also not eligible.)
• The business must be an independent business and not part of a franchise or a nonprofit.
• The business must employ 20 or fewer full-time employees.
• The business must have been in operation on or before January 1, 2024.
• The business must be a business entity in good standing in the state in which it was formed and the state in which it does business.
• The business must have an active business license, if required by state or local government. (Applicants may be asked to provide documentation if selected.) · The business must not have received a Backing Small Businesses grant in any previous cycle, nor received a grant supported by American Express in 2025 (including the Backing Small Business Disaster Recovery Grant Program)

We are seeking businesses that are in the ​“heart” of their communities, whatever size or form that may be. We recognize that all communities are different, and this phrase is intentionally flexible and adaptable to many different contexts. We define this as a contiguous commercial district with businesses and mixed-use buildings along a commercial corridor. In some communities, this may look like wall-to-wall retail and commercial accessible to pedestrians via a sidewalk or path. In other places, this may look like a plaza with small businesses around a central parking lot. In small rural communities, there may only be one or two stores on either side of an intersection. Businesses should primarily neighbor other commercial businesses (not residential homes) and community members might visit multiple businesses nearby when running errands, going to appointments, or visiting with family and friends.

Eligible grant expenses include but are not limited to:

• Accessibility Upgrades (Examples: ramp, menu translation, accessible website redesign for visually impaired people, etc.)
• Community Events and Programs (Examples: open mic night, public educational/​training workshops, hosting community fund raisers, partnerships with other small businesses)
• Equipment and Inventory (Examples: point of sale device/​software, purchasing of items for sale, display cases, kitchen equipment)
• Marketing (Examples: investing in social media campaign, building a website, etc.)
• Operational Strategy (Examples: branding package, accounting software, business coaching, and other types of support that would increase the viability of your business)
• Physical Improvements (Examples: signage, awnings, painting facade, new shelving, new lighting, etc.)
• Sustainability Upgrades (Examples: solar panels, rain garden adjacent to business, investing in reusable/​compostable/​recyclable packaging alternatives, etc.)
• Technology Upgrades (Examples: building an online storefront, online ordering system, or other e‑commerce platform)

*Note that utilities must not be more than $2000 or 20% of the requested funds.
*Note that payroll, debt/​loan repayment, and payment of invoices are NOT eligible uses of grant funds.

Applications will be reviewed based on:

• Feasibility
  • Can the proposed project be completed with $10,000 grant by 11:59pm CT on December 31, 2025?

• Need
  • What are the business’s net sales?
  • What are some of the systemic challenges the business is facing? Applicants will be asked to explain the context of the business. For example: is the business experiencing skilled staffing shortages or supply chain issues?

• Impact
  • How much will the grant support the business to leverage sales, grow their customer base, or sustain the business in some way?

• Community Reach
  • How involved is the applicant’s small business in their community?
  • How much would the business serve a community-specific need through a grant?

The grant application is currently closed. To receive emails for other small business resources and opportunities, please subscribe to the ​“Small Business Resources, Information, and Updates” list here.