Fuelman Fleet Card Review: A Closer Look at its Features, Costs and Rebates

Fuelman is a US-based fleet card provider, established in 1985 in Norcross, Georgia. It offers four fuel cards in total as well as a sustainability program designed to help fleet managers cut down on their costs, improve their security standards and earn discounts.

Fuelman boasts a relatively large network coverage compared to other fuel card companies, with more than 40,000 partnered stations nationwide. But, while it does offer some fuel cards for smaller fleets, there are cheaper options with lower or zero monthly fees.

But is Fuelman the best fuel card for your business? Stay tuned to find out about the company’s different fuel card programs, their benefits, and which competitors might better suit the needs of your fleet.

What Fuel Card Programs Does Fuelman Offer?

Fuelman has three fleet fuel card programs for businesses, the Fuelman Mixed Fleet Card, the Fuelman Diesel Fleet Card, and the Fuelman Mastercard.

The Mixed Fleet Card and Diesel Fuel Card both have three payment plans, designed to accommodate small, medium, and large businesses. There are a few small differences in terms of what you get with each plan (dashboards and reporting features aren’t available on the Basic plans, for example – but we’ll discuss this in more detail in the next section of this article.

Conversely, the Fuelman Mastercard only has one payment plan, keeping things simple. This card can be used anywhere Mastercards are accepted.

In addition to its business fuel card programs, Fuelman also has a fuel card for public sector fleets, and a Clean Advantage fuel card, which is a sustainability program designed to help fleets decarbonize. Here’s a quick overview of each card program:

Fuelman Mixed Fleet and Diesel Fuel Cards

Fuelman’s two business fleet fuel cards are the Fuelman Mixed Fleet Fuel Card and Diesel Fleet Card.

Both have similar functions and benefits. The main difference between the two is that the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card can be used to purchase both gasoline and diesel, while the Diesel Fleet Card can only be used for diesel.

These cards can be used at any gas or maintenance station that’s part of the Fuelman Discount Network. This includes over 40,000 spots across all 50 states.

Both cards have three payment plans, Basic, Pro, and Enterprise. The three plans, on both cards, have more or less the same benefits and reporting tools, but here are the key differences:

Reporting and spending tools

With the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card and Diesel Fleet Card, you’ll be able to track spending by driver and by vehicle, and generate fuel and tax reports. With a Pro or Enterprise account, you’ll get the added benefit of seeing data in chart form.

An Enterprise account also allows for advanced spending tracking. You can view transactions by gallons bought, spend amount, location bought at or by product bought. This level of detail isn’t provided by many other competitors, which means that Fuelman is a great option if you’re looking for genuinely useful insights that can be turned into actions designed to cut down costs.

The Pro and Enterprise also include access to Fuelman’s maintenance management program. Managers can schedule and approve maintenance services on the Fuelman app, and drivers can pay for maintenance services using their fuel cards. Maintenance history is tracked on the same dashboard that tracks fuel spending.

Rebates and rewards

With the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card, you’ll get an 8¢ rebate per gallon bought, no matter what payment plan you’re on. With the Diesel Fleet Card, the rebate increases to 12¢ per gallon.

However, this rebate only applies to fuel bought at Fuelman gas stations and not stations outside of the network.

You’ll also be able to earn points with each fuel purchase. These can be used to get discounts on travel or merchandise, or for gift cards at partner restaurants and retail stores. The Driven for Fuelman website has more details about what products and service points can be used for.

Security and fraud prevention

Security features on both the Mixed and Diesel cards include:

• Customized spending controls, set by individual fuel card (hours  of use and spending limits)
• Email alerts when these limits are breached, or if other suspicious activity is detected
• Turn cards off if they are lost, stolen, or you suspect fraud

On a Pro or Enterprise plan, you’ll also get fraud cover of up to $10,000 per card, or $25,000 per account, per year. However, this is only applicable to accounts of 10 or more cards.

Fuelman Mastercard

The Fuelman Mastercard offers similar functions and benefits as the Pro plans on the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card and Diesel Fleet Card.

Its main benefit is that it has extended network coverage, since it can be used at any station that accepts Mastercard, and not just ones within the Fuelman Discount Network.

Here’s a look at what you get with the card:

Reporting and spending tools

With the Fuelman Mastercard, you’ll get access to the same reporting tools as the Pro plans of the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card and Diesel Fleet Card. This includes:

• Fuel and tax reports
• Fuel spend tracking by driver and vehicle
• Customized data charts

What you’ll miss out on is Fuelman’s maintenance program, which isn’t available on the Mastercard.

Rebates and rewards

Fuel rebates are a little lower with the Fuelman Mastercard than they are with the Mixed or Diesel cards. You’ll only get a 3¢ rebate for every gallon you buy, as opposed to 8¢ or 12¢.

You’ll still access the points program, earning 1 point per gallon. Instead of being redeemed for products or travel (as is the case with points earned with the Mixed or Diesel card), points can be exchanged for a prepaid Mastercard, and each point is worth 1¢ and expires after one year.

Points are only applicable to gallons purchases within the Fuelman network. So, if your fleet buys 6,000 gallons a year within the Fuelman network, you’ll be able to redeem your points for a $60 prepaid Mastercard.

Security and fraud prevention

Security and fraud prevention tools are the same on the Fuelman Mastercard as they are on the Pro and Enterprise plans of the Mixed Fleet Fuel Card and Diesel Fleet Card.

Additional Fuelman Fleet Cards

The last two fuel cards offered by Fuelman are the Public Sector Card and the Clean Advantage Card. These cards are a little atypical, so we’ll treat them as separate from Fuelman’s main fuel card offering.

The Public Sector Card

This card is only available to tax-exempt fleets, such as government agencies (for example, local police forces or USPS) or charities.

Fuelman doesn’t specify how much this card costs. Since it’s mainly designed for government agencies, there’s a chance it costs less than Fuelman’s private sector cards. However, that’s an assumption, not a guarantee, and you’ll need to contact Fuelman for a proper quote.

The Private Sector Card comes with similar spending, reporting, and anti-fraud tools as the Basic plan of the Mixed and Diesel cards. Namely:

• Fuel and tax reporting
• Fuel spend tracking by driver and vehicle
• Customized spending limits
• Alerts for fraudulent activity
• The ability to turn the card off remotely

Rebates and discounts

The Public Sector Card doesn’t let you earn points per gallon unlike the private sector cards do, but it does have rebates for fuel purchased within the Fuelman Discount Network. Here’s what you could save:

Clean Advantage Card

The Clean Advantage Card isn’t really a gas card, it’s a sustainability program.

While Fuelman doesn’t indicate if the card is subject to account fees, with it you’ll pay 5¢ per gallon to have your fleet’s emissions calculated and offset through a certified carbon offsetting program.

This might not seem worth it to some fleet owner-operators, but in 2024, a lot of businesses are concerned with promoting sustainable companies and practices throughout their supply chain, so this card could prove decisive when it comes to securing contracts.

If you’re interested in going green, the most straightforward to do it is to invest in electric vehicles (EVs) for your fleet. And, there are fleet cards that can be used with EVs, such as the Edenred Essentials card, which is on our list of the best fuel cards for truckers.

Fuelman Fleet Fuel Cards: Pros and Cons

Fuelman offers some good features and gives you access to a decently large network of stations. However, its cards are on the expensive side, especially for small fleets.

Fuelman cards advantages

Here are Fuelman cards’ main advantages:

✔ Good fuel rebates

Depending on the card you choose, you can earn rebates of 3-12 cents per gallon, with 8¢ being the private sector standard. That’s a better system than top competitors like WEX.

✔ Suits a wide variety of fleets

Fuelman has fuel card programs that suit a wide variety of fleet sizes, vehicle types, and operation zones. A lot of fuel card distributors target certain types of fleets, or specific regions (like ARCO), but Fuelman casts a wide net, so it’s likely one of its card programs suits you.

✔ Good fraud protection

All Fuelman cards come with spending limits that detect unusual activity and help protect against fraud. Plus, if you’re on the Pro or Enterprise plans, you’ll be covered up to $25,000 a year, which is an impressive amount. It means that if you are a victim of fraud, Fuelman will compensate you.

✔ Impressive reporting tools

Fuelman’s Enterprise plan for Mixed Fleets and Diesel Fleets comes with extensive reporting tools, that allow you to filter transactions by fuel type and even by the location where fuel is bought. This allows you to spot drivers that go to more expensive stations, and steer them to cheaper alternatives.

Fuelman card disadvantages

Here are Fuelman cards’ main disadvantages:

✖ Can be expensive, especially for small fleets

Fuelman charges by account rather than by card, which works out well for large fleers, but can mean small fleets pay more. The $39 per month Basic plan works out to around $4 per card for nine cards. You can find fleet fuel card for $2 at competitors like ExxonMobil, or with zero fees at Shell, both of which still offer decent rebates.

✖ Fuelman network has its limits

Although the Fuelman network is 40,000 stations strong and much larger than Shell’s, Chevron and Texaco’s and ARCO’s, that’s still less than top competitor WEX, which has 100,000+ stations nationwide.

Purchases at certain stations in the Fuelman Discounts Network are also subject to a $3 “Extended Network” fee, which can eat into your savings. The Fuelman Mastercard is a workaround to this since it can be used anywhere that accepts Mastercard, but rebates will be lower than with the Mixed or Diesel card.

✖ No cards that can support electric vehicles:

Although Fuelman does have a sustainability program, Clean Advantage, none of its cards can track spending for electric vehicle (EV) charging. This means it’s a poor option if your fleet is fully or partially electric. Most fuel card providers haven’t yet extended their services to EV fleets, but some big players like Edenred Essentials have.

What is the Fuelman Network?

The Fuelman network (also known as the Fuelman Discount Network) refers to the web of 40,000 plus maintenance sites and gas stations where the Fuelman fleet cards can be accepted.

The Fuelman network extends to all 50 states (yes, Hawaii included) however, there are a few gaps in distribution in states such as Massachusetts, Montana, New Mexico, and Minnesota. But in general, if your company operates across state lines, then a Fuelman fleet card is an excellent option.

At these sites, Fuelman’s range of fleet cards can be used to fill up on gas or diesel, access repair or maintenance services, and receive discounts.

Some other fleet card providers boast greater network coverage. WEX cards, for instance, are accepted at around 95% of all gas stations in the US plus 45,000 service locations, while Comdata’s fleet card also boasts an impressive level of coverage.

Find your closest Fuelman gas station

To discover what Fuelman fleet card services you could benefit from on your next journey, visit Fuelman’s Site Locator. You can filter stations by state, fuel type, driver comforts, and facilities – and it works as a useful trip-planning tool, too.

Is Fuelman Right for My Fleet?

Fuelman has a range of cards designed to suit a variety of fleets, however, its cards are best suited to medium or large fleets over small ones. That isn’t to say Fuelman card are a bad option for small fleets, but you can find cheaper options that don’t compromise on rebates or discounts.

The Mixed Fleet Fuel Card is a great option for fleets that have both gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles, and it can support fleets that travel both locally and nationwide, thanks to Fuelman’s relatively large network.

The Diesel Fleet Card is a good option for fleets that have exclusively diesel-powered vehicles, such as large trucks or vans. It’s not the best fuel card for truckers, since there are some holes in the Fuelman network, but it’s up there.

The Fuelman Mastercard is a good option for fleets that need the flexibility of using their card outside of the Fuelman network. We’d recommend it to fleets that buy at least 5,000 gallons of fuel per month, since they’ll be able to make the most of Fuelman’s points for cents system.

Lastly, if you’re a government agency looking for a fleet card, Fuelman’s Public Sector card isn’t a bad option. The rebates aren’t as good on this card as they are on Fuelman’s private sector cards, but it’s quite a unique offering, specifically designed to meet public sector fleet needs.

Fuelman Alternatives

If you’ve decided Fuelman’s fleet cards aren’t right for you, there’s a whole world of other providers making waves across the asphalt of the US, and we’ve reviewed quite a few of them.

We’ve highlighted their best quality in the table below:

Our Methodology: How Did We Find the Best Fuel Cards?

At Expert Market, we spend time working on a range of product research initiatives to ensure we’re conveying accurate and useful information to our readers in our reviews, comparisons and guides.

Recently, we completed a research project focused on the US fleet fuel card industry, which involved grading a range of top providers with an evaluative framework designed in-house, which includes over 60 different parameters. Broadly, we focused on the following areas of investigation:

• How convenient is it to use?
• How helpful is it for managing fuel expenses?
• What can it do to ensure your company’s funds are secure?
• What extra benefits do you receive from using it?

We’ve also broken down each card by fee structure, fuel type, network coverage and more to offer you the easiest choice.