TCS Fuel Card Review 2026

Pros Explained

Industry-Leading Per-Gallon Savings -- The 47 to 57 cent average discount range that TCS publishes is not a ceiling; it is the middle of the pack. Some locations hit 70 cents. Others have reached 86 cents. For carriers willing to plan fuel stops around the TCS network, the savings potential exceeds what any credit-based fuel card in the market can deliver. The reason is simple: TCS has negotiated bulk discount agreements with fuel retailers, and because there are no transaction fees eating into those discounts, the full savings pass through to the cardholder. A credit card company that charges you $2.00 every time you swipe has to build that cost into the discount structure somewhere. TCS does not have that problem.

Zero Fees That Actually Means Zero -- "No fees" is a claim that gets thrown around loosely in the fuel card industry. When you read the fine print, most of those cards have monthly maintenance charges, per-transaction fees, or both. TCS is one of the few cards where zero actually means zero at in-network locations. The only fee on the entire schedule is the $3.00 out-of-network charge, and you can avoid that entirely by planning your stops. For an owner-operator who fuels 80 times a year, avoiding a $2.00 per-transaction fee saves $160 annually. Avoiding a $10 monthly fee saves another $120. Those are real dollars that stay in your pocket instead of going to the card company.

Accessible to Credit-Challenged Operators -- The prepaid model means TCS does not run your credit. No credit check. No personal guarantee. No minimum credit score requirement. If you have the cash to fund the card, you get the card. For new authorities still building business credit, for operators who have been through a bankruptcy, or for carriers who simply refuse to put their personal credit on the line for business expenses, TCS opens a door that most fuel cards keep locked. The requirement is cash on hand, not a credit history. That accessibility matters in an industry where a significant percentage of owner-operators have credit profiles that disqualify them from traditional fuel card programs.

Customer Service That Actually Answers -- The 98% of calls answered within 30 seconds statistic is unusual in any industry, and especially unusual for a financial services product.[^1] The 81 NPS score backs it up. TCS customers are not just satisfied; they actively recommend the card. Customer reviews on Trustpilot and BBB consistently mention the quality of support. "Best fuel card I've ever used. Easy to use and customer service is great." "TCS customer service is fantastic." These are not cherry-picked outliers. They are the pattern. For carriers who have dealt with fuel card companies where getting a live human requires 20 minutes on hold, TCS operates differently.

Cons Explained

Prepaid Funding Requires Discipline -- You cannot fuel on credit with TCS. The card has to be funded before you pump. For carriers with consistent cash flow and the discipline to keep their balance loaded, this is not a problem. For operators who run tight and fund their fuel from the load they just delivered, the prepaid model adds a step. Zelle funding is instant, but you have to remember to do it. ACH takes a business day, which means you need to plan ahead. Some users have reported that Zelle bank verification can be slow when first setting up the account. Once the connection is established, funding is seamless. But that initial setup can cause friction if you are trying to get the card running quickly. This is a structural limitation of the prepaid model. You trade the convenience of credit for the savings of zero fees.

Thin Western US Coverage -- TCS network coverage is strong in the Midwest, Great Plains, Southeast, and Northeast. Western coverage is another story. Montana, Idaho, and Washington have noticeably fewer in-network locations. If your routes run primarily through the Pacific Northwest or Mountain West, you will either fuel out-of-network more often (and pay the $3.00 fee each time) or plan longer stretches between fuel stops to hit in-network locations. For carriers who occasionally run West but primarily operate East of the Rockies, this is a minor issue. For carriers whose primary lanes are Seattle to Boise or Portland to Billings, the network gap is a real limitation.

Location-Dependent Discounts -- The 57-cent average is exactly that: an average. Some stops offer 70 to 86 cents. Others offer 30 to 40 cents. If you are fueling at whatever stop is convenient rather than seeking out the highest-discount locations, your actual savings will come in below the published averages. The TCS app helps here by showing discount prices along your route, but using the card effectively requires some planning. Carriers who research their fuel stops and optimize around the network will see the full savings potential. Carriers who fuel wherever they happen to be will get less value from the card.

Customer Service

Customer service in the fuel card business is not a soft feature. When you are sitting at a pump at 9 PM with a card that will not work and 500 miles to go, the quality of the voice on the other end of the phone determines whether you get home on time or spend the night in a parking lot.

TCS runs a small team of 11 to 50 employees, but that team delivers support metrics that larger companies struggle to match. 98% of calls answered within 30 seconds. 81 NPS score. 95% customer satisfaction in 2025. Those numbers reflect a company that has prioritized service quality over headcount growth.

The BBB rating of 5 out of 5 tells part of the story.[^7] TransConnect Partner Solutions, Inc. (the company behind TCS Fuel Card) maintains a clean complaint record and responds promptly when issues arise. The Trustpilot profile, while smaller at 28 reviews, holds a 4.5 out of 5.[^8] What stands out in the reviews is the specificity of the praise. Customers do not just say the service is good. They describe specific interactions, name specific outcomes, and express genuine surprise at how different TCS support is from what they experienced with previous fuel card companies.

"My husband saved over $5,000 in less than a year. We haven't paid a single fee." That review captures the TCS value proposition in two sentences. The savings are real. The fees are genuinely absent. And when customers need help, they get it quickly.

The mobile app handles most routine needs without requiring a phone call. Balance checks, transaction history, fuel finder, and fund transfers all work through the app. But when you do need to talk to someone, a human answers. That baseline level of accessibility is not universal in this industry, and TCS delivers it consistently.

Who Should Use This

Cost-Conscious Owner-Operators -- If you watch every dollar and hate paying fees for financial services, TCS is built for you. The zero-fee structure means your discount is your actual savings. No transaction charges eating into your per-gallon discount. No monthly fees draining your account when volume is low. The card costs nothing to hold and nothing to use at 2,300-plus locations.

Midwest and Eastern Route Operators -- TCS network coverage is excellent in Texas, the Great Plains, the Midwest, the Southeast, and the Northeast. If those regions make up 80% or more of your miles, you will find in-network stops without going out of your way. The app's fuel finder helps identify the cheapest TCS locations along your route, making it easy to optimize your stops.

New Authorities and Credit-Challenged Carriers -- The prepaid model means no credit check. If you just got your authority and have no business credit history, TCS accepts you. If you have been through a bankruptcy or have credit issues that disqualify you from standard fuel cards, TCS accepts you. The requirement is cash to fund the card, not a credit score. That accessibility is not common in the fuel card market.

Small Fleets Running 1 to 20 Trucks -- TCS scales without complexity. You do not need a fleet management system integration or a dedicated account manager to get value from the card. Fund it, use it, save money. The controls and reporting features handle what small fleet owners actually need without the overhead of enterprise-level platforms.

Operators Who Value Customer Service -- If you have been burned by fuel card companies that never answer the phone, TCS operates differently. 98% of calls answered in 30 seconds. Small team, responsive support, clean BBB record. The company is built around actually helping cardholders.

Who Should Look Elsewhere -- Carriers who need credit terms to fund their fuel purchases should look at credit-based fuel cards like RTS Financial or Comdata. If you run primarily in the Pacific Northwest or Mountain West, TCS's thin coverage in those regions makes other networks more practical. Large fleets with dedicated fuel management departments may want the advanced telematics integrations and enterprise features that larger fuel card providers offer. And if you are not willing to plan your fuel stops around a network, you will leave savings on the table that a universal card would capture.

Final Verdict

TCS Fuel Card earns the top spot in our 2026 fuel card rankings because it delivers more actual savings to more types of carriers than any competitor we reviewed. The zero-fee structure is not a marketing gimmick. You pay nothing at 2,300-plus in-network locations. The discounts are real and documented, averaging 47 to 57 cents per gallon with some locations hitting 86 cents. The prepaid model opens the door to carriers who get rejected by credit-based programs. And the customer service numbers reflect a company that answers the phone and solves problems.

The limitations are real but manageable. You need cash to fund the card before fueling. Western coverage is thinner than Midwest and Eastern coverage. Discounts vary by location, so maximizing savings requires some planning. None of those are dealbreakers for the right carrier.

For an owner-operator burning 18,000 gallons a year, a 50-cent average discount puts $9,000 back in your pocket. For a five-truck fleet at 90,000 combined gallons, that number climbs to $45,000. Those are the kind of savings that move the needle on an operation's profitability. And unlike fuel card savings that get partially clawed back through transaction fees and monthly charges, TCS savings are actual savings.

If you run Midwest or Eastern routes, have cash flow to fund a prepaid card, and want maximum fuel savings without paying for the privilege, TCS Fuel Card is where you should start. The 4.5 score reflects a card that does exactly what it promises and backs it up with customer service that actually functions. In the fuel card market, that combination is rare enough to be worth calling out.

The score is 4.5 out of 5, and it is earned through math, not marketing.