The Chase Ink Business Preferred is the best entry-level business card for small business owners who spend regularly on travel, advertising, and communications. At $95 per year, it earns 3 points per dollar on up to $150,000 in combined annual spending across those categories, and its 100,000-point welcome bonus is worth roughly $2,000 in travel when redeemed through Chase’s transfer partners.
If you run a business and use any combination of Google Ads, Facebook Ads, internet service, a business cell phone plan, and occasional work travel, this card is where most of those expenses should be going.
Earning Rates
The Ink Business Preferred earns 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent annually in five combined categories:
- Travel (airfare, hotels, rental cars, taxis, trains)
- Shipping purchases
- Internet, cable, and phone services
- Advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines
All other purchases earn 1 point per dollar. After the $150,000 combined cap, the 3x categories drop to 1x as well.
The $150,000 cap sounds high, but it matters for businesses running significant ad spend. A company putting $10,000 per month in Google and Facebook ads, $120,000 per year, will hit the cap by fall. For most small businesses, the cap is theoretical and they will stay comfortably below it. Rates verified as of April 2026 from Chase.com.
How this compares to the other Ink cards:
| Card | Best categories | Cap | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ink Business Preferred | 3x travel, shipping, internet, phone, ads | $150K/year combined | $95 |
| Ink Business Cash | 5x office supply, internet, phone; 2x gas, dining | $25K/year per category | $0 |
| Ink Business Unlimited | 1.5x on everything | None | $0 |
One clarification that matters right now: as of March 27, 2026, the Ink Business Cash cannot transfer points to personal Chase accounts or to airline and hotel partners. The Ink Business Preferred is not affected by that change. It remains a full Ultimate Rewards card with direct access to 14 transfer partners at 1:1.
Welcome Bonus
The current public offer is 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $8,000 in the first three months of account opening. That is a $8,000 spend requirement, which is meaningful, plan around it if you have a large upcoming business purchase, quarterly ad spend, or travel booking that can push you over the threshold naturally.
At a conservative 1.5 cents per point, a floor value using Chase’s travel portal, 100,000 points is worth $1,500 toward travel. At 2 cents per point through partner transfers (the typical sweet spot with Hyatt or United), the same bonus is worth $2,000. The bonus itself more than covers the $95 annual fee for several years in one shot.
Built-In Protections
The Ink Business Preferred’s protections are where the card earns its $95 fee beyond the bonus and categories.
Primary rental car CDW: When you rent a car for business purposes and pay with the Ink Business Preferred, you get primary collision damage waiver coverage, up to $60,000 for vehicles with an MSRP of $125,000 or less. Primary means the card coverage pays first, before your personal auto insurance. You do not need to file with your personal insurer, which protects your premium. Decline the rental company’s collision coverage and charge the entire rental to the card to activate it.
This is not universal across Chase cards. The Ink Business Cash and Ink Business Unlimited offer only secondary rental CDW, they pay after your personal insurance has weighed in. For business travelers who rent frequently, the Preferred’s primary coverage is a material advantage.
Cell phone protection: Pay your monthly cell phone bill with the Ink Business Preferred and you activate up to $1,000 per claim in coverage against theft or damage for phones listed on that bill. The limit is three claims per 12-month period with a $100 deductible per claim. For a business owner paying a multi-line cell plan for employees, this extends to phones on that plan.
Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: If a covered trip is canceled or cut short due to illness, severe weather, or other covered reasons, you can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per covered traveler, up to $10,000 per trip, for non-refundable pre-paid travel expenses including airfare, hotels, and tours.
Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partners
The Ink Business Preferred earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which are the most flexible points currency in small business cards. The 14 transfer partners as of 2026 include:
Airlines (all 1:1): United MileagePlus, Southwest Rapid Rewards, British Airways Avios, Iberia Avios, Aer Lingus Avios, Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Singapore KrisFlyer, Air Canada Aeroplan, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, Emirates Skywards, Korean Air SKYPASS, Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
Hotels (all 1:1): World of Hyatt, IHG One Rewards
The 1:1 Hyatt transfer is the most consistently high-value option in the program. Park Hyatt properties that cost $500-$700 per night in cash often redeem for 20,000-30,000 World of Hyatt points, a range where UR transfers pencil out at 2+ cents per point.
UR points from the Ink Business Preferred can also be combined with points earned on personal Chase cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, allowing business spending to flow into the same pool as personal travel spending. Verify current terms with Chase before assuming the specific account-pooling mechanics are unchanged.
Who the Ink Business Preferred Is For
The card fits well if at least two of the following are true for your business:
- You spend on digital advertising (Google, Meta, LinkedIn), the 3x rate on search and social ads is one of the only ways to earn meaningful rewards on ad spend without a co-branded agency card
- You have regular internet, cable, or business phone expenses
- You travel for business, even a few times per year, hotels, flights, and taxis all earn 3x
- You ship product, supplies, or samples
The welcome bonus alone justifies the $95 annual fee for the first several years if you can meet the spend requirement. After the bonus is earned, the 3x category structure needs to deliver at least $190 in value annually (100,000 points divided by the effective years the bonus covers) to break even, which requires only about $6,300 in combined 3x category spending per year.
Who It Is Not For
The Ink Business Preferred is not the right card if your business spending is heavily concentrated in restaurants and dining. The card earns no elevated rate at restaurants, that category belongs to the Ink Business Cash (2x up to $25,000 per year). A restaurant owner or a business that regularly entertains clients over meals will find the Ink Cash more useful for day-to-day food spending.
It also does not work as a default catch-all card. The 1x base rate on non-category spend is below what a dedicated flat-rate card offers. Business owners with minimal spending in the 3x categories and mixed spending across many merchant types may do better with the Ink Business Unlimited (1.5x everywhere) or a flat-rate business card for non-category expenses.
The Chase 5/24 rule applies to this card: if you have opened five or more personal credit cards in the past 24 months across any issuer, Chase will typically decline the application. Business cards from Chase do not count toward your personal 5/24 count, but you must be under the threshold to be approved for a new Chase card.
Bottom Line
The Chase Ink Business Preferred earns more on the categories small businesses actually use than any other $95 business card on the market. The 100,000-point welcome bonus, worth $1,500 to $2,000 in travel, makes the first year straightforward math. After the bonus, the 3x rates on travel, shipping, internet, phone, and advertising carry the card on an ongoing basis for businesses with regular spend in those categories.
Apply directly at creditcards.chase.com. Confirm the current welcome bonus terms before applying, as offers can change.
FAQ
Q: Can I use Ink Business Preferred points on personal travel?
A: Yes. UR points earned on the Ink Business Preferred can be transferred to travel partners and used for personal travel. You can also combine them with points in a personal Chase account (Sapphire Preferred or Reserve), verify current account-pooling terms with Chase, as policies can change.
Q: Does the $150,000 cap reset each year?
A: Yes. The $150,000 combined 3x category limit resets on your account anniversary date each year. After that point, new spending in those categories earns at 3x again.
Q: Is the Ink Business Preferred considered a personal or business card under Chase 5/24?
A: The Ink Business Preferred is a business card. It does not appear on your personal credit report and does not count toward your 5/24 tally. However, you must currently be under 5/24 to be approved for it.
Q: How does the primary CDW compare to other Chase business cards?
A: The Ink Business Preferred offers primary CDW for business rentals. The Ink Business Cash and Ink Business Unlimited offer only secondary CDW. If you rent cars for business regularly, the Preferred’s primary coverage is the more useful option, it pays before your personal auto insurance rather than after.
Q: What is the cell phone protection deductible?
A: $100 per claim, with a maximum of three claims in a 12-month period. Maximum payout is $1,000 per claim. Coverage applies to phones listed on a monthly cell phone bill you pay with the card.