Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card review: The “preferred” Chase business card?

Small businesses with upcoming high-dollar purchases are a prime market for the Ink Business Preferred Credit Card, since it offers a 100,000-point welcome bonus, earned after spending $8,000 on qualifying purchases within three months.

According to Bankrate’s latest point valuations, the welcome offer can be worth up to $2,000 if you maximize your redemption options. If you redeem your points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, your points are worth $1,250 in travel purchases, but other redemption options can be more lucrative. For fresh business startups looking for a solid business credit card, its welcome bonus provides rewards that can go right back into your bottom line. It also makes the $95 annual fee and lack of an intro APR offer a little easier to justify.

Outside of its valuable sign-up bonus, the Ink Business Preferred delivers plenty of value as a top-tier business Chase credit card for frequent travelers, thanks to its bonus redemption value toward travel and comprehensive travel protections. Its rewards potential may not be the most appealing for lower-expense businesses that can’t spend sufficiently in its bonus categories, but it can certainly swing above its weight class for people who can take advantage of its category rates.

While healthy rewards rates are the most obvious Ink Business Preferred benefits, you’ll also be able to secure your business travel and purchases with a great suite of travel and purchase protections. 

Although these travel insurances and shopping protections are some of the best you’ll find on a card of this caliber, there aren’t any yearly bonuses or other features with a monetary value that will help you offset your annual fee each year. 

Welcome Offer: High reward with high risk 

Cardholders who can manage to spend $8,000 on qualifying purchases within the first three months of opening the card can earn a whopping 100,000-point sign-up bonus. According to Bankrate’s latest point valuations, the welcome offer can be worth up to $2,000 if you maximize your redemption options. If you redeem your points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, your points are worth $1,250 in travel purchases, but other redemption options can be more lucrative.

That’s a staggering value, especially since the spending requirement has been cut almost in half from the previous $15,000 requirement. Still, it can be relatively steep for such a short time frame. It may not be attainable if your business doesn’t have a big budget, and it may not be worth it if you redeem it for cash back. Other cash back business cards with no annual fee offer bonuses valued at around $750 for half the spending requirement. 

Fortunately, qualifying for the sign-up bonus is a bit more manageable if you use the Business Preferred as your primary card, factor in employee card spending and use it for any startup costs you have. 

Benefits: Well-rounded protections, home and abroad 

Whether your business calls for you to purchase supplies or hop on a flight, there are several travel and purchase coverage benefits outside standards like 24/7 roadside dispatch, such as:  

• Trip cancellation/trip interruption insurance: Pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares and hotels, can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per person and $10,000 per trip in the event of covered situations like sickness and weather.  
• Auto rental collision damage waiver: By paying for your auto rental vehicle with your card and declining the agency’s insurance, you’ll get primary coverage up to the cost of the vehicle in the event of theft or collision.  
• Extended warranty protection: Eligible purchases with U.S. manufacturer’s warranties of three years or less will be protected for an additional year.  
• Purchase protection: New purchases are covered for 120 days against damage or theft for up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account.  
• Cell phone protection: Cardholders or the employees listed on the monthly cell phone bill paid by your card can enjoy up to $1,000 per claim (three claims per 12 months with a $100 deductible) in cell phone protection against covered theft or damage. The Business Preferred provides one of the best cellphone protection plans you’ll find on a credit card, thanks to its high $3,000 coverage cap per year. 

Rewards: A valuable redemption options

Chase has a 1:1 point transfer system for the Ultimate Rewards points it earns, meaning 1 point equals 1 transfer partner mile or 1 cent of cash back. For business travelers, this can translate into great savings. It’s helpful if you may need to redeem for cash back on occasion since few issuers provide a 1:1 value on a wide variety of redemption options. You’ll earn 3X points on up to $150,000 worth of combined purchases within each account anniversary year on specific travel business expenses (then 1X points). The categories eligible for 3X points are:  

• The categories eligible for 3X points are: 
• Travel 
• Shipping purchases 
• Internet, cable and phone services 
• Advertising purchases made with social media and search engines 

The card’s point values will vary based on how you redeem them. Redemption options with a 1:1 value, such as cash back, make your points worth 1 cent each. They’re only worth 0.8 cents apiece toward Amazon.com purchases using the “Shop with Points” option, but there are two major ways to increase your point value beyond 1 cent. It might take a little bit more effort, but Bankrate’s points valuation estimates that finding the right transfer partner for your business will make your points worth 2 cents each — putting it in the upper echelon of reward values. The easiest way is to redeem points for travel through the Ultimate Rewards portal, making them worth 1.25 cents. 

The Ink Business Preferred is great for small businesses with high budgets and predictable expenses. It also has great redemption for travel, especially when you factor in Chase Ultimate Rewards. Still, there are drawbacks like the annual fee and the high spend requirement for the welcome offer. This could make this card less ideal for business owners who don’t travel often or don’t want an annual fee. 

Perks: Not very business-focused.  

When looking at the bigger picture, the Ink Business Preferred’s value is rooted in the card’s point value. Beyond this, a lot of the features can feel pretty standard or travel focused. 

The one perk that focuses only on business outside of the rewards rate is the ability to get free employee cards. Businesses can issue cards to individual cardholders who will be automatically linked to the main card limit. These cards can also have individualized limits, which help you manage your business spending.  

While great for a chance to build up rewards quicker, business owners who don’t see themselves traveling often may not see enough benefits to keep the card when factoring the annual fee.

Annual Fee: Higher than sibling cards 

While the biggest fee is the card's $95 annual fee, there are also other fees to be aware of, such as the late or returned payment fee of $39. Luckily, you won’t have to worry about incurring extra charges while you travel. However, since the Ink Business Preferred doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees. 

There isn’t a zero-interest offer for purchases or balance transfers, so you’ll take on interest for any balance you have for the billing period. This increases the likelihood of a revolving credit balance on your card if you can’t pay it off relatively quickly. Transferring your balance to this Chase card will pose a relatively high $5 or 5 percent fee for each transfer (whichever is greater). 

The Ink Business Preferred could be a prime travel card for business owners who take advantage of its bonus categories’ high annual spending limit. However, for those who want more versatility in their rewards, a flat-rate card or rewards could be good to pair with the Business Preferred.