For years, the *chase ink preferred* has been a go-to cards for business owners who want strong rewards without a sky-high annual fee. It’s simple, powerful, and easy to justify keeping in your wallet long term.
That was the case, at least, until Chase rolled out something entirely different last summer: The *Sapphire Reserve for Business*. This premium new card borrows the Sapphire Reserve name – and its luxury perks like lounge access and a boatload of annual credits – while layering on business-focused earning rates, statement credits, and benefits designed for companies that spend big.
Sure you can't open a business credit card? You might be surprised…
The contrast starts right away with the welcome offers. You can earn 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points with the Ink Preferred or an eye-popping 200,000 points with the Sapphire Reserve for Business. But there’s a catch: the spending requirements to earn those bonuses are wildly different:
- With the Ink Preferred, you need to spend $8,000 in the first three months to earn the 100,000-point bonus
- Meanwhile, the Sapphire Reserve for Business requires a whopping $30,000 in spending during the first three months to earn that 200,000-point stash of points
And then there are the annual fees. The Ink Preferred costs just annual_fees per year. The Sapphire Reserve for Business? annual_fees per year – yes, $700 more.
On paper, both cards earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points and offer strong travel protections. But in practice, they’re built for very different types of business owners. One prioritizes simplicity and value, while the other is all about maximizing point-earning and perks – even if it means jumping through a few hoops.
So which card actually makes sense for your business?
A Quick Overview of Both Cards
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
- bonus_miles_full
- Earn 3x Chase Ultimate Rewards for every dollar spent on travel, shipping, phone, internet, cable, and online advertising with social media sites and search engines, up to $150,000 in combined purchases per year.
- Earn 1x Chase Ultimate Rewards for every dollar spent on all other purchases.
- Travel Protections: With the card's trip cancellation and interruption insurance, you can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per person ($10,000 per trip) for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses if your trip is cancelled or cut short due to a covered event.
- Rental Car Insurance: Get primary rental car coverage when you're renting for business purposes and pay for your rental with the Chase Ink Preferred.
- Purchase Protection: Cover your new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account.
- Cell Phone Insurance: Get up to $1,000 per claim in cell phone protection against covered theft or damage for you and your employees listed on your monthly cell phone bill when you pay for it with your Chase Ink Business Preferred credit card.
- Foreign Transaction Fees: None
- Annual Fee: annual_fees
Learn More about the *chase ink preferred*
Sapphire Reserve for Business℠
- bonus_miles_full This limited-time offer ends this Thursday, Jan. 22 at 9 a.m. EST!
- Earn 8x points on Chase Travel℠ purchases
- Earn 5x points on Lyft rides through Sept. 30, 2027
- Earn 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct
- Earn 3x points on social media and search engine ads
- Earn 1x points on everything else
- $300 annual travel credit that is applied towards purchases of flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises and more
- $500 credit for stays with The Edit by Chase Travel℠: Get up to $250 in statement credits from January through June and again from July through December for prepaid bookings made with The Edit (two-night minimum stay required).
- Business Services Credits: Up to $1,200-plus in annual value, including
- $400 ZipRecruiter hiring credit ($200 semi-annually)
- $200 Google Workspace credit
- $100 Giftcards.com credit
- $300 DoorDash credit and complimentary DashPass (through Dec. 31, 2027)
- And $120 in annual Lyft in-app credits ($10 monthly)
- $120 statement credit for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck®, or Nexus every four years
- Airport Lounge Access: Unlimited access to Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club locations (plus, two free guests) and entry to over 1,300 more lounges with Priority Pass Select
- IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite Status: Cardmembers receive complimentary Platinum status through Dec. 31, 2027
- Excellent travel insurance policies for trip delay, trip interruption, rental cars, and more
- Payment Options: Pay in Full or carry a balance with “Flex for Business”
- Annual Fee: annual_fees
Learn more about the *Sapphire Reserve for Business*.
The Best Option for Your Business
At first glance, these two cards might look similar – both earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points, and both are geared toward business owners who spend heavily in a few key categories.
But once you dig in, the differences become clear.
Ink Preferred: Straightforward Value at a Low Cost
The Ink Business Preferred is the far cheaper option – and for many small businesses, that alone makes it the smarter choice.
For just annual_fees a year, you get solid 3x bonus categories and crucially, access to Chase’s full lineup of transfer partners, including United, Air Canada Aeroplan, Hyatt, and more.
That means your points aren’t just valuable for cash back or travel through Chase. They can be transferred to airline and hotel partners for outsized value, especially if you know how to use them strategically.
The main limitation with the Ink Preferred is the cap on earning rewards: Those 3x categories are limited to $150,000 in combined spending per year. For many small businesses, that’s more than enough. But for fast-growing companies or those with heavy ad budgets, it can be restrictive.
Sapphire Reserve for Business: Built for Big Spenders
The Sapphire Reserve for Business is clearly designed for businesses with serious spending – especially on advertising and travel.
Its uncapped 3x points on social media and search engine advertising is a huge differentiator. If your business spends heavily on Facebook, Instagram, Google, or other digital ads, this alone could justify the card’s steep, annual_fees annual fee.
It also shines for travel-heavy businesses, where you’ll earn:
- 8x points on travel booked through Chase Travel
- 5x points on Lyft rides (through Sept. 30, 2027)
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
Those earning rates are unprecedented for a business card – and can rack up points fast if travel is a major expense. All other eligible purchases earn a flat 1x point per dollar.
Perks, Protections, and Credits
Both cards come with solid travel protections, including trip delay coverage, rental car insurance, and purchase protection.
But the Sapphire Reserve for Business ups the ante significantly when it comes to perks:
- Complimentary airport lounge access
- A flexible $300 annual travel credit
- Up to $500 per year in The Edit credits
- More than $1,000 in additional business-related statement credits
If you can actually use these credits, they can dramatically offset the annual_fees annual fee – and may even tilt the math decisively in the card’s favor.
Are You Eligible for a Business Card?
To open a business credit card, you don’t need a full-time business with employees or six-figure revenues.
While that situation would, of course, make you eligible to open a business credit card, you can also get approved for a small-business credit card like the Ink Preferred or Sapphire Reserve for Business with a part-time side hustle, a freelance job, a gig economy job, or even by selling goods on online marketplaces like Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, and more. In fact, many Americans have what the banks would consider a small business and don't even realize it.
Do you have any income from freelance work, or plans to start freelance work? You have a business. Have you ever sold an item on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, Etsy, or other platforms, or have plans to do so in the future? You have a business. At the end of the day, if you are selling any goods or services, or contracting with a company to do so in an attempt to make a profit, you have a small business and thus are typically eligible to apply for a small business credit card.
Just keep in mind: You should never lie or attempt to mislead a bank when applying for a business credit card. It's important to have a legitimate business, even if that business is a small one.
All that said, if you're planning to earn the Sapphire Reserve for Business card's monster bonus, you'll need a fair amount of business spending to make it happen. Early reports indicate that the approval process for the Sapphire Reserve for Business isn't quite as straightforward either. So if your business is relatively new (or pretty small), the Ink Preferred could be the easy choice for that reason alone.
Read more: You Might Be Eligible for Business Credit Cards & Not Know It
Chase's 5/24 Rule
Never heard of the Chase 5/24 Rule? Good, you're probably not impacted.
It’s a hard-and-fast restriction rolled out years ago in order to limit card applicants from opening credit cards for the sole purpose of earning bonus rewards. If you’ve heard of the phrase “churning,” that’s exactly what this rule is designed to crack down on.
Here’s what it boils down to:
- If you have opened five or more credit cards in the past 24 months from any bank credit card issuers (not just Chase cards), you will not be approved for Chase credit cards, regardless of your credit score or history with Chase Bank.
- The rule does not count credit inquiries but rather new cards you have applied for and been approved.
But business credit cards work a bit differently with the Chase 5/24 rule: You’ll need to be underneath the 5/24 rule to get approved … but that approval will not add to your 5/24 count. That means if you are at 4/24 and apply for the Ink Preferred and get approved, you would still be at 4/24.
In general, most business card approvals do not count toward your 5/24 total. That includes business cards from American Express, Chase, Citi, Bank of America, and more.
The reason? Business credit card accounts typically don't show on your personal credit report.
Read more: Master Guide to Credit Card Applications: All the Rules You Need to Know, Bank by Bank
Other Restrictions to Know
Late last year, Chase quietly made it much harder to earn welcome bonuses on its business card lineup. A new family-style restriction now limits business owners to just one bonus between the *Ink Cash* and the *Ink Unlimited*, while the Ink Business Preferred and Sapphire Reserve for Business now get a one-time-only bonus rule of their own.
To make it easier, we put together a simple flow chart that easily breaks down each card’s restrictions.
If you’re unsure whether you’re eligible for a welcome bonus on Ink Business Preferred or the Sapphire Reserve for Business, here's what you need to know:
- Ink Business Preferred has its own rule: If you’ve ever had it, you may not be eligible again – but it’s not impacted by the Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited.
- Sapphire Reserve for Business stands alone, too: If you’ve had it before, Chase may deny the bonus, but it’s not restricted by any Ink cards.
To help ease some confusion, Chase now shows a pop-up warning during applications when you won't earn a bonus.
Bottom Line
Deciding between the *chase ink preferred* and the *Sapphire Reserve for Business* could ultimately come down to what kind of business you run – and how much complexity you’re willing to accept.
If you want simple, powerful rewards and access to Chase transfer partners without a painful annual fee, the Ink Business Preferred is hard to beat. But if you’re chasing the biggest possible return on heavy ad and travel spending – and don’t mind jumping through a few hoops – the Sapphire Reserve for Business could be the clear winner.
At the end of the day, you really can't go wrong with either one of these Chase business cards … and their monster bonus offers.
