Chase Ink Preferred vs Amex Business Gold 2026

Chase Ink Business Preferred charges a $95 annual fee. American Express Business Gold charges a $375 annual fee (as of 2026 — verify at chase.com and americanexpress.com). The $280 fee gap means Business Gold must earn meaningfully more rewards to break even — which it does only when a large concentration of spend falls in your top eligible categories at the 4X rate.

Partially. Chase Ultimate Rewards transfers to 14 airline and hotel partners including United MileagePlus, Southwest Rapid Rewards, British Airways Avios, and Hyatt. Amex Membership Rewards transfers to 20+ partners including Delta SkyMiles, British Airways Avios, and Air Canada Aeroplan. Both transfer to British Airways and Air Canada. Chase has stronger U.S. domestic airline coverage (United, Southwest); Amex has more international options. Transfer ratios are generally 1:1 for most airline partners.

Both cards offer welcome bonuses that change periodically — check current offers at each issuer before applying. Historically, Chase Ink Preferred has offered 90,000–100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after meeting a minimum spend threshold; Amex Business Gold has offered 100,000–150,000 Membership Rewards points. Welcome bonuses are subject to each issuer's eligibility rules (Chase's 5/24 rule; Amex's once-per-lifetime rule for welcome offers on the same card).

Both are premium cards requiring good-to-excellent personal credit. Chase Ink Business Preferred typically requires 700+ FICO, and Chase applies its 5/24 rule (5+ new personal cards opened in 24 months generally disqualifies the application regardless of score). Amex Business Gold typically requires 670–700+ FICO; Amex also applies its once-per-lifetime restriction on welcome offers for the same card product. Both issuers evaluate personal credit for business card applications since business cards don't build standalone business credit by default. Source: CFPB business credit card guidance at consumerfinance.gov.

Yes — Chase Ink Business Preferred includes primary rental car collision damage waiver (CDW), trip delay reimbursement (up to $500 after a 12-hour delay), trip cancellation and interruption insurance (up to $5,000 per person), and cell phone protection (up to $1,000 per claim with a $100 deductible when your phone bill is paid with the card). Amex Business Gold does not include trip cancellation/interruption or cell phone protection as standard benefits. For businesses that travel frequently, Ink Preferred's built-in travel protections are meaningfully broader. Source: Chase Ink Preferred benefits guide at chase.com.

Yes. Both cards allow employee cards at no additional annual fee, and employee card purchases earn the same category rates. For Amex Business Gold, the $150,000 annual cap on 4X category earnings is shared across all cards on the account — primary and employee combined. Chase Ink Preferred's category caps apply per account. All points pool into the primary cardholder's rewards balance. Source: Chase.com and AmericanExpress.com benefits terms; verify current employee card policies before adding cardholders.