Both are Chase Ink business cards on the same Ultimate Rewards rails, but they target different spenders. Ink Unlimited is a no-annual-fee flat 1.5% card; Ink Preferred charges a fee for elevated category rewards and stronger travel redemptions. Pick by whether your spend is flat or category-heavy.
Chase
Flat 1.5% cash back, no annual fee, 12-month 0% intro APR.
Pros
Chase
3X points on travel, shipping, telecom, and online advertising.
Pros
Pick Chase Ink Business Unlimited if: Service businesses, freelancers, consultants — one card for everything, no categories to track.
Pick Chase Ink Business Preferred if: E-commerce + ad-heavy SMBs with $50K+ combined spend across those four categories.
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Chase Ink Business Unlimited has no annual fee and earns a flat 1.5% cash back (Ultimate Rewards) on all purchases. Chase Ink Business Preferred has a $95 annual fee and earns 3X on travel, shipping, internet/cable/phone services, and advertising purchases (up to $150K/year combined) — plus stronger travel protections. Unlimited is the simpler pick for businesses with flat or unpredictable spend patterns; Preferred is the better pick when your business spends heavily in the bonus categories and you value travel benefits. Confirm current terms at chase.com.
Chase Ink Business Preferred. It earns 3X on travel purchases (vs Unlimited's 1.5%), offers primary rental car coverage for business rentals, trip delay reimbursement, and the points transfer to Chase's travel partners at 1:1 — which unlocks 1.5–2+ cents per point vs straight cash redemptions. Ink Unlimited has no travel protections and earns 1.5X on travel. For a business card used regularly for travel expenses, Preferred's $95 fee typically pays for itself quickly in incremental travel rewards and protections.
Yes — but only if you also hold a Chase Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, or another card with Ultimate Rewards transfer capability. Ink Business Unlimited earns Ultimate Rewards points, but the card itself does not have direct transfer access to airline and hotel partners. To unlock 1:1 transfers to United, Southwest, Hyatt, Marriott, and Chase's other partners, you must hold an eligible Sapphire-family card and move the Ink Unlimited points into that account. Chase Ink Business Preferred includes direct transfer access as a standalone card.
Chase does not publish a specific minimum FICO score for either Ink business card. Based on reported approvals, both cards generally require good to excellent personal credit — typically 680+ FICO, with stronger approval odds above 720. Chase also evaluates personal income, existing relationship with Chase, and business revenue. The 5/24 rule applies: if you've opened 5 or more personal credit cards in the past 24 months, Chase will typically decline regardless of score. Verify current application criteria at chase.com.
Welcome bonuses change periodically. Historically, Chase Ink Business Unlimited has offered $750 cash back (75,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after spending $6,000 in the first 3 months. Chase Ink Business Preferred has historically offered 100,000 bonus points ($1,000–$1,250 in travel value) after spending $8,000 in 3 months. Because Preferred points are worth 1.25 cents per point when redeemed for travel (through Chase Travel), the Preferred's bonus is worth more in travel value than Unlimited's. Confirm current bonus offers at chase.com — offers vary and may be higher through referrals.
Yes — Chase Ink Business Preferred includes trip cancellation/interruption insurance (up to $5,000 per person), trip delay reimbursement, primary rental car coverage (for business travel), and cell phone protection when you pay your bill with the card. Chase Ink Business Unlimited has no travel insurance, no trip delay or cancellation coverage, and secondary (not primary) rental car coverage. For businesses whose owners travel frequently on company cards, Preferred's protections can easily justify the $95 annual fee. Source: Chase cardmember agreement disclosures at chase.com.
Independent editorial comparison. ClearValue Lending is not the issuer of any product compared here; affiliate links may pay a referral commission at no cost to you — selection is independent of compensation.