Chase Ink Business Cash Credit Card Review

This card is for business owners looking to earn something back on common business expenses, without paying for the privilege with an annual fee. Chase Ink Business Cash is also for the small-business owner who doesn’t travel much. That’s because common travel perks like points transfer to airline and hotel loyalty programs aren’t available with this card—and that’s alright if you don’t need them. With the right kind of spending, you could earn several thousand dollars in cash back the first year.

• Rewards with no annual fee: The card has a solid rewards program that you won’t have to pay for with an annual fee. 
• Smart rewards earning structure for business: You’ll earn one of the highest rates we’ve seen— 5%—cash back at office supply stores and for internet, cable, and phone services, up to an annual cap. Plus a good cash-back rate at gas stations and restaurants (also capped annually).
• Zero interest for 12 months: If you need to make a large purchase for your business and pay it off over time, the Chase Ink Business Cash Credit Card can save you interest charges for a full year. 

• Earning caps limit your rewards: This card’s 5% and 2% earning categories have caps—$25,000 annually. After you hit the spending cap, you’ll only earn 1% in those categories. This limits how much cash back you can earn—especially if your business spends a lot in these areas. 
• No transfers to airline and hotel partners: While you can use points to book travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal with this card, you can’t transfer your points to Chase airline and hotel partners, which can often maximize the value of your rewards. 

The sign-up bonus on the Chase Ink Business Credit Card is less than you’ll get from some other Chase business credit cards but standard within the business card market. Once you sign up, you can earn 50,000 points worth $500 after you spend $3,000 on your card within three months of account opening. That’s a relatively easy spending threshold to meet. 

This card offers a multi-tiered earning structure that can make a lot of sense if your business spending aligns with its bonus categories. First, you’ll earn 5% back on up to $25,000 in combined spending at office supply stores and on cable, internet, and phone service purchases each year. On top of that, the card gives you 2% back on up to $25,000 in combined spending at restaurants and gas stations each year, and 1% back on everything else.

Here’s an estimate of how your rewards returns could look during the first 12 months:

• Max out the limited 5% bonus categories = $1,250 in cash back
• Max out 2% bonus categories = $500 in cash back
• Sign-up bonus = $500 in cash back
• $1,000/month in other spending = $120 in cash back
• First year rewards = $2,370

You'll also earn an unlimited 5% back on Lyft rides through March 2022. Note that cash back earned with this card never expires as long as your account is still open. 

You will track, manage, and redeem your cash back via Chase’s Ultimate Rewards service online. (Note that your “cash back” will be in the form of Ultimate Rewards points; 1 point is worth 1 cent when redeemed for cash back.) You can redeem your rewards for cash back, or for gift cards, products and services, or for travel booked through the Ultimate Rewards program.

Besides meeting the required spending to earn the sign-up bonus within the three months. use the card for all your business purchases, especially those that fall into the 5% and 2% bonus-earning categories.

If you would also like to earn points you can redeem for travel, you may want to consider pairing this card with a Chase travel credit card (Chase Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, or Ink Business Preferred). Chase will let you transfer your Ultimate Rewards points to the other card’s account, which may give you extra value when you redeem points through the UR travel portal.  

Those cards also lets you transfer points to eligible partner airlines and hotels. By pairing the Chase Ink Business Cash with one of the Chase travel cards, you keep the easy points earning of this card, plus gain some better travel earnings and redemption flexibility. If a second Chase Ultimate Rewards card is not in the works, redeem your points for cash back or travel booked through the program at 1 cent per 1 point, and keep your eye out for gift cards that may occasionally offer a better redemption value. 

This card offers several cardholder benefits, one of which the editors of The Balance consider “excellent.”

• Primary rental car collision insurance: Receive primary rental car coverage when you rent a car for business purposes and pay with your credit card. Because this is primary coverage, this policy kicks in before your own insurance policy does. It’s good for up to the actual cash value of the vehicle, with some limitations.

• Extended warranties
• Insurance for stolen or damaged purchases
• Travel and emergency hotline

Chase offers around-the-clock customer service help you can access over the phone, through secure online messaging, or even Twitter. If you sign up for Chase’s Credit Journey program, you’ll have access to a free VantageScore credit score, as well as some credit monitoring tools.

Chase earned the fourth spot in J.D. Power’s 2019 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study. The bank and credit card issuer scored 807 out of 1,000 points in the survey; the industry average was 806. 

Chase offers the industry-standard security features you would expect from a major credit card issuer: 24/7 fraud alerts, zero liability for fraudulent purchases, login encryption and authentication, among others.  

Reminding us that this card is best for small-business owners who do not travel often, Chase Ink Business Cash charges a 3% foreign transaction fee for purchases made abroad. Other fees are aligned with industry standards.