Which of Chase’s four proprietary business credit cards with record-high offers should you apply for?

Chase currently has solid welcome offers on its four main UR business credit cards: Ink Cash, Ink Unlimited, and Ink Preferred each offer 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points, while Sapphire Reserve Business offers an all-time high bonus of up to 200,000 points. Bottom line:

• If you can meet $30,000 in spending: prioritize Sapphire Reserve Business, since the 200,000-point bonus is the highest;
• For most regular users: choose one of Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited, since both offer 100,000 points and no annual fee;
• If you spend a lot on office supplies, cell phone, and internet: choose Ink Cash;
• If you have a lot of large purchases without fixed bonus categories: choose Ink Unlimited;
• If you spend heavily on travel, advertising, shipping, and other business expenses: choose Ink Preferred;
• If you want low-cost access to UR transfers: keep Ink Preferred long term;
• If you travel often and need airport lounge access: choose Sapphire Reserve Business.

One important thing to note: Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited now have a new welcome-offer restriction. You will likely only be eligible for the bonus on one of the two no-annual-fee business cards, so you can no longer assume you can apply for both and collect both bonuses the way people used to.

• Sapphire Reserve Business 200,000 all-time high

Comparison of the four Chase business credit cards

Credit card	Current welcome offer	Main earning categories	Annual fee	Best for
Ink Business Cash	100,000 UR Spend $8,000 in 4 months	Office supply stores, internet, cable, and phone 5x; gas and restaurants 2x	$0	People who spend a lot on office, cell phone, and internet bills
Ink Business Unlimited	100,000 UR Spend $8,000 in 4 months	1.5x on all purchases, uncapped	$0	Lots of spending outside bonus categories
Ink Business Preferred	100,000 UR Spend $8,000 in 3 months	Travel, shipping, internet and phone, online advertising 3x	$95	People who want to transfer points or have a lot of spending in business categories
Sapphire Reserve Business	200,000 UR Spend $30,000 in 6 months	Chase Travel 8x; 4x on direct flights and hotel bookings; online advertising 3x	$795	High spenders, frequent travelers, and lounge users. Good for people who can handle all kinds of reimbursements.

All four cards earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which can be pooled across cards in the same person's Chase account. When held on their own, Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited are mainly used like cash back cards; when paired with Ink Preferred, Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, or Sapphire Reserve Business, the points can be transferred to airline and hotel programs.

You can find detailed reviews of each card here

Which card has the highest first-year value?

Using a valuation of 1.6 cents per UR point, and counting only the welcome bonus, the easiest-to-use reimbursements, and the annual fee:

Credit card	Welcome bonus value	Easy-to-use reimbursements	Annual fee	Base first-year net value
Ink Cash	$1,600	—	$0	About $1,600
Ink Unlimited	$1,600	—	$0	About $1,600
Ink Preferred	$1,600	—	-$95	About $1,505
Sapphire Reserve Business	$3,200	$300 travel reimbursement	-$795	About $2,705

Among these four cards, Sapphire Reserve Business has the highest first-year value. At 1.6 cents per UR point, 200,000 UR is worth about $3,200, and even after subtracting the $795 annual fee, it still clearly beats the other three cards. So if you only want to choose one, the obvious pick is the 200,000-point CSR Business.

And the calculation above still does not include the following benefits:

• Up to $500 in annual The Edit hotel reimbursements, with up to $250 per stay, requiring at least a two-night stay;
• Up to $250 in designated Chase Travel hotel reimbursements through the end of 2026, requiring at least a two-night stay;
• Up to $200 in annual Google Workspace reimbursements;
• Up to $400 in annual ZipRecruiter reimbursements;
• Up to $120 in annual Lyft Credit;
• Up to $300 in annual DoorDash benefits;
• Up to $100 in annual reimbursement for designated gift cards;
• Priority Pass and Chase Sapphire Lounge access.

If you would use these benefits anyway, the first-year value is even higher. However, many of them are merchant-specific reimbursements, so they cannot be valued at face value like cash. The $100 gift card reimbursement and the hotel reimbursement are relatively easy to use. The others depend on your needs; The Edit is not very useful.

The downside of Sapphire Reserve Business is that you need to spend $30,000 within 6 months. That works out to $5,000 per month. If you manufacture spending just to meet the requirement, or if that causes you to miss other credit card welcome bonuses, it is not as good a deal as it looks on the surface. For users who cannot put $30,000 on a single card, I would instead recommend focusing on Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited first. Both cards currently offer:

• 100,000 UR welcome bonus;
• $8,000 spend in 4 months;
• No annual fee;
• 0% intro APR for the first 12 months;
• Can be kept long term for free.

The problem is that you can no longer simply apply for both cards. Chase's current official terms state that if an applicant has previously had this card, or has held another no-annual-fee Chase for Business credit card, they may not be eligible for a new-card bonus. As a result, Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited likely share the bonus eligibility. If you can only choose one, I personally lean toward Ink Cash. Although everyday spending only earns 1x, it offers practical categories that earn up to 5x UR, which gives it much stronger long-term value. Of course, you can also apply and then do a product change in the second year to the card you need more.

Which card is best for long-term holding?

If you ignore the welcome bonus and look only at everyday use:

• Best 5x card: Ink Cash;
• Best uncategorized spending card: Ink Unlimited;
• Lowest-cost transfer card: Ink Preferred;
• Best premium travel benefits card: Sapphire Reserve Business.

In terms of long-term holding cost:

Credit card	Fixed annual cost	Reason to keep long term
Ink Cash	$0	5x on office supplies, internet, and phone
Ink Unlimited	$0	1.5x on all purchases
Ink Preferred	$95	Unlocks point transfers and 3x in business categories
Sapphire Reserve Business	$795, or about $495 after the $300 travel reimbursement	Lounge access, premium hotel reimbursements, and travel earnings

Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited have no annual fee, so there is basically no need to downgrade them after approval. Ink Preferred costs only $95 a year, and as long as you need transfer partners or have some spending in the 3x categories, it is also easy to keep. Sapphire Reserve Business, on the other hand, requires you to recalculate the value of the benefits every year. If you apply mainly for the 200,000-point welcome bonus and then find in year two that the credits are not easy to use, you can consider closing it or asking whether it can be converted to another business card (there is currently no low-fee Sapphire Business option, so the most likely outcome is to close it outright).

How do you choose among the three Ink cards?

Note that neither Ink Cash nor Unlimited can independently transfer UR to airline miles or hotel points. When you want to transfer points, you can consider upgrading to Ink Preferred, or simply hold Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve.

When to choose Ink Cash

• You have a lot of monthly phone, internet, cable, or landline bills;
• You frequently spend at office supply stores such as Staples or Office Depot;
• You are willing to buy third-party gift cards at office supply stores;
• Your annual spending in the 5x categories does not exceed $25,000;
• You already have another credit card that covers everyday spending.

Each account anniversary year, Ink Cash earns 5x UR on the first $25,000 in combined spending at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services. Using a valuation of 1.6 cents per UR point, 5x is roughly an 8% return. Even if you value UR at only 1 cent each, that is still equivalent to 5% cash back. If you can use the full $25,000 cap, you can earn up to 125,000 UR per year, which is 100,000 more points than a regular 1x credit card.

When to choose Ink Unlimited

• Your business expenses are spread out and do not fit any clear bonus category;
• You need to buy inventory, equipment, or pay supplier invoices;
• Your regular spending per transaction or per year is relatively high;
• You do not want to study bonus categories and prefer to use one card for everything.

Ink Unlimited earns a flat 1.5x UR on all spending and has no annual cap. Using a valuation of 1.6 cents per UR point, that works out to about a 2.4% return.

If you have $100,000 a year in business spending that does not earn higher-category bonuses:

• Ink Cash regular spending: 100,000 UR;
• Ink Unlimited: 150,000 UR;
• Ink Unlimited earns 50,000 more UR each year.

So Ink Cash is best for maximizing a specific category, while Ink Unlimited is better for large amounts of ordinary spending.

Who is Ink Preferred for?

Ink Preferred is not meant to be a mindless everyday card. It is a low-annual-fee UR transfer card and a business-category spending card.

Each account anniversary year, it earns 3x UR on the first $150,000 in combined spending in the following categories:

• Travel;
• Shipping;
• Internet, cable, and phone services;
• Social media and search engine advertising.

If you run an e-commerce business, operate a website, spend on ads, or travel frequently, these categories are very useful. At a valuation of 1.6 cents per point, 3x is roughly a 4.8% return.

The more important value of Ink Preferred is that, for only $95 a year, you can transfer the points earned by Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited to the following partners:

• World of Hyatt;
• United MileagePlus;
• Air Canada Aeroplan;
• British Airways Avios;
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue;
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and more.

If you do not have Chase Sapphire Preferred or another premium Chase card that supports point transfers, Ink Preferred is usually the cheapest way to unlock UR transfers.

If you already hold CSP, CSR, or Sapphire Reserve Business, the transfer feature is redundant. In that case, whether to keep Ink Preferred long term mainly depends on whether the 3x categories for travel, advertising, and shipping can justify the $95 annual fee.

Who is Sapphire Reserve Business for?

Sapphire Reserve Business is more like a premium travel card than a standard business spending card.

Its main earning rates are:

• Travel booked through Chase Travel: 8x;
• Direct bookings with airlines and hotels: 4x;
• Social media and search engine advertising: 3x;
• All other spending: 1x.

This card is a good fit for people who:

• Can naturally meet the $30,000 welcome-bonus spending requirement;
• Spend a lot each year on flights and hotels;
• Need Priority Pass and Chase Sapphire Lounge access;
• Can use the $300 travel credit and The Edit hotel credit;
• Already use Google Workspace, ZipRecruiter, or DoorDash in the business.

It is not a good fit if:

• You have a lot of everyday uncategorized spending, because this card only earns 1x on those purchases;
• You already hold the personal Sapphire Reserve, because many travel benefits overlap;
• You do not stay at The Edit hotels or use the specified business services;
• You do not like managing credits monthly or semiannually;
• You need to carry a balance, because Sapphire Reserve Business is mainly a Pay in Full product.

For long-term ownership, do not focus only on Chase’s advertised “$3,000+ annual value.” For most people, the easiest benefit to value close to cash is usually only the $300 travel credit. After using that $300 travel credit, the effective annual fee is still about $495. The remaining cost needs to be offset by lounge access, The Edit hotel credits, DoorDash, Lyft, or business-service credits.

Best card combinations

Low-cost combo: Ink Cash + Ink Preferred

• Ink Cash handles 5x on office supply stores, phone, and internet;
• Ink Preferred handles 3x on travel, advertising, and shipping;
• Ink Preferred allows you to transfer all UR to airline and hotel partners;
• Total annual fee is only $95.

This is the combination I recommend most for most people. It has low cost, broad category coverage, and full access to the UR transfer system.

Set-it-and-forget-it combo: Ink Unlimited + Ink Preferred

• Ink Preferred handles the 3x business categories;
• Ink Unlimited handles all other 1.5x spending;
• Total annual fee is also only $95.

This is ideal for users who do not spend much at office supply stores but have a lot of ordinary business expenses.

Premium travel combo: Ink Cash or Unlimited + Sapphire Reserve Business

• Sapphire Reserve Business handles airfare, hotels, and travel benefits;
• Ink Cash or Unlimited handles the other spending that only earns 1x on Reserve;
• All points are concentrated in the Reserve Business account for transfers or Points Boost.

This setup is suitable for business owners who travel frequently and can use lounge access and hotel credits.

Chase business card application strategy

Can you apply for multiple Chase business cards?

These four cards are different products and can be held at the same time. Holding one does not automatically block you from applying for another. However, welcome-bonus eligibility must be evaluated separately:

• Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited: These two no-annual-fee Chase business cards share a stricter bonus restriction, so you may only be eligible for one of the two bonuses;
• Ink Preferred: The terms mainly restrict users who have previously held Ink Preferred itself;
• Sapphire Reserve Business: The terms mainly restrict users who have previously held Sapphire Reserve Business itself;
• Whether you will get the welcome bonus is ultimately determined by the eligibility message shown on the application page.

Chase business credit cards are still usually subject to the 5/24 rule, which means you generally need to be under 5/24 when applying. However, approved Chase business cards usually do not appear on your personal credit report, so they generally do not increase your 5/24 count.

My suggested application order

If you can meet the $30,000 spending requirement:

1. First apply for the Sapphire Reserve Business 200,000-point record-high offer;
2. After meeting the spending requirement, choose one of Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited to apply for;
3. After that, consider Ink Preferred depending on your transfer and spending-category needs.

The 200,000-point bonus on Sapphire Reserve Business is the largest offer and a limited-time all-time high. If you already have enough business spending, it should be your top priority.

For small business owners or side hustlers

1. First choose one of Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited;
2. Then apply for Ink Preferred to earn a second 100,000-point bonus and unlock point transfers;
3. If you later have large spending and travel needs, then consider Sapphire Reserve Business.

Taken together, this path can earn 200,000 UR from the first two cards, with a minimum total annual fee of only $95, and it only requires completing two separate $8,000 spending requirements, making it much more suitable for the average user than going straight for $30,000.

Summary

There is no absolute “best” among these four cards; it mainly depends on your spending capacity and everyday spending categories.

If you can naturally meet $30,000 in spending, the 200,000-point bonus on Sapphire Reserve Business is unquestionably the most worthwhile to apply for right now. Even without counting complicated reimbursements, the first-year value is clearly higher than the other three cards.

If you can only meet around $8,000 in spending, Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited are both excellent no-annual-fee choices. These two cards are now very likely sharing welcome offer eligibility, so choose carefully between them: pick Ink Cash if you spend more on office supplies and phone/internet services, or Ink Unlimited for general uncategorized spending.

Ink Preferred is the middle card best suited for long-term keeping. For an annual fee of $95, it unlocks UR transfers while earning 3x on travel, shipping, advertising, and telecommunications services, making it especially good as a companion to a no-annual-fee Ink card.

Application links

• Chase Ink Business Cash credit card
• Chase Ink Business Unlimited credit card
• Chase Ink Business Preferred credit card
• Chase Sapphire Reserve Business credit card