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Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card: 5% on office supplies for small businesses

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card card art
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is a cash back card for small business owners who want purchasing power combined with increased rewards on business purchases like office supplies, internet, cable, and phone services, gas, and restaurant purchases. The Ink Business Cash carries no annual fee.

The card’s biggest strength is its bonus cash back categories. The Ink Cash earns 5% cash back on the first $25,000 in combined purchases each account anniversary year at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services. The card also earns 2% on $25,000 in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants, plus 1% cash back on all other purchases. Although rewards are marketed as cash back, the card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards® points behind the scenes, which can be transferred to a premium Chase Ultimate Rewards® card and redeemed for greater value.

The Chase Ink Business Cash® credit card also offers a handful of benefits useful to small business owners, including primary auto rental collision damage waiver when renting for business, purchase protection and extended warranty protection.

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card offer: Get up to $750 in new cardmember rewards. (Annual fee: $0)

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card card art
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

bonus_miles_full (Get this welcome bonus.)

Chase recently made this bonus easier to earn. Best no-annual-fee Ink card welcome bonus. Rewards are earned as Chase Ultimate Rewards® points

Bonus rewards in business-related categories, at gas stations, and at restaurants. (More in our card review.)

This is an affiliate link.

Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card at a glance

Here’s what you need to know about the Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card.

Rewards

Office supply stores5%*
Internet, cable, and phone services5%*
Gas stations2%**
Restaurants2%**
All other purchases1%

*Only the first $25,000 in combined spending each cardmember year earns 5% in these bonus categories.

**Only the first $25,000 in combined spending each cardmember year earns 2% in these bonus categories.

Rewards are earned as Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which can be redeemed for cash back at one cent per point. You can get more than one cent per point of value from Ultimate Rewards if you hold an additional premium credit card. See below for more details.

Benefits

Consumer insurance benefits
Extended warranty
Purchase protection
Cell phone protection
Travel insurance benefits
Auto rental collision damage waiver

Other important terms

Annual fee: $0
Foreign transaction fee: 3%

Welcome bonus

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card offer: Get up to $750 in new cardmember rewards. (Annual fee: $0)

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card card art
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

bonus_miles_full (Get this welcome bonus.)

Chase recently made this bonus easier to earn. Best no-annual-fee Ink card welcome bonus. Rewards are earned as Chase Ultimate Rewards® points

Bonus rewards in business-related categories, at gas stations, and at restaurants. (More in our card review.)

This is an affiliate link.

Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card rewards

The Chase Ink Business Cash rewards small business owners who spend heavily on business purchases like office supplies, internet, cable and phone services. Details are below.

5%*Office supply stores
Office supply stores are stores that specialize in selling a variety of office supplies. Merchants that sell a wide variety of general goods like discount stores, department stores, or electronics stores, are not included in this category. Wholesale distributors are not included.
5%*Internet, cable, and phone services
Includes purchases of internet, cable, satellite television and radio, cellular, wireless data, and landline services. Equipment purchases are excluded.
2%*Gas stations
Includes locations that sell automotive gasoline.
2%*Restaurants
Eat-in, or take-out purchased directly from a restaurant, including fast food and fine dining establishments. Third-party delivery services are not included.
1%All other purchases
Reward categories of the Chase Ink Business Cash®.

* The rewards that you can earn in this category are limited by cardmember year. See below for more details.

Bonus category limits of the Chase Ink Business Cash®

The Chase Ink Business Cash®

5% rewards at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services are limited to $25,000 in combined spending each cardmember year. You’ll earn 5% cash back on up to $25,000 spending in these categories. After spending exceeds $25,000 across these categories, you’ll earn 1% rewards.

2% rewards at gas stations and restaurants are limited to $25,000 in combined spending each cardmember year. After spending exceeds $25,000 across these categories, you’ll earn 1% rewards.

Limits are based on your cardmember year, meaning they reset after your cardmember anniversary.

The Ultimate Rewards® points you earn with your card can be transferred between your cards. If you hold multiple cards that earn Ultimate Rewards®, you can earn points on one card and use the enhanced redemption options of another card.

Here are the best Ultimate Rewards® redemption options by card:

Cards with no annual feePremium cardsHigh-tier premium cards
Chase Freedom Flex card art Chase Freedom Unlimited® card art
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card card art Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card card art
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card card art Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card card artChase Sapphire Reserve® card art
Chase Freedom Flex
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Ink Business Cash®
Ink Business Unlimited®

Chase Sapphire Preferred®
Ink Business Preferred®
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Cash back
1 cent per point
Travel through Chase Travel℠100% of cash value125% of cash value$150 of cash value
Transfers to travel partners
See list of transfer partners below.
Gift cards
1 cent per point, with occasional sales on select brands
Useful reward redemption options on Ultimate Rewards® credit cards

The Ink Business Premier® Credit Card is marketed as an Ultimate Rewards® card, but it doesn’t allow you to transfer points to other cards, so it is not included in this table.

Ultimate Rewards Transfer partners

Point transfers to Ultimate Rewards® transfer partners are widely believed to be the best way to get the most value from your Chase points. When you transfer points to a partner, your Ultimate Rewards® become point in that partner’s loyalty program. You can then redeem your points for awards offered by a partner loyalty program. Point transfers cannot be reversed, so be sure you know what you’re going to use your points for before transferring them.

Here are the airlines and hotels you can transfer to if you hold a premium Ultimate Rewards® credit card:

Transfer partnerProgram highlights
Air Canada AeroplanEasy-to-use Star Alliance awards, with the option to spend extra miles to make flights cancelable.
Air France-KLM Flying BlueGreat for monthly Flying Blue promo awards.
Avios
Aer Lingus AerClub
British Airways Executive Club
Iberia Plus
Distance-based programs with good value on shorter flights like USA-Ireland (AerClub) and short-haul flights on Oneworld partners (Executive Club).
Emirates SkywardsOne of the few ways to book Emirates first class with points.
JetBlue TrueBlueReward prices tied to cash prices of tickets, usually around 1.3 cents per point.
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyerOne of the few ways to book Singapore first class tickets with points.
United MileagePlusGood value off-peak international economy awards. Generous award change/cancel policies.
Virgin Atlantic Flying ClubSome opportunities to book good-value premium cabin awards with partners.
IHG One RewardsOffers a fourth night free on point redemptions if you hold an IHG-branded credit card, but generally not a good use of Ultimate Rewards® points.
Marriott BonvoyMay be a reasonable use if you need just a few points to top off an award, but generally not a good use of Ultimate Rewards® points.
World of HyattOffers excellent redemption value at some properties due to its award chart.
Airline and hotel transfer partners of Ultimate Rewards®
Redemptions options you shouldn’t use

The table above shows you the best Ultimate Rewards® redemption options. But there are some ways to redeem points that provide less value. Here are the redemption options you should avoid:

  • Most gift card redemptions only offer 1 cent per point. You’re not getting any additional value and you’re giving up the flexibility of cash when you redeem for gift cards. Only redeem for gift cards when select brands are on sale.
  • Pay with points usually offers less value than 1 cent per point. You can get more value from your points through a cash back redemption.
  • Shop with Apple only offers 1 cent per point. If you use your points for cash back and charge your Apple purchases to your card, you can earn rewards for your purchases.
  • Chase Dining only offers 1 cent per point. Use your points for cash back instead and get rewards on your dining purchases.

How to apply:

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card offer: Get up to $750 in new cardmember rewards. (Annual fee: $0)

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card card art
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

bonus_miles_full (Get this welcome bonus.)

Chase recently made this bonus easier to earn. Best no-annual-fee Ink card welcome bonus. Rewards are earned as Chase Ultimate Rewards® points

Bonus rewards in business-related categories, at gas stations, and at restaurants. (More in our card review.)

This is an affiliate link.

A few notes on applying for Chase cards

  • 5/24 rule. Chase generally won’t approve you if your credit report is showing 5 or more new credit card accounts opened in the last 24 months. This rule is knows as the 5/24 rule. If you’re unsure if you are “under 5/24” you should check your 5/24 status before applying for a Chase card. Note that recently this rule seems to have softened, especially for Ink cards. See our coverage about Chase 5/24 for more.
  • Only one Sapphire-branded card. You can only hold one Chase Sapphire-branded card at a time. This means you can have either a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or a Chase Sapphire Reserve®, but not both.
  • You can get a welcome bonus on a Chase card, even if you’ve had the card previously. How often you can earn a welcome bonus on a Chase card varies by card family.
    • Most cards allow you to earn a welcome bonus if it has been at least 24 months since your last received a welcome bonus on the same card.
    • Chase Sapphire-branded cards, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you can only earn a welcome bonus once every 48 months. (We published a separate article to help you determine if you can get a Sapphire welcome bonus.)
    • Marriott cards have their own special rules.
  • Chase will match an increased bonus. If you apply for a Chase card and the bank offers a higher bonus within 90 days, you can send Chase a secure message or call them to have your welcome offer matched.
  • In-branch offers are sometimes better. Chase sometimes has better credit card welcome offers in-branch than it will publish on its own website or through affiliate networks. Check all channels to make sure you’re getting the best bonus.
  • Chase business cards do not report to personal credit reports and do not impact your 5/24 status as long as they are current.

Should you keep the card after the first year?

The Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is offered with no annual fee. As it is a business credit card, it will not report to your personal credit report unless you make a late payment, so it won’t help you build your credit. But if you frequently purchase items at office supply stores, charge internet, cable or phone services to your card or use the card for restaurant purchases, it can be well worth keeping this card around. Here are the benefits that might make this card worth keeping after the first year.

  • 5% earnings on office supply store purchases
  • 5% earnings on internet, cable and phone services
  • 2% earnings at gas stations
  • 2% earnings at restaurants
  • Extended warranty and purchase protection
  • Primary auto rental collision damage waiver insurance when renting for business on a no-annual-fee card

Card benefits

In addition to earning generous rewards across a variety of business categories, the Chase Ink Business Cash card offers a limited suite of benefits for small business owners who travel or purchase durable goods using the card.

Primary auto rental collision damage waiver (when renting for business): Decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card. Coverage is primary when renting for business purposes and provides reimbursement up to the actual cash value of the vehicle for theft and collision damage for most cars in the U.S. and abroad.

Extended warranty protection: Extends the time period of the U.S. manufacturer’s warranty by an additional year, on eligible warranties of three years or less.

Purchase Protection: Covers your new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get multiple Chase Ink Business Cash cards?

In practice, readers have reported that Chase will allow you to get multiple Chase Ink Business Cash cards. This can be useful if you maximize the card’s 5% categories and want another card to use for an additional $25,000 of 5% spending.

Can I have both the Ink Business Cash and Ink Business Unlimited cards?

Chase lets small business owners hold any combination of their four Ink-branded credit cards: Ink Business Cash®, Ink Business Premier, Ink Business Unlimited®, and Ink Business Preferred®

What is included in the office supply category of the Ink Business Cash?

Office supply stores are stores that specialize in selling a variety of office supplies. Merchants that sell a wide variety of general goods like discount stores, department stores, or electronics stores, are not included in this category. Wholesale distributors are not included.

About the author

  • Aaron Hurd

    Aaron Hurd is a credit card, travel rewards, and loyalty program expert. Over the past 15 years, he has authored over a thousand expert contributions published by leading outlets including WSJ, TIME, Newsweek, Forbes, NerdWallet, The Points Guy, Bankrate, CNET, and many others. He has also served in consulting roles for many of these same outlets, designing content strategy, hiring teams of teams of editors and contributors, developing thought-leadership pieces, and ghost-editing for senior editors. Aaron is well-known in the miles and points community and regularly presents about travel rewards at conferences like the Chicago Seminars and Minnebar. Aaron has enjoyed the game of optimizing credit card rewards since getting his first credit card shortly after he turned 18. He started learning about credit cards and travel rewards from the (now defunct) FatWallet Finance forums and FlyerTalk. He holds more than 40 open credit cards and has first-hand experience with almost every major credit card product.