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Offers for the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card and Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card are not available through this site. Some offers may have expired. Please see our card marketplace for available offers
One of Chase’s most underappreciated gems is the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card. If your business spends heavily on office supplies, telecommunications bills, gas, or dining, the Chase Ink Business Cash could put thousands of dollars back in your pocket annually. And you'll get all that without paying an annual fee.
Is the Ink Business Cash the right card for your small business? Let's take a look.
- 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year
- 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year
- 1% cash back on all other card purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn
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Chase Ink Business Cash Pros
- Industry-leading earning rates at office supply stores, internet, cable, and phone services.
- $0 annual fee.
- Accumulates Ultimate Rewards points very quickly when paired with other Ultimate Rewards cards.
Chase Ink Business Cash Cons
- You need an Ultimate Rewards-earning card to unlock the ability to transfer points to partners.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
- Outside of the 5% earning categories, the earning rates are poor when compared to competing cards.
Chase Ink Cash Welcome Offer
Applicants for the Ink Cash can earn a bonus of $900after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
You can redeem your earnings for cash back, gift cards, travel, and more through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Even better, cash-back rewards from Chase do not expire as long as your account is open. This is an excellent value for a card with no annual fee and high earning potential.
Perhaps the biggest perk is the ability to combine your cash back with a card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards. If you have one of the cards that carries an annual fee, you can combine cash back earned on your Ink Cash with Ultimate Rewards points earned on your other card(s) — even if it's a mix of business and personal cards. This will give you access to Chase's 14 transfer partners, unlocking the potential for massive value.
Chase Ink Business Cash Earning Rates
The Ink Cash earns 5% cash back at office supply stores and on phone, internet, and cable TV services. In addition, cardholders earn 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases each account anniversary year. You'll earn 1% back on other purchases.
Businesses of all types need office supplies, and your company likely has internet and phone bills — whether you've got a physical store for customers or are working online from your home office. However, the bonus earnings at office supply stores also offer a unique opportunity for high earning potential since these stores typically offer gift cards to a variety of retailers.
If your business has regular expenses at a store where you'd earn just 1% back on “other purchases,” see if that company has gift cards at your local office supply store. If so, paying with gift cards you've purchased here would bump your earning rate up to 5% (on the first $25,000 of expenses yearly, then 1%).
It's an extra hoop to jump through, but it provides a colossal return. The Chase Ink Business Cash is the best credit card for office supplies, hands down.
Ink Business Cash Benefits Benefits
Introductory APR on purchases
The Ink Cash currently offers a 0% introductory APR for 12 months, then a Variable APR of 17.49% - 25.49%. This flexibility can be useful for financing a large purchase or two, but don't spend more than you can pay off by the end of that introductory period. Once you start accruing interest, it negates the value of your rewards.
Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
A standout benefit of the Ink Cash is the included primary auto rental collision damage waiver. When you rent a car for business purposes, you will automatically be covered for theft and collision damage, up to $60,000, for most rental vehicles in the U.S. and abroad. Just decline the rental company’s collision damage waiver and pay for the entire rental with your Chase Ink Business Cash card.
Purchase Protection and Extended Warranty Protection
Credit card purchase protection can save you a lot of money if something goes wrong shortly after buying or after your warranty expires. Eligible purchases made with the Chase Ink Business Cash Card will be covered for 120 days against damage or theft. This benefit applies to $10,000 per claim and up to $50,000 per account. In addition, an extended warranty increases the time period of a U.S. manufacturer's warranty by an additional year on eligible warranties of three years or less, up to four years from the date of purchase.
Baggage Delay
In case of a flight delay by more than six hours, the purchase of essential items such as clothing, toiletries, and charging cables for your cell phone is also covered by the baggage delay benefit. This perk reimburses up to $100 per day, for a maximum of five days.
Fraud and Zero Liability Protection
The Chase Ink Cash also comes with built-in protections to help your small business stay safe from fraud. With Fraud Protection and Zero Liability Protection coverages, your account will be monitored for unusual activity, and you won't be held responsible for unauthorized charges made with the card or account information.
Business management tools
With the Ink Cash, you'll get access to detailed reports and can build your business' credit profile. You also can add employee cards (authorized users) at no cost and can control spending limits on these cards.
Visa SavingsEdge
Small business owners looking to cut costs should take note of Visa SavingsEdge. This program offers automatic savings in the form of statement credits when you spend at participating vendors using an eligible Visa business credit card. It’s simple to enroll, and there’s no need to manually activate offers — once you’re in, the savings start stacking.
Redeeming Rewards With the Chase Ink Business Cash
As mentioned above, you can't access Chase's transfer partners with the Ink Cash alone. With this card, you can redeem your rewards at 1¢ apiece in the Chase Travel℠ portal, towards a statement credit, or gift cards. You also have the option to receive your cash back as an electronic deposit in a checking or savings account at numerous U.S. banks. It's also possible to redeem your rewards through Chase Pay Yourself Back, offering a list of redemption opportunities that change every few months.
Alternatively, you can use your points to pay for purchases at Apple and Amazon, but these provide less value. The only time it's worth considering the Amazon option is when you're targeted for a promotion to use just a few points for big savings.
Application Restrictions and Strategy
The Ink Cash is subject to Chase's 5/24 policy, meaning you're unlikely to be approved if you've opened five or more credit cards in the past 24 months. However, this applies only to credit cards that appear on your credit report, meaning most business credit cards won't affect this number. You can check your 5/24 status for free, if you're unsure of your current standing.
That said, opening an Ink Cash card won't count toward your 5/24 status, as it won't reflect on your personal credit report. That makes it a great card to apply for while trying to keep your number of new accounts low.
You also should know that Chase doesn't tend to approve the same person for more than two personal credit cards in a 30-day period and one business card in a 90-day period.
And while you might think, “I don't have a store, so I don't qualify for a business credit card,” that's not entirely true. If you're a freelancer, gig worker, or run a side hustle selling items on eBay, you are running a business. And because of that, you may qualify for a business credit card.
Cards That Compete With the Chase Ink Cash
If you don't think the Ink Cash‘s earning categories and benefits align with your needs, consider these other options:
- Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase made for your business
- 3X points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year
- 1X point per $1 on all other purchases
(Terms Apply)
- Earn 2X points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2X applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter. Terms and limitations apply.
- If your business spends across numerous categories and you want simplicity, check out the Ink Business Unlimited card. You'll earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases and won't pay an annual fee. It has the same application rules and ability to combine earnings with other Chase cards that we described above.
- If you want access to Chase's valuable transfer partners, consider the Chase Ink Preferred card. This is the only small business card from Chase that offers access to these partners without needing another card to pair with it. For a $95 annual fee, you'll get 3x earnings in a variety of business categories.
- If you want a card with a simple earning structure and access to transfer partners, look into the Blue Business Plus. You don't need another card to access the 20 Amex transfer partners and can earn 2x points on the first $50,000 of annual purchases, then 1x.
For further details on Chase's business credit cards, check out our comparison of the Ink card family.
Bottom Line
The Ink Cash is a great cash-back card for small business owners. With substantial cash-back perks, including 5% cash back on easy-to-use bonus categories, you can get a top return when using this card. It's a simple and effective business rewards card with no annual fee, providing outsized value for small business owners whose spending aligns with the card's earning rates.
- 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year
- 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year
- 1% cash back on all other card purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (Rates & Fees)
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