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We'vе had the 100K Ink Business Preferred for several years, and in our view, it's one of the best travel credit cards out there, considering not only the high sign-up bonus and low annual fee, but also the card's bonus spend categories. Here are ten reasons to get the card, and below it a FAQ:
1. 100,000 Ultimate Rewards Points Bonus
Few cards offer a 100,000 points bonus, and those that do generally have higher annual fees. Note that as this is a business card, the bonus requires an $8000 minimum spend within three months after account opening. That's still pretty low minimum spend, however, compared to the $20,000 minimum spend for the Chase Sapphire Reserve Business card.
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2. Low Annual Fee
Compared to other business cards such as the AMEX Business Gold, which has an annual fee of $375 per year, or the Chase Sapphire Reserve Business card with its $795 annual fee, the Ink Business Preferred is a great deal, at only $95 per year. That's the same as the Chase Sapphire Preferred annual fee, yet the Ink Business Preferred earns 3X on travel, while the Sapphire Preferred earns only 2X on travel (although the Sapphire Preferred does earn 3X on dining).
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3. Earn 3X Points on Many Categories
Earn 3X points on many useful categories for small businesses: Travel, Internet, Phone, Cable, Shipping, Advertising on Social Media/Search Engines. For us, the 3X on travel is key, although for other business owners with significant shipping or advertising spend it might be those categories that are prioritized. The 3X on travel is even more important to many, now that the revamped Chase Sapphire Reserve only provides bonus points for airline and hotel spend, at 4X, but not other travel spend. So the Ink Business Preferred is the best travel card to use for non-airline, non-hotel spend such as cruises, trains, taxis, tours, and travel companies such as TravelSort.
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4. Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption
The Ink Business Preferred covers up to $5000 per covered person per covered trip (up to $10,000 per covered trip and up to $20,000 per 12 month period) as trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance for prepaid travel expenses. The most common covered reasons are illness or accident of the covered traveler, travel companion, or immediate family member.
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5. Primary Rental Car Coverage
If you don't have a car, say because you live in NYC, this is a throwaway benefit, but for most Americans, who do have a car and car insurance, primary rental car insurance when renting for business purposes is a good benefit, since it means that you don't involve your own car insurance, risking higher premiums. Simply ensure that you decline the rental car company's CDW when renting a car, and use the Ink Business Preferred. Note that you'll still need to pay for third party liability coverage. The primary CDW benefit provides reimbursement up to $60,000 for theft and collision damage for most rental vehicles with an MSRP of $125,000 or less.
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6. Purchase Protection
When you make business purchases using the Ink Preferred, they're covered for 120 days after purchase against theft and damage, up to $10,000 per item and up to $50,000 per account, although note that a number of things aren't covered, for example animals, living plants, antiques, motorized vehicles, items purchased for resale, computer software, medical equipment, perishables and consumables such as cosmetics, etc. See the benefits guide.
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7. Trip Delay Protection
The Ink Business Preferred's trip delay protection is comparable to the Sapphire Preferred's: it covers up to $500 in reasonable expenses towards a hotel or other accommodation, meals, toiletries, etc. when delayed 12 hours or more or overnight by a common carrier, when you used the Ink Preferred to purchase some part of the trip.
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8. Cell Phone Protection
If you charge your monthly cell phone bill to your Ink Business Preferred, you're eligible for up to $1000 for theft or damage to your cell phone, after you pay a $100 deductible. Note that this coverage is secondary to other insurance you may have, such as homeowner's or renter's insurance.
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9. Coverage is Provided Even if Only a Portion of Trip Paid for with the Card
Unlike AMEX, which generally requires that you paid for the full amount of the trip using your AMEX card, the Ink Preferred allows you to be covered even if only a portion of the trip was paid for with the Ink Preferred card.
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10. Doesn't Count Towards Chase 5/24
While you'll need to be under Chase 5/24 (fewer than 5 credit card applications within the past 24 months) to apply for the Ink Business Preferred, it doesn't count towards Chase 5/24, since it's a business card and isn't reported to the credit bureaus.
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FAQ
If I Have a Different Ink Card, Such as the Ink Cash or Old Ink Plus, Am I Eligible for the Ink Business Preferred?
Yes, since the cards are considered separate products, you're eligible for the signup bonus for the Ink Business Preferred even if you have a different Ink card. If you previously earned a signup bonus for the Ink Business Preferred, it must be at least 24 months since you received a signup bonus.
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Does Chase 5/24 Apply to This Card?
As we wrote above, yes, you'll need to have applied for fewer than 5 new credit cards (from all issuers, not just Chase) within the past 24 months to be eligible for the Ink Business Preferred, but the card, once you have it, doesn't count towards your 5 credit card applications as it's a business card and isn't reported to the credit bureaus (note that while this is true of many business cards, it's not true of all of them; Capital One *does* report business cards, so avoid applying for Capital One Business Cards.
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What If I Don't Get Instantly Approved?
Even if you don't get instantly approved for the card and receive a message that Chase needs more time to consider your application, you may still get approved. For example, one of our clients wasn't instantly approved, but about 10-12 days later received the new Ink Business Preferred in the mail.
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What are 100,000 Ultimate Rewards Points Worth?
As a rule of thumb, we recommend not redeeming Ultimate Rewards points or other frequent flyer miles or points unless you'll earn at least 2 cents per point in value; ideally the value should be higher. 100,000 points at 2 cents per point in value is $2000, an excellent signup bonus. Obtain even more value per point by transferring points when there's a transfer bonus.
Have you gotten the 100K Ink Business Preferred?
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