If you’re looking to earn a lot of Chase points fast, the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card and Ink Business Cash® Credit Card are the cards to know right now. Both are currently at their highest welcome offers ever, both have no annual fee, and both earn Ultimate Rewards® points you can transfer to airlines and hotels.

The only question is which one fits your spending better. Here’s how to decide.

Related: Find the best credit card for you

<All information about the Ink Business Cash and Unlimited has been collected independently by The Traveling Hansens. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.>

Why Business Cards Are Worth Your Attention

Before we compare them, here’s why it’s important to pay attention to business cards:

• Easier than you think: You don’t need a big company or even a registered business. Even side hustles like selling on Facebook Marketplace, babysitting, tutoring, or freelancing can qualify you. Just apply as a sole proprietor using your Social Security number.
• Don’t use up 5/24 slots: These cards don’t count against Chase’s 5/24 rule, which makes them perfect if you want to keep your personal card options open.
• Point flexibility: Both Ink cards earn flexible Ultimate Rewards®, which can be combined with a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card, or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card for access to airline and hotel transfer partners.

Learn more about qualifying for business cards here.

<All information about the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card, Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card and Ink Business Preferred® Card has been collected independently by The Traveling Hansens. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.>

The Offers

As I mentioned above, these are the highest offers we’ve ever seen on these cards!

They are marketed as cash-back cards, but they actually earn Ultimate Rewards®. To make those points fully flexible and use them with one of Chase’s 14 transfer partners, you will need to combine them onto an additional card, like a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card, or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card.

Note: You can no longer receive a personal referral bonus by referring someone to one of these cards unless they’re a new Chase Business customer. My affiliate links (which are different than personal referrals) haven’t changed, and I’d be so appreciative if you used my link to apply instead!

Comparing the Ink Unlimited and Ink Cash

Okay, back to comparing the cards. While both cards currently come with the same welcome offer and no annual fee, they earn points differently.

The Ink Business Unlimited is the simpler of the two, earning 1.5% cash back (1.5x points) on every purchase with no specific categories to track. This makes it a great fit if your spending is spread across lots of areas or you simply want a “set-it-and-forget-it” card that consistently earns a solid return.

The Ink Business Cash, on the other hand, is all about maximizing bonus categories. You’ll earn 5% cash back at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services (on up to $25,000 in combined purchases each year), plus 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants (also up to $25,000 annually). Everything else earns 1%. If you spend regularly in these categories, the returns can really add up, especially when you factor in the elevated welcome offer.

Both cards earn Chase Ultimate Rewards® and neither counts toward your 5/24 limit, so from a strategic standpoint, they’re equally flexible.

Qualifying For The Ink Unlimited and Ink Cash

Chase recently added lifetime language to these two cards, meaning you are not eligible for either of these cards if you’ve previously had one. This is a major bummer! Previously, these were cards that could be opened semi-regularly to earn more Chase points. This is no longer the case.

Chase has also started limiting how many business cards they’ll approve you for, depending on how many you currently have open. Your chances of approval are much higher if you have two or less open. If you have more than two Chase business cards currently open, I recommend closing your oldest one and waiting a few weeks before applying for one of these cards. Just be sure it’s been open for at least a year.

Check out this post for tips on what to do with your cards after the first year.

How to Combine Points

If you get one of these cards and want to make the points flexible, aka able to be transferred to hotel and airline partners, you will need one of the additional cards I mentioned above:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card*
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®
• Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card*

*The Hyatt transfer ratio from the Preferred cards is now 4:3 instead of 1:1, meaning 25% less.

So, once you have points on your Ink cards, it’s pretty simple to combine them with points from one of the other cards so that they can be transferred.

To do this, log in to your Chase account and go to your Ultimate Rewards®. Click Rewards Details, then click “combine points”.

Choose which cards you want to move points from and to, enter how many points you want to move, and hit confirm. It’s easy and instant!

How to Fill Out a Business Card Application

Okay, ready to grab one of these Ink cards? Here’s how to fill out the application.

If you have a registered business, you will use all of that information.

If you’re applying as a sole proprietor (using any small-side-hustle income), here’s how to fill out the application. You will first fill out your personal information, like your name, address, social security number, etc. Then you will fill out the business information section like this:

• Legal name of business: Your name
• Business name on card: Your name
• Business mailing address: Your address
• Type of business: Sole proprietor
• Tax ID type: Your SSN, unless you have an EIN
• Business type: Pick a category that is closest to what you do. It does not have to match exactly. In fact, I’ve found that it’s quite hard to get it to match exactly.
• Number of employees: Zero
• Annual business revenue: This is your projected income for the whole year, even if you haven’t made it yet.
• Years in business: Put the number of years you’ve been operating your business, even if you weren’t making any money at first.
• Gross annual income: This is your total household income, including all business and W2 income from you and a player two (if you have one).

Which Ink Card Should You Get?

• Go with Ink Business Unlimited if…
  You want a card that earns well on all purchases without thinking about categories. It’s especially good for high monthly spend across a variety of areas.
• Go with Ink Business Cash if…
  You have consistent spending in office supplies, internet/phone, gas, or dining. The 5% and 2% bonus categories make this card an easy way to earn extra points.

Read my full post about the Ink Unlimited here.

Read my full post about the Ink Cash here.

Final Thoughts

The Ink Business Unlimited and Ink Business Cash are two of the best business cards. They have record-breaking offers, but no annual fee to go with them. Win-win.

If you’ve been holding off on business cards because you thought you weren’t eligible – don’t! They’re easier to get than you think and can make a huge difference in how quickly you earn points toward your next big trip.