Both cards are offering $1,000 back on $8,000 spent, the best offer either has ever had. This piece breaks down how to choose, and why most business owners end up wanting both.
Quick answer: if your spend is concentrated in office supplies, internet, cable, or phone bills, get the Ink Business Cash. If your spend is spread across everything else, get the Ink Business Unlimited. If you can qualify for both, get both. They're built to work together.
Neither card requires an LLC or a registered business entity. You can apply as a sole proprietor with your name and Social Security number. (More on exactly how that works in the next post.)
As of this writing, Chase is offering $1,000 back on each card after you spend $8,000 in the first four months, with no annual fee on either one.
Ink Business Unlimited: a flat 1.5% cash back on everything. No categories or caps to track.
Ink Business Cash: 5% cash back on the first $25,000 combined spend per year on office supplies, internet, cable, and phone. 2% on the first $25,000 combined spend per year on gas and restaurants. 1% on everything else.
| Category | Ink Business Unlimited | Ink Business Cash |
|---|---|---|
| Office supplies, internet, cable, phone | 1.5% | 5% (first $25k/yr) |
| Gas & restaurants | 1.5% | 2% (first $25k/yr) |
| Everything else | 1.5% | 1% |
| Annual fee | None | None |
Swipe left to see all columns
The catch is that the Cash drops to 1% the moment your spending falls outside those two categories, which is exactly why most business owners end up wanting both.
Both cards pay you in cash back, redeemable as a statement credit or a deposit into a Chase account. Fine, but that caps your value at 1 cent per point.
If you also hold a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Ink Business Preferred, you can convert that cash back into full Chase Ultimate Rewards points instead: the same points that transfer to airlines and hotels at 1.5 to 2+ cents each.
Chase's welcome bonus terms exclude people who've previously held that specific card or its no-annual-fee sibling. If you've had an Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited before, check the current terms at chase.com before counting on the new bonus.
If I had to pick one, I'd lean Unlimited for most people. But if your monthly bills match the Cash's 5% categories, that return is hard to pass up. Running both together gets you the best of both without much extra effort.
The real no-brainer, though: with no annual fee on either card, there's little reason not to open one to capture the $1,000 welcome bonus. That's over $1,000 in free travel once you move it into Ultimate Rewards points, for hitting a spending minimum you were likely going to hit anyway. Cards with an annual fee require some math to justify. These don't.
Not sure which setup makes sense for your numbers? Book a free 30-minute call and we'll figure it out together. If you want me to go deeper and build your card strategy around your real spending, that's what my $1K Points Accelerator Audit does: a one-hour call plus a written summary you keep, for $197.
Affiliate disclosure: Some links I share are referral links, a free way to support this site. I'll always point you to whichever card fits your spending, whether or not I benefit. Full Affiliate Disclosure here.