Ink Business Unlimited

Rewards by category

Our take

The Ink Business Unlimited is built for business spending that refuses to fit neat categories. It earns a flat 1.5x Ultimate Rewards points on nearly every purchase, with no bonus categories to track and no annual fee to justify. The one exception to the flat rate is a promotion that pays 5% total on qualifying Lyft services through September 30, 2027. If your expenses jump between supplies, software, contractors, and everything in between, a single dependable rate on all of it beats juggling category cards that only cover part of your spend.

The tradeoffs are easy to read. SwipeCaddy values Ultimate Rewards points at one cent each for ranking, so 1.5x translates to an effective 1.5% back — solid, not spectacular. New cardmembers can earn $750 cash back after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months; after that one-time bonus, the card has to earn its keep purchase by purchase. And the 3% foreign transaction fee makes it the wrong choice for international spending; keep it in the drawer when business takes you abroad.

In a small business wallet, this card plays the floor. Let bonus-category cards take the spend they were built for, and route everything else — the uncategorized, the miscellaneous, the vendors no bonus card covers — through the flat 1.5x. Because it runs on Visa and carries no annual fee, holding it as the default costs nothing and quietly raises the minimum you earn on every dollar.

Store bonuses

• Lyft5x

Common questions

Does Ink Business Unlimited have an annual fee?

No — Ink Business Unlimited has no annual fee.

What rewards does Ink Business Unlimited earn on everything else?

1.5x on all other purchases, in Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Should I use the Ink Business Unlimited for purchases outside the US?

It runs on Visa, but a 3% foreign transaction fee applies, which is double the effective 1.5% you earn back. That math makes it a poor pick for purchases abroad or in foreign currencies. Keep it for US spending and route international charges through a card that does not add a foreign transaction fee.

Is the Ink Business Unlimited worth keeping once the welcome bonus is paid?

Yes. The $750 cash back after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months is a one-time boost; after that, the card's case rests on its flat 1.5x Ultimate Rewards earnings. Since it costs nothing to keep, holding it as your everyday default carries no downside, and it guarantees a steady return on business purchases that no bonus category would otherwise cover. Keep it working as your floor.

Related reading

• How we value points and miles (and why our numbers are lower than everyone else's)SwipeCaddy ranks cards by reward rate × a conservative cash value per point: 1¢ for cash back and transferable points (Chase, Amex, Citi, Capital One, Bilt), 1.1–1.3¢ for airline miles, 0.4–1.4¢ for hotel points, and 0.8–0.9¢ for store currencies. Optimistic transfer values are recorded for context but never ranked, because most people never achieve them.