The Amex Business Platinum Card vs. the Chase Ink Business Preferred [Detailed Comparison]

The value of having a business credit card is obvious. These cards can serve as a means to keep business and personal expenses separate, to keep track of expenses in real-time, and to offer annual reports that make it easier to gather needed information at tax time.

But over and above the practical aspects of using a business credit are the potential reward-earning possibilities. Rewards earned on a business credit card can help improve the bottom line of your business by offsetting business expenses such as travel.

Making the decision to secure a business credit card was probably easy, but now you may need to decide which card to select.

That’s why we’re focusing on a top Chase business credit card and an Amex Business credit card, and putting them head to head to make a fair comparison.

We’ll look at every aspect of the cards, including earning, redeeming, statement credits, benefits, and more.

Yes, the benefits of having a business credit card may be obvious, but it will also be clear as to which of these popular cards is a winner for your operation after you review our article today.

Let’s get started with our comparison of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express versus the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card.

Amex Business Platinum Card vs. Ink Business Preferred Card — Overview

Before we dive deeper into each of our featured cards, let’s look at a high-level overview of the major features of the Amex Business Platinum card and the Ink Business Preferred card, 2 of the best business credit cards out there:

Welcome Bonuses

The Value of a Welcome Bonus

Welcome bonuses are often used by the credit card issuer as an incentive to sign up for a card. Bonuses vary in amount but they represent an opportunity to receive a lump sum of rewards upfront to jump-start your rewards account.

Bonuses can also be quite lucrative. You can receive hundreds, even thousands, of dollars in value when redeeming your welcome bonus points for travel.

These bonuses are deposited into your account after meeting minimum spending requirements that are required within the first 3 months after card approval.

Here is a snapshot of the current welcome bonuses for the 2 cards we’re comparing today:

Hot Tip: Check to see if you’re eligible for a huge welcome bonus offer of up to 170,000 points with the Amex Business Platinum. The current public offer is 120,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

Membership Rewards Points vs. Ultimate Rewards Points

The Amex Business Platinum card earns valuable Membership Rewards points while the Ink Business Preferred card earns equally valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

You’ll find extraordinary value with either type of rewards points, especially when redeeming for travel.

Comparing Earning Potential

When we compare earning potential, it’s clear that the Amex Business Platinum card rewards heavily on travel purchases while the Ink Business Preferred card adds additional bonus earning categories for other business-related purchases.

When selecting a business credit card, it’s important to identify your largest purchases and apply the earning rates to determine which card gives you the highest return for your mix of spending.

Bottom Line: It’s important to estimate your largest expenses before selecting a business credit card. Your mix of business spending determines which card will ultimately deliver the highest earnings for your business.

Comparing Redemption Options

Both Membership Rewards points and Ultimate Rewards offer flexible redemption options and have similar processes for doing so.

Each rewards program has a proprietary travel portal that offers incentives for redeeming points via these sites.

Redeeming points earned on either card via the associated travel portal results in fixed values of 1 cent for Membership Rewards and 1.25 cents for Ultimate Rewards. The Amex Business Platinum card also rebates 35% of your points back when booking flights on your selected qualifying airline through Amex Travel.

It is possible to receive even greater value, however, by transferring Membership Rewards or Ultimate Rewards to travel partners.

American Express transfer partners include 17 airlines and 3 hotel programs, while Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partners include 11 airline partners and 3 hotel partners.

Each program offers its own set of valuable opportunities — learn how to maximize your Membership Rewards redemptions and Ultimate Rewards redemptions in our complete guides.

Bottom Line: Each card offers the best potential value for your points when the points are redeemed for travel, either through the card’s proprietary travel portal or by transferring points to airline and hotel travel partners.

Airport Lounge Access

The Amex Business Platinum card is the clear winner for lounge access as the Ink Business Preferred card doesn’t offer any complimentary lounge access benefit.

The Amex Business Platinum card provides access to over 1,400 lounges worldwide including the prestigious Centurion Lounges. The value of lounge access alone justifies this card’s annual fee.

Enjoy complimentary access to the following lounge networks:

Hotel and Rental Car Program Benefits

Each of the cards we’re comparing offers benefits with select resort and hotel programs. In addition, the Amex Business Platinum card offers hotel elite status.

You’ll also receive member discounts, vehicle upgrades, and other benefits with each card’s rental car program perks.

Hotel Program Benefits — Amex Business Platinum Card

• Gold Elite status with Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy
• American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts benefits, including:
  • Room upgrades when available
  • Breakfast for 2 guests each day
  • Early check-in and late checkout
  • Free Wi-Fi
  • A unique property amenity (such as a spa, or food and beverage credit) worth a minimum of $100
• The Hotel Collection benefits on 2-night stays:
  • $100 room credit per stay to use on spa, dining, or activities
  • Upgraded room if available

Hotel Program Benefits — Ink Business Preferred Card

Book your hotel directly through the Chase Luxury Hotel and Resort Collection and receive several benefits at over 900 properties worldwide:

• Complimentary daily breakfast for 2
• Early check-in and late checkout
• Upgraded room if available
• Free Wi-Fi
• A local amenity specific to the property

Rental Car Program Benefits

The Amex Business Platinum card offers the following rental car program benefits:

• Avis Preferred status benefits
• Hertz Gold Plus Rewards President’s Circle status
• National Emerald Club Executive status

The Ink Business Preferred card offers discounts with several car rental companies including Dollar, Hertz, Audi on demand (formerly known as Silvercar), and more through Visa Signature benefits.

Bottom Line: While both cards provide benefits at resort and hotel program collection properties, the Amex Business Platinum card provides elite status with Hilton and Marriott. The Amex Business Platinum card also offers broader rental car program benefits. 

Statement Credits and Additional Benefits

The Amex Business Platinum card offers several additional benefits that translate into economic value if your business can use them.

• $200 annual statement credit for airline incidentals purchases
• Up to $100 Global Entry or up to $85 TSA PreCheck application fee statement credit
• Up to $400 annual statement credits for Dell purchases per year
• Up to $360 in Indeed credits per year
• Up to $150 in Adobe credits per year
• Up to $120 in wireless statement credits per year
• An up to $189 CLEAR Plus membership credit

The Ink Business Preferred card does not offer any statement credits.

Both cards offer the additional business-related benefits of annual statements, zero liability and fraud protection, employee cards, and card management to track employee spending.

Travel Benefits and Protections

Travel benefits and protections can save you money and assist you in getting help when something goes wrong during your travels.

Here’s how the 2 cards compare when we look at key travel coverages:

Note that this is not an all-encompassing list of benefits and protections, just key coverages for comparison purposes. You can view full descriptions and the terms and conditions for each coverage in each card’s guide to benefits.

Bottom Line: The Ink Business Preferred card shines with primary rental car coverage, baggage delay coverage, travel accident insurance, and more, which makes it quite attractive when compared to the Amex Business Platinum card.

Shopping Benefits and Protections

Here’s how shopping benefits and protections compare with the Amex Business Platinum card and the Ink Business Preferred card:

• Purchase Protection — Both cards offer 120 days of theft or damage protection of $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per calendar year.
• Return Protection — If an eligible item you purchase on the Amex Business Platinum card declines in price within 90 days of the purchase date, you could receive up to $300 per item and $1,000 per year. The Ink Business Preferred card does not have return protection.
• Extended Warranty — The Amex Business Platinum card extends the U.S. manufacturer’s warranty for eligible items for 2 additional years on warranties less than 5 years. The Ink Business Preferred card extends for 1 year on warranties of 3 years or less.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees — Neither card charges foreign transaction fees.
• No Preset Spending Limit — The Amex Business Platinum card has no preset spending limit, which makes it much easier to make large transactions. The Ink Business Preferred card has a traditional credit limit.

Annual Fees and Adding Additional Users

Annual Fees

While annual fees can change, you’ll find that the Amex Business Platinum card has a much higher fee than the Ink Business Preferred card. The difference in annual fees, however, also parallels the difference in benefits.

As you read through the benefits of each card, keep track of the ones that will provide value to your business. In the end, the value of the benefits you will use should exceed the cost of the annual fee, regardless of the card you choose.

Adding Additional Users

Adding authorized users to your card can increase your rewards earning and grant card benefits to the additional user.

The Amex Business Platinum card charges $350 per additional authorized user (rates and fees). The additional person receives their own card, complimentary worldwide lounge access, hotel/car rental elite status and benefits, Global Entry/TSA PreCheck fee credit, and more.

The Ink Business Preferred card does not charge a fee for adding an authorized user. The additional user can share in the card benefits provided, including cell phone coverage when their bill is paid for with the card.

Final Thoughts

Premium travel rewards cards come with high annual fees but they also come with premium benefits. If you’ll use the associated benefits, you can receive value beyond the cost of the annual fee.

The Amex Business Platinum card comes with enough luxury travel benefits to make it worthy of the annual fee.

And while the Ink Business Preferred card does not have all those luxury travel perks, it does come with a much lower annual fee. It also has strong earning power, flexible redemption options, and a nice welcome bonus.

The best card for you will be the one that matches your tolerance for an annual fee, provides value in the form of usable benefits, and aligns with your business spending patterns in order to maximize earning potential.

For the car rental collision damage coverage benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car rental loss or damage coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. For the trip cancellation and interruption insurance and trip delay insurance benefits of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company. For the baggage insurance plan benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. For the extended warranty and purchase protection benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. For the cell phone protection benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company. For the return protection benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. For the Premium Global Assist Hotline benefit of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. If approved and coordinated by Premium Global Assist Hotline, emergency medical transportation assistance may be provided at no cost. In any other circumstance, card members may be responsible for the costs charged by third-party service providers.

For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.