Chase Ink Business Preferred vs Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards: Which Is Better?
A $95 category-bonus points card against a $0-fee travel card that nearly doubles its rate if you already bank there. Six rounds. Real numbers. One honest scorecard.
The verdict
Chase Ink Business Preferred takes it, 4–2 on rounds.
This isn't really a fair fight unless you already bank with Bank of America — Chase wins on rate and flexibility for most businesses, and BofA only closes the gap for existing BofA relationship customers.
Choose Chase Ink Business Preferred if…
- • You don't already keep a qualifying balance with Bank of America
- • Your spend concentrates in travel, shipping, telecom, or advertising
Choose Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards if…
- • You already bank with Bank of America and can maintain $20,000+ for Preferred Rewards for Business
- • You want a genuinely free card and don't need transfer-partner redemption options
Round by round
- Round 1Annual Fee vs ValueBank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards winsChase Ink Business Preferred7/10
$95/yr
Primary rental insurance + cell phone protection, no enrollment needed
- Primary rental car insurance up to $60,000
- Cell phone protection up to $1,000 per claim
Source: Chase Ink Preferred perks data
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards9/10$0/yr
Travel accident insurance, lost luggage, trip delay coverage — no fee
- No spend threshold to maintain the $0 fee
- Comparable protection list to Chase's paid card
Source: Bank of America Travel Rewards annualFee / keyPerks
This round goes to Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards.
- Round 2Welcome BonusChase Ink Business Preferred winsChase Ink Business Preferred8/10
100,000 pts / $8,000 spend
Worth $1,250+ toward Chase Travel
- Bonus worth 2.5x more than BofA's in dollar terms
- Public offer, no targeting required
Source: Chase Ink Preferred offer terms
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards6/1050,000 pts / $5,000 spend
Redeemable for a $500 statement credit
- Lower $5,000 spend threshold, easier to reach
- Tops out at just $500 in value, well below Chase's $1,250+
Source: Bank of America Travel Rewards welcomeBonus
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Preferred.
- Round 3Everyday Rewards RateChase Ink Business Preferred winsChase Ink Business Preferred7/10
3x (capped $150K), 1x else
Available to every cardholder, no relationship required
- 3x on genuinely common everyday categories
- No banking relationship needed to earn the top rate
Source: Chase Ink Preferred rewards structure
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards4/101.5x base, up to 2.62x gated
- Can reach up to 2.62x for Preferred Rewards for Business members
- 1.5x base rate is unremarkable without the relationship boost
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Preferred.
- Round 4Category Caps & FlexibilityChase Ink Business Preferred winsChase Ink Business Preferred6/10
$150K/yr cap on 3x
No relationship or balance requirement to qualify
- Applies equally to every cardholder, no balance requirement
- $150,000/yr cap on the bonus categories
Source: Chase Ink Preferred rewards structure
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards5/10$20K+ balance for top rate
Best rate requires 3+ months of qualifying balances
- Points never expire while the account stays open
- Top rate requires maintaining a $20K+ balance for 3+ months
Source: Bank of America Travel Rewards weaknesses
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Preferred.
- Round 5Points Value & RedemptionChase Ink Business Preferred winsChase Ink Business Preferred6/10
1¢ baseline / ~2¢+ transfer
14 transfer partners, sweet-spot redemptions up to 2¢+
- 14 transfer partners open a path above 1¢/point
- Baseline cut from 1.25¢ to 1¢ in June 2025
Source: Chase Ink Preferred points value data
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards4/101¢ fixed, no partners
No airline/hotel transfer partners despite the 'Travel Rewards' name
- No airline/hotel transfer partners at all
- Every redemption path caps at exactly 1¢/point
Source: Bank of America Travel Rewards pointsValue data
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Preferred.
- Round 6Credit Needed / Who It FitsBank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards winsChase Ink Business Preferred6/10
690+ credit needed
No banking relationship required
- Fits any small business, no banking relationship needed
- 690+ credit is accessible for growing businesses
Source: Chase Ink Preferred creditNeeded
Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards8/10Good-excellent credit + BofA relationship
Ideal for businesses enrolled in Preferred Rewards for Business
- Ideal for businesses already enrolled in Preferred Rewards for Business
- Outside a BofA relationship, fits less well than Chase
Source: Bank of America Travel Rewards bestFor
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Preferred.
Which one is for you?
Business with no existing Bank of America relationship
→ Chase Ink Business Preferred · Chase's 3x and transfer partners beat BofA's ungated base rate outright
Business already keeping $20K+ at Bank of America
→ Bank of America Business Advantage Travel Rewards · Preferred Rewards for Business can push the free card to a 2.62x rate
Owner who wants the bigger, higher-dollar welcome bonus
→ Chase Ink Business Preferred · 100K pts worth $1,250+ vs BofA's 50K pts worth $500
Business that wants to redeem points via airline/hotel transfers
→ Chase Ink Business Preferred · BofA has zero transfer partners despite the 'Travel Rewards' name
Side by side
- Fee pays for itself fast for a business with meaningful 3x-category spend
- Same $8,000/3-month spend bar as Ink Unlimited, bigger payout
- Worth at least $1,250 toward travel booked through Chase Travel
- Double the rate on travel, shipping, telecom, and ad spend
- Genuinely free, no fine print
- Easier $5K spend threshold
- Real ceiling for existing BofA customers
- Flexible against any travel/dining charge
- A real annual cost, unlike Ink Unlimited
- Just 1x outside those 4 categories
- Baseline cash-out cut from 1.25¢ to 1¢ in June 2025
- No 0% intro APR offer at all
- Reaching the boosted 2.62x rate needs a $20,000+ balance parked with Bank of America for 3+ months
- Value capped at $500
- Base rate below Capital One's without the boost
- No transfer partners — value capped at 1¢