Chase Ink Business Unlimited vs Amex Blue Business Plus: Which Is Better?
Two $0-annual-fee cards, two totally different reward currencies — one pays flat cash, the other pays points you can turn into first class. Six rounds. Real numbers. One honest scorecard.
The verdict
Chase Ink Business Unlimited takes it, 3–2 on rounds.
Both cost nothing to carry — the real fork is whether you want guaranteed cash that never caps, or a higher points rate that only pays off if you're willing to transfer it.
Choose Chase Ink Business Unlimited if…
- • You want the biggest guaranteed bonus and a rate that never caps at any spend level
- • You'll only ever redeem for cash, never learn transfer partners
Choose Amex Blue Business Plus if…
- • Your annual card spend stays under roughly $50,000
- • You're willing to transfer points to airline/hotel partners for real extra value
Round by round
- Round 1Annual Fee vs ValueTieChase Ink Business Unlimited8/10
$0 fee / 1.5% uncapped
No annual fee, no earning cap on any category
- Zero fee with zero earning cap
- 5.0/5 NerdWallet rating
Source: Chase Ink Business Unlimited product terms
Amex Blue Business Plus8/10$0 fee / 2x to $50K
Higher rate than Chase, but caps at $50,000/year then drops to 1x
- Higher headline earn rate than Chase for a $0 fee
- 2x rate caps at $50,000/year
Source: Amex Blue Business Plus product terms
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Unlimited.
- Round 2Welcome BonusChase Ink Business Unlimited winsChase Ink Business Unlimited9/10
$1,000 bonus
All-time-high offer as of mid-2026, after $8,000 spend in 4 months
- Cash bonus, no redemption math needed
- All-time-high offer as of mid-2026
Source: Chase / CNBC Select welcome-bonus data
Amex Blue Business Plus5/1015,000 points
Standard public offer; targeted offers up to 50,000 points seen but not guaranteed
- Much lower spend requirement ($3,000 vs $8,000)
- Smaller guaranteed bonus value than Chase's $1,000 cash
Source: Amex welcome-bonus data, mid-2026
This round goes to Chase Ink Business Unlimited.
- Round 3Everyday Rewards RateAmex Blue Business Plus winsChase Ink Business Unlimited6/10
1.5% uncapped
Flat cash back on every purchase, no cap ever
- Never caps, no matter how much you spend
- Lower per-dollar rate than Amex under the $50K threshold
Source: Chase Ink Business Unlimited rewards structure
Amex Blue Business Plus8/102x points to $50K
Equivalent to a meaningfully higher rate than 1.5% cash below the cap
- Out-earns Chase's flat rate below the $50K cap
- Drops to 1x above $50,000/year in combined spend
Source: Amex Blue Business Plus rewards structure
This round goes to Amex Blue Business Plus.
- Round 4Category Caps & FlexibilityChase Ink Business Unlimited winsChase Ink Business Unlimited9/10
No cap
1.5% applies identically at any spend level
- Scales with the business with zero rate change
- Flat 1.5% rate is lower than Amex's 2% below the cap
Source: Chase Ink Business Unlimited rewards structure
Amex Blue Business Plus5/10$50,000 cap
Resets each calendar year; falls to 1x afterward, below Chase's flat rate
- No bonus-category bookkeeping required
- High-volume spenders lose ground to Chase past $50K/year
Source: Amex Blue Business Plus product terms
So this round goes to Chase Ink Business Unlimited.
- Round 5Points/Miles Value & RedemptionAmex Blue Business Plus winsChase Ink Business Unlimited5/10
1¢/point ceiling
Transfer value only unlocked by pairing with Ink Preferred or Sapphire Reserve
- Guaranteed 1-cent floor value, no redemption homework required
- No transfer value without a second Chase card
Source: Chase Ultimate Rewards points-value data
Amex Blue Business Plus8/101.5-2¢+/point
Standalone access to 20+ airline/hotel transfer partners
- Full transfer-partner access with just this one $0 card
- 2.7% foreign transaction fee still applies despite the travel-partner access
Source: Amex Membership Rewards transfer-value data
So this round goes to Amex Blue Business Plus.
- Round 6Foreign Fees & Who It FitsChase Ink Business Unlimited winsChase Ink Business Unlimited7/10
Built for broad, spread-out spend
- 690+ credit is a more attainable bar than Amex's typical range
- 3% foreign transaction fee
Amex Blue Business Plus6/10Built for points-curious small businesses
- Slightly lower foreign fee than Chase (2.7% vs 3%)
- Still too high a fee for genuine international spend
This one’s Chase Ink Business Unlimited — better credit access wins it.
Which one is for you?
Business that wants the biggest guaranteed cash bonus today
→ Chase Ink Business Unlimited · $1,000 cash after $8,000 spend beats Amex's 15,000-point standard offer
Business spending under $50,000/year that's willing to learn transfers
→ Amex Blue Business Plus · 2x points can be worth 1.5-2 cents each via transfer partners
High-volume business spending well past $50,000/year
→ Chase Ink Business Unlimited · 1.5% never caps; Amex drops to 1x above its $50K ceiling
Business that will only ever redeem for cash, never transfer
→ Chase Ink Business Unlimited · Guaranteed cash beats a points program you won't optimize
Side by side
- Free employee cards included, no added fee
- NerdWallet's top-rated small business card (5.0/5)
- All-time-high offer as of mid-2026
- No annual fee needed to earn it
- Higher headline earn rate than Chase for a $0 fee
- Much lower spend requirement ($3,000 vs $8,000)
- Out-earns Chase's flat rate below the $50K cap
- No bonus-category bookkeeping required
- 1.5% flat rate trails Premier's 2% base rate below $5,000
- Standalone value is still just 1 cent per point, same as Premier
- 3% foreign transaction fee vs Premier's none
- No extra statement credit like U.S. Bank's software credit
- 2x rate caps at $50,000/year
- Smaller guaranteed bonus value than Chase's $1,000 cash
- Drops to 1x above $50,000/year in combined spend
- High-volume spenders lose ground to Chase past $50K/year