There aren’t many premium-card options in the small-business credit card world. Business owners may find that even if the card carries more benefits than its annual fee, they’ll have a hard time justifying an expense that doesn’t directly increase their bottom line.
However, plenty of great options exist for small businesses who want to earn valuable travel rewards on their purchases without paying hefty fees. Two of these, the Capital One Spark Miles for Business and the Chase Inc. Business Preferred® Credit Card, offer access to an incredible collection of transfer partners and impressive benefits for businesses.
Let’s compare the two to help you decide which one is right for your business.
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Spark Miles Business Comparison
| Royal occupation preferred | Spark Miles for business | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | $95 | $0 initial annual fee the first year, then $95 (see rates and fees) |
| Sign up bonus | Earn 120,000 bonus miles after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening | Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $4,500 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening |
| Bonus categories | Earn 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent on combined purchases on shipping, internet, cable, phone services, social media sites, search engines and travel
Earn 5x total points on Lyft rides (through March 2025) Earn 1 point per dollar on all other purchases |
Earn 5 points per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
Earn unlimited 2 miles per dollar spent on every purchase |
| benefits | Employee card at no extra cost
Travel and shopping security Cellphone security There are no foreign transaction fees |
Employee card at no extra cost (see rates and fees)
Up to $100 credit toward TSA PreCheck or Global Entry Extended warranty protection No foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees) |
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Spark Miles Business Welcome Offer
The Spark Miles for Business has a welcome bonus of 50,000 miles after spending $4,500 on purchases within the first three months of account opening. Although the welcome offer for the card is not as impressive as the Ink Business Preferred, it requires only half the cost. Thanks to an extensive list of transfer partners, at TPG’s July 2024 valuation of Capital One miles at 1.85 cents per mile, this bonus makes it worth $925.
Like nearly every Chase credit card, the Ink Preferred is restricted by the 5/24 rule, meaning you’ll automatically be declined if you’ve opened five or more credit cards for all issuers in the last 24 months.
Winner: Chase ink preferred. The 120,000 bonus miles for the welcome offer is exceptional.
Related: Capital Cash in a Mile? How to get maximum value when redeeming miles
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Spark Miles Business Benefits
Both of these cards carry a $95 annual fee (although only Spark waives it for the first year – see Spark Miles rates and fees), and you typically won’t find many benefits on these cheaper cards. Still, each card has advantages worth highlighting, besides the fact that neither charges foreign transaction fees (see Spark Miles rates and fees).
Daily newsletter
Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily Newsletter
Join over 700,000 readers for the latest news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts
With Ink Business Preferred, you get various travel insurance and security benefits. This Ink Preferred makes an ideal card for businesses that spend money on travel-related expenses or merchandise purchases.
For example, trip cancellation/interruption insurance covers up to $5,000 in coverage for prepaid, refundable travel expenses, and trip delay insurance covers trips delayed for 12 or more hours, providing up to $500 in reimbursement. As an Inc Preferred cardholder, paying for your or your employees’ phone bills offers cellphone protection of up to $600 per claim for cellphone loss or theft with a limit of three claims in a 12-month period and a $100 deductible per claim.
On the other hand, the Spark Miles Business Card only offers purchase protection and extended warranty protection on purchases, which Ink Preferred also offers. Business owners will also benefit from up to $100 in TSA PreCheck/Global Entry statement credits.
Both cards allow authorized users to be added at any cost (see Rates and Fees for Spark Miles Business), a great benefit for businesses with many employees. As a business owner, the Spark Miles Business Card doesn’t offer any protections or benefits if your expenses are travel-related, though it does offer statement credits for lounge access passes and expedited airport screening programs.
Winner: tie up Both cards offer benefits that businesses value, whether it’s travel protection, statement credit or lounge access.
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Earn points with Spark Miles Business
The biggest difference between these two cards is how they earn rewards for your spending after the initial welcome bonus.
- Travel including airfare, hotels, rental cars, trains and taxis
- Buy shipping
- Internet, cable and phone services
- Buy ads through social media sites and search engines
After that, the card earns 1 point per dollar on all purchases. If you max this cap each year, you’ll earn 450,000 Ultimate Rewards points (worth $9,225 based on TPG’s July 2024 valuation).
If you don’t spend frequently in this particular category, you’ll be better served by Spark Miles for Business. The card offers a fixed 2 miles per dollar on most purchases, giving an effective 3.7% return based on our July 2024 valuation. The card also earns an elevated 5 miles per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.
If you spend a lot in Ink Preferred’s bonus categories, that makes the card a good choice. However, for a simple earning structure, Spark Miles comes out ahead.
Winner: tie up Both cards have different bonus-earning categories, so it depends on where you spend your money.
Related: Best Credit Cards for Everyday Spending
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Redeeming points with Spark Miles Business
Both cards earn valuable transferable points, and it’s really hard to go wrong with them Chase Ultimate Rewards or the Capital One Miles Ecosystem. Both cards earn miles to transfer to loyalty partners or redeem through the Chase Travel℠ or Capital One travel portals for airfare, hotels and car rentals. You can also earn miles and elite qualifying miles on flights booked this way.
It is worth noting that Spark Miles for Business still allows you to redeem your miles at a fixed rate of 1 cent for every travel booked through the Capital One portal. Likewise, you can redeem your Chase points directly toward airfare through Chase Travel and receive a 25% bonus, making your points worth 1.25 cents each.
Rewards on both cards can also be redeemed for statement credit and gift card purchases. However, this only returns 1 percent per point and won’t maximize your rewards.
Winner: tie up Both cards offer similar redemption options and offer flexibility to cardholders.
Inc. Business Preferred Vs. Points transferred with Spark Miles Business
Both cards share the following three airline partners:
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Air France-KLM Flying Blue
- Emirates Skywards
Capital One has 15-plus airline and hotel partners that cardholders can transfer miles to. Spark Miles Business for a 1:1 transfer ratio across most partners.
Meanwhile, on the other hand, Inc. Business Preferred’s points are transferable to 14 airline and hotel partners at a 1:1 ratio. I used the welcome offer from Inc Preferred to transfer points to Singapore KrisFlyer to book a Singapore Airlines A380 business-class ticket.
Winner: tie up Each card maintains a list of its transfer partners, which appeal to different types of travelers.
Should I get Ink Business Preferred or Spark Miles Business?
Bottom line
Beyond that, it’s up to you to decide which card will be more rewarding for your ongoing spending — 3 points per dollar on your first $150,000 in select business categories or 2 miles per dollar on all purchases — and which program offers better deals with transfer partners. is For your travel needs.
Read our full reviews of Ink Business Preferred and Spark Miles for Business to learn more.
Apply at: Inc Business Preferred
For Capital One products listed on this page, some benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. For details of conditions and exclusions applicable see the relevant guidelines for benefits.