Compare the Features and Benefits of American Express® Gold Card and
Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

The American Express Gold Card (and the Rose Gold version of the Amex Gold Card) is one of my favorite credit cards on the market.

While many cards have more bonus categories or more features, the simplicity of a card that earns 4X American Express Membership Rewards points on both dining (up to $50,000 annually; 1X thereafter) and at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 annually; 1X thereafter), given how much of my monthly spend is in one of these two categories, makes it an easy top-of-wallet choice. 3X on airfare is also nice.

It helps that I have no problem at all using the included credits, living in a major metropolitan area. In fact, I’ve generally used both of the included credits at GrubHub and Uber Eats by the fifth of each month! The Resy credits are also easy to use if you live in a major metro area (although admittedly not as easy if you don’t!). And the $7 Dunkin’ credits come in handy if you live in a Dunkin’ heavy area (which we do).

While I wouldn’t make it my only credit card, it definitely complements other cards nicely. If you already have the American Express Platinum Card, for example, you’d be better off using the Platinum card for its many benefits and 5X on airfare, but using your Amex Gold Card for your groceries and restaurant expenses.

Keep in mind that all of your American Express Membership Rewards points accrue to one master account. As long as you have at least one card open that earns Membership Rewards points, your points will never expire.

This includes no-annual fee cards like the Blue Business Plus.

Rates and Fees for the American Express® Gold Card

For most small business owners, it makes sense to have all three Chase Ink credit cards: this card, the Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card, the Chase Ink Preferred®, and the Chase Ink Unlimited®.

They all complement each other perfectly. Once you have a the Chase Ink Preferred®, which allows you to transfer points to Chase’s great lineup of airline and hotel partners like World of Hyatt, you will want to get the Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited to maximize your total earnings on bonus categories – since all points can be combined to your Ink Preferred.

The Ink Cash is a truly amazing card when it comes to bonus multipliers on select business categories. With 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year plus 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year, you have tremendous bonus category multipliers on a no annual fee card.

But the most important thing to know is that although this card says you are earning cash back, that is only if you don’t also have a Chase Ink Preferred®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card.

Either way, you are earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points. But without one of the above cards, you can only redeem your points for 1 cent per point. Once you do have a Chase Ink Preferred®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card in your arsenal, though, you’ll be able to move your points from your Ink Cash to any of those three cards, where you can either transfer to airline and hotel partner programs or redeem through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal where your points are worth 1.25 – 1.5 cents each, depending on which card you have. The Ink Preferred and Sapphire Preferred offer 1.25 cents a point while the much higher annual fee Sapphire Reserve gives you 1.5 cents per point when booking travel in the Ultimate Rewards portal.

Even if you don’t “combo” your Ink Cash, those 5% and 2% bonus categories are exceptionally strong for business spending on a business credit card with no annual fees. And that large signup bonus doesn’t hurt either!

Overall, the Chase Ink Cash is one of my very favorite cards. I charge my cable, internet, and phone to the card and use it often at office supply stores, which sell a wide array of goods. I also use it for gas stations and dining as I like racking up Chase Ultimate Rewards points at a 2X bonus rate.

But keep in mind that it is at its most powerful when paired with a Chase Ink Preferred®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card. To show you the difference, you know cash back means each point is worth a penny. But when you have it paired with one of these other cards to unlock points transfers, we value those points at 1.75 cents a piece – due to the flexibility of transfer partners and the potential redemptions those programs offer. So pairing your card boosts the rewards value, in our humble opinion, by 75%.

When using our spend calculator on this card, you’ll notice that we ask if you have a Chase Ink Preferred®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card and, if you do, we’ll increase the value of rewards on this card from 1 cent to 1.75 cents accordingly.

Please note: you must be under 5/24 (more on the Chase 5/24 rule) to apply for this card and you cannot apply for more than one Chase Business card in any 30 day period. You can apply for a maximum of two Chase cards within 30 days, with only, at most, 1 of them being a business card.

This card is also mentioned in the article Business Credit Cards That Don’t Report to Personal Credit Bureaus.