One thing I like as much as traveling is getting a good deal. There are some great credit cards out there for business owners, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Ink Business are my two favorites.

I have earned thousands of dollars of free travel through this combo, and taken free flights around the world!

I have also upgraded my travel experience with free TSA Pre, free Global Entry, free lounge access, and free restaurants at many airports.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

The Chase Sapphire Reserve has become my go-to credit card. Here are some of my favorite perks:

  • 50,000 point bonus for signup. These are worth $750 in free travel! While the points can be redeemed for cash at a rate of $1 per 100 points, they can also be redeemed for travel at a rate of $1.50 per 100 points. You can also redeem points at a 1-1 rate for miles/points with different airlines and hotels, including Southwest, United, Jet Blue, Marriott, and Hyatt.
  • Free TSA Pre and free Global Entry ($100 value). This makes getting through the airport so much quicker, and I don’t need to get there as early.
  • Free Priority Pass lounge access, for you and up to two guests. This makes the whole flying experience so much better, as you get to wait in a quiet and calm place. They also have free food and free drinks, and I’ve had many meals courtesy of the lounges. While the quality varies in the US, there are some truly amazing international lounges.
  • Free airport restaurants, with up to $56 off the bill for you and a guest, at select restaurants through the Priority Pass program.
  • Earn 4.5% back on restaurants and travel, when you spend it on redeeming travel. This is because you earn 3 points per dollar in those categories, and can redeem the points for travel at 1.5x. You can’t beat that!
  • Earn 1.5% back on everything else. You earn 1 point per dollar, but these are redeemable at 1.5x on travel.

At the time of this writing, the Chase Sapphire Reserve comes with a hefty $450 annual fee, but it also comes with a $300 annual travel credit (which is automatically taken off your bill) so it’s really only $150. Unfortunately the annual fee on personal cards is not tax-deductible, or you’d get the $150 back off your taxes. However, it’s a no-brainer to pay $150 for $750 in free travel the first year, and you’ll make it back in earnings and lounge access other years.

Chase Ink Business Preferred

I like the Chase Ink Business Preferred because of its sign-on bonus and it’s earnings in several categories.

When linked with a Chase Sapphire Reserve, this card is even more valuable – because the Ink redeems points at a rate of 1.25% when spent on travel, but you can transfer the points to your Sapphire Reserve and redeem them for 1.5% on travel. It’s very easy to link the cards by calling Chase.

Here are my favorite perks, when linked with a Chase Sapphire Reserve:

  • 80,000 points for signup! These are worth $1200 when transferred to the Sapphire Reserve and redeemed for travel, or $800 cash, or 80,000 miles/points with various airlines and hotels.
  • 20,000 points referral bonus when you refer a fellow business owner to sign up (including yourself if you have more than one business).
  • 4.5% back on business categories, such as travel, internet, phone, cable, shipping, social media ads, and web search ads. This is when you convert the points to the Sapphire and redeem them for travel; otherwise they are only worth 3% back.

The Chase Ink Business Preferred comes with a $95 annual fee, which is tax deductible.

The Perfect Pair

Together, these credit cards make the perfect pair for traveling entrepreneurs. Not only do you get $1950 in free travel as a sign-on bonus, but you get 4.5% back in a number of useful categories, free lounge access, free TSA Pre, and free Global Entry! They have totally changed my travel experience, and I’ve lost count of the number of free trips and hotels that I’ve gotten from the pair.