Chase vs. Bank of America Credit Cards – Which Is Best? [2024]

Comparing what the largest banks in the U.S. offer in the way of credit cards is always fascinating. Although JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America are the 2 largest banks in the U.S. by total assets, the 2 institutions couldn’t have a more opposite approach to credit card portfolios.

In general, Bank of America focuses on cash-back rewards, while Chase is focused on those interested in travel rewards.

Sure, Bank of America and Chase both offer products that intertwine themselves with different credit card strategies, but their messaging of flagship credit cards is pretty clear in general.

Let’s compare what credit cards these 2 juggernauts offer in a head-to-head comparison!

Comparing Chase Ultimate Rewards and Bank of America Preferred Rewards

Chase’s flagship rewards system is called Ultimate Rewards. Even though Chase works with airlines and hotels, including United and IHG, to issue co-branded credit cards, Ultimate Rewards is unique because it isn’t tied to a single airline or hotel.

For this reason, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are incredibly valuable and easy to use. Best of all, Chase issues a series of different credit cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points (or cards with rewards easily converted into Ultimate Rewards points).

Bank of America’s flagship rewards program is called Preferred Rewards (its business rewards program is called Preferred Rewards for Business).

Broadly speaking, Bank of America points can’t be transferred to travel partners, which is already a huge setback for Bank of America if you’re looking to maximize value.

Right now, Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be used for:

• Transfers to travel partners, including airlines and hotels
• Bookings made through the Chase Travel portal
• Pay Yourself Back
• Gift cards
• Cash-back/statement credits
• Online shopping, including Apple and Amazon.com

The redemption options above are sorted from highest to lowest value. The best value, without a doubt, is to transfer Ultimate Rewards points to travel partners for luxury award travel where you can get up to 10 cents per point of value!

Right now, Chase has a fantastic list of transfer partners:

Airline Transfer Partners

Chase Transfer Partners

In particular, you can transfer Chase points to frequent flyer programs including Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways Executive Club, United MileagePlus, Emirates Skywards, and Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer at a 1:1 ratio to book amazing flights like Emirates first class, Etihad first class, Qatar Airways Qsuites, Singapore Airlines First Class Suites, and so much more.

Even more impressive, you can transfer Chase points to World of Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio to book some amazing luxury hotel stays.

That’s why we value Chase Ultimate Rewards points at 2 cents each.

Chase travel portal reservations and Pay Yourself Back redemptions will get a maximum of 1.5 cents per point in value, while gift cards net up to 1.2 cents per point, cash-back gets 1 cent per point, and online shopping will almost always get you less than 1 cent per point of value.

On the flip-side, Bank of America points are worth a flat 1 cent per point.

However, you can earn a bonus of up to 75% extra rewards if you hold minimum deposits and/or assets in your qualifying Bank of America and/or Merrill accounts. Your points will still be worth a flat 1 cent per point, but you’ll get more rewards per dollar spent with the Preferred Rewards program.

Currently, you can use your points for gift cards, Bank of America Travel Center bookings, statement credits, or direct deposits into Bank of America and eligible Merrill investment accounts only.

Best Overall Travel Rewards Card

If you’re looking for a great starter rewards credit card to dip your toes into travel rewards, we’ll show you our favorite picks in this section.

Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

Without a shadow of a doubt, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is the best overall travel rewards credit card among those in Chase and Bank of America’s portfolios.

That’s because it has a vast rewards structure, an introductory welcome offer, and attractive ongoing perks.

Here’s how you can earn up to 5x Ultimate Rewards points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card:

• Earn 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel
• Earn 5x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• Earn 5x points on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $250 (through March 31, 2025)
• Earn 3x points on dining, online grocery purchases, and select streaming services
• Earn 2x points on other travel purchases
• Earn 1x points on other purchases

To earn even more rewards, you’ll earn a 10% anniversary bonus after every cardmember anniversary year.

We value Chase points at 2.2 cents each, which means you’d earn a maximum of 10.2% on your spending.

Furthermore, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card comes with a 25% redemption bonus on travel bookings made through Chase Travel and Pay Yourself Back through select rotating categories, which would get you a redemption value of 1.25 cents per point.

The card also has a $50 annual hotel credit on bookings made through Chase Travel, as well as a complimentary DoorDash DashPass membership, phenomenal travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, no foreign transaction fees, and no-additional fee authorized user cards.

Runner-up: Bank of America^® Premium Rewards^® Credit Card

Our runner-up credit card in this segment is the Bank of America Premium Rewards card, which offers the ability to earn points that can be used to book travel through the Bank of America Travel Center.

Currently, new cardholders can qualify for a welcome bonus, as well as up to 2x points per dollar spent:

• 2x points on travel and dining
• 1.5x points on other purchases

If you happen to be a Preferred Rewards member by virtue of your Bank of America deposit or investment accounts, you can also get 25% to 75% more points on your purchases, effectively allowing you to earn:

• Up to 3.5x points on travel and dining (equivalent to a 3.5% return on spending)
• Up to 2.625x points on other purchases (equivalent to a 2.625% return on spending)

Also, you’ll get 2 sets of travel credits:

• Up to $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit every 4 years
• Up to $100 airline incidental credit for purchases including seat upgrades, baggage fees, inflight service fees, lounge fees, and more

Also, you won’t be hit with any foreign transaction fees or additional annual fees for authorized users.

Bottom Line: The Chase Sapphire Preferred card overtakes the Bank of America Premium Rewards card as the best overall travel rewards card, thanks to Chase’s transfer partners and attractive rewards categories. That being said, the Bank of America Premium Rewards card offers some potentially lucrative rewards if you happen to have large eligible deposits with Bank of America or Merrill and are focused on cash-back rewards. 

Best Overall Business Card

Now that we’ve discussed our best overall travel rewards credit card (the most popular segment), let’s get into another popular segment: business credit cards!

In this section, we’ll show you our 2 favorite business credit cards within Chase’s and Bank of America’s portfolios.

Winner: Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card

The best business credit card is the Ink Business Preferred card. At the moment, the welcome bonus alone can pay for the card for over 10 years.

Beyond that, this card is uniquely rewarding on business purchases, earning up to 3x Ultimate Rewards points on select business categories (up to $150,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year):

• Ads purchased with search engines or social media sites
• Internet, cable, and phone services
• Shipping expenses
• Travel

You’ll also earn 5x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025. On other purchases, you’ll earn 1x points.

Earning 5x points, 3x points, or 1x points is equal to a 10%, 6%, or 2% return on spending, based on our valuations.

The Ink Business Preferred card comes with a 25% redemption bonus on Chase travel portal bookings, as well as a 25% redemption bonus through Pay Yourself Back.

Other reasons why you’d want to have the Ink Business Preferred card include the leading cell phone insurance, comprehensive travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, no foreign transaction fees, and no-additional fee employee cards.

Runner-up: Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card

Our runner-up card is another Chase card, the Ink Business Unlimited card.

The Ink Business Unlimited card doesn’t accrue Ultimate Rewards points by itself, while the Ink Business Preferred card does.

However, if you have the Ink Business Unlimited card and an Ultimate Rewards card such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, you can easily convert your Ink Business Unlimited card’s rewards at a 1% to 1x ratio.

Also, remember that it earns 5% cash-back on Lyft purchases through March 2025. Your 5% or 1.5% cash-back can effectively be converted to 5x or 1.5x Ultimate Rewards points with the right credit card pairing, which would transform your return on spending to 10% and 3%, respectively.

On the benefits side, the Ink Business Unlimited card has primary rental car coverage, purchase protection, extended warranty, zero liability coverage, and no additional annual fees for authorized users.

Best Premium Travel Rewards Card

If you consider yourself an avid traveler, you might want to find a credit card that offers premium travel rewards and benefits, especially if you also travel frequently.

Elevate your travel game with these credit cards!

Winner: Chase Sapphire Reserve^®

The best premium travel rewards card is the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, which boasts some of the best rewards in the business. With this card, you can earn up to 10x Ultimate Rewards points:

• 10x points on rental cars, hotels, and Chase Dining purchased through Chase Travel
• 10x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• 10x points on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $250 (through March 31, 2025)
• 5x points on flights booked through Chase Travel
• 3x points on other travel and dining purchases
• 1x points on other purchases

Earning 10x points translates to a maximum return on spending of 20%, which is absolutely gigantic.

Also, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers a $300 travel credit every cardmember year, a $100 TSA PreCheck, Global Entry, or NEXUS application fee credit, and a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership.

You can utilize the complimentary DoorDash DashPass membership (activate by December 31, 2024), access to the Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection, amazing travel insurance, rental car perks with Avis and National Car Rental, as well as purchase protection, return protection, extended warranty coverage, and no foreign transaction fees.

Runner-up: Bank of America^® Premium Rewards^® Elite Credit Card

Bank of America’s ultra-premium credit card is the Bank of America Premium Rewards Elite card, which is essentially an amped-up version of the Bank of America Premium Rewards card.

The welcome bonus is available for new cardmembers; after that, expect to earn according to this earning structure:

• 2x points on travel and dining
• 1.5x points on other purchases

The same bonus of 25% to 75% in points is offered to those with large enough deposits or investment balances with Bank of America or Merrill. That allows you to earn 3.5x points instead of 2x points and 2.625x points instead of 1.5x points.

One of this card’s unique benefits is that you can save 20% on domestic or international airfare when you pay with points for any cabin class, which could further increase your return on spending from 3.5% to 4.375% and from 2.625% to 3.28%.

Hot Tip: Earning a 4.375% return on spend with this card can be great, but the Chase Sapphire Reserve card’s 3x points on travel and dining can be leveraged for a higher return on spending of 4.5%, thanks to the 50% redemption bonus on Chase travel portal bookings. 

Best No-Annual-Fee Credit Card

Let’s say you wanted a card with no annual fee and were willing to sacrifice a bit in terms of rewards earned from credit card spending.

In this section, we’ll show you our favorite picks!

Winner: Chase Freedom Unlimited^®

One of the best no-annual-fee credit cards in the world happens to be issued by Chase. The Freedom Unlimited card offers a ton of value without an annual fee.

Let’s learn about the rewards:

• 5% cash-back on travel booked through Chase Travel
• 5% cash-back on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• 3% cash-back on dining and drugstores
• 1.5% cash-back on other purchases

One of the secrets of this card is that even though it appears to be a cash-back card, you can also convert your rewards to Ultimate Rewards points if you happen to have a card such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

Converting your cash-back to Ultimate Rewards points would translate to a return on spending of 10%, 6%, and 3%, respectively, through the 5x, 3x, and 1.5x points conversion.

Wrapping up on this card, you’ll find travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, secondary rental car insurance, fraud protection, authorized users for no additional annual fee, and no annual fee.

Runner-up: Bank of America^® Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card

At the moment, our favorite Bank of America personal credit card with no annual fee is the Bank of America Unlimited Cash Rewards card.

This simple credit card earns an unlimited 1.5% cash-back on all purchases; if you are a Preferred Rewards member, you can get a bonus of 25%-75% more cash-back, which you could earn 1.84%-2.62% cash-back on every purchases.

Best No-Annual-Fee Business Credit Card

In this section, we’ll compare Chase’s and Bank of America’s best business credit cards without annual fees.

Let’s dive right into it!

Winner: Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card

Our favorite business credit card with no annual fee is the Ink Business Unlimited card, which we discussed in detail above.

To summarize, this awesome credit card has a great welcome bonus and a 0% introductory APR promotion.

It also earns 1.5% cash-back on all business purchases without any caps or limits. If you book Lyft rides frequently, you’ll earn 5% cash-back on those purchases through March 31, 2025.

This credit card, as a standalone product, earns cash-back, but your cash-back rewards can be converted to Ultimate Rewards points if you happen to also have an Ultimate Rewards credit card such as the Ink Business Preferred card or the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

Thus, your 1.5% cash-back can be converted to 1.5x Ultimate Rewards points, which is equivalent to a 3% return on spending.

Currently, you’ll also get primary car rental insurance, extended warranty, purchase protection, zero liability fraud protection, andno-additional fee employee cards.

Runner-up: Ink Business Cash^® Credit Card

The Ink Business Cash card is great for those who want no annual fee but can spend on bonus categories for their businesses in an effort to get enhanced rewards.

You’ll notice that the welcome bonus is great, as well, which also includes a 0% introductory APR promotion.

Also, expect to earn a maximum of 5% cash-back:

• Earn 5% cash-back on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• Earn 5% cash-back at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services (on the first $25,000 in combined purchases) spent every account anniversary
• Earn 2% cash-back at restaurants and gas stations (on the first $25,000 in combined purchases) spent every account anniversary
• Earn 1% cash-back on other purchases

Just like the Ink Business Unlimited card, your cash-back rewards with this card can be converted to Ultimate Rewards points if you have an Ultimate Rewards card such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or the Ink Business Preferred card.

Therefore, your 5% cash-back can convert to 5x Ultimate Rewards points, which is equal to a 10% return on spending.

The Ink Business Cash card also offers primary rental car insurance, zero liability fraud protection, purchase protection, extended warranty, and employee cards for no additional annual fee.

Best Airline Credit Card

If you’re looking for the best airline credit card so you can earn miles, get closer to elite status, or enjoy airline-specific benefits, we’ll walk you through our top picks here.

Winner: United℠ Explorer Card

The United Explorer card is the best overall airline credit card in this guide. It earns a large welcome bonus with a reasonable annual fee and up to 2x MileagePlus miles:

• 2x miles on United purchases, dining (including eligible delivery services), and hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel
• 1x miles on other purchases

Also, you can access a series of United-specific perks!

• Free first checked bag for the primary cardmember and a companion traveling on the same reservation (terms apply)
• 25% statement credit on inflight United purchases
• Priority boarding on United flights
• The ability to earn 25 Premier Qualifying Points (PQPs) for every $500 you spend on purchases (up to 1,000 PQPs per calendar year)
• 2 United Club 1-time passes after every cardmember anniversary year

There’s also a $100 Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee credit every 4 years, no foreign transaction fees, no-additional fee authorized users, travel insurance, purchase protection, and extended warranty.

Runner-up: Alaska Airlines Visa Signature^® Credit Card

Bank of America is the exclusive issuer of co-branded Alaska Airlines credit cards, and the Alaska Signature card happens to be our runner-up card.

There’s an attractive welcome bonus on the card, and you can earn up to 3 Mileage Plan miles per dollar spent:

• 3x miles on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases
• 2x miles on gas, local transit (including rideshare), cable, and select streaming services
• 1x miles on other purchases

This credit card comes with Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare, which is essentially a companion ticket earned after every cardmember anniversary year where you can book a companion flight starting at $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees starting at $23).

Across Alaska Airlines, you’ll enjoy:

• A free checked bag for yourself and up to 6 companions traveling on the same reservation
• 20% back on Alaska Airlines inflight purchases
• Priority boarding when you pay for your flight with your Alaska Signature card
• Discounted Alaska Lounge+ membership

The Alaska Signature card also comes with monthly FICO score access, contactless chip technology, digital wallets, zero liability fraud protection, overdraft protection, no foreign transaction fees, and authorized users for no additional annual fee.

Best Airline Business Credit Card

Now, let’s take a look at our favorite airline business credit cards!

Winner: United℠ Business Card

The United Business card is the business equivalent of the United Explorer card with a couple of twists.

First, enjoy a welcome offer after qualifying purchases. Then, earn up to 2x MileagePlus miles:

• 2x miles on United purchases, dining, gas stations, local transit, and commuting
• 1x miles on other purchases

Enjoy substantial United perks with this card:

• Free first checked bag for yourself and 1 companion on the same reservation (terms apply)
• Priority boarding
• 2 United Club 1-time passes after account opening and after every cardmember anniversary
• 25% back on United inflight purchases
• Earn 25 PQPs for every $500 you spend (up to 1,000 PQPs every calendar year) to get closer to Premier status qualification
• $100 United travel credit after 7 United flight purchases of $100 or more every card anniversary year

This card offers surprisingly good travel and shopping protections, including primary rental car insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, and zero liability fraud protection.

With the United Business card, you won’t be hit with any foreign transaction fees or additional annual fees for employee cards.

Runner-up: Alaska Airlines Visa^® Business Credit Card

Bank of America offers the Alaska Airlines Business card, which usually has a fantastic welcome bonus plus Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare from $122 ($99 fare plus taxes and fees starting at $23).

Every year, you’ll get another Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare, too. Also, expect to earn up to 3x Mileage Plan miles:

• 3x miles on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases
• 2x miles on eligible gas, EV charging station, shipping, and local transit (including rideshare) purchases
• 1x miles on other purchases

You’ll also get a free checked bag on Alaska Airlines flights for yourself and up to 6 companions on the same reservation and a 20% rebate on Alaska Airlines inflight purchases.

This particular credit card comes with no foreign transaction fees and an annual fee of $70 for the company plus $25 per employee card.

Best Card for Cash-back

If you’re comfortable paying a modest annual fee but want the best cash-back rewards, you’ll love this section!

Winner: Bank of America^® Premium Rewards^® Credit Card

The best overall card for cash-back is the Bank of America Premium Rewards card, which earns up to 2x points:

• 2x points on travel and dining
• 1.5x points on other purchases

But the reason why this card is the best option is that if you have substantial deposits or assets under management through Preferred Rewards, you can get up to 75% more points, which translates to a cash-back ROI of:

• 3.5x points on travel and dining
• 2.625x on other purchases

Furthermore, you’ll get a couple of much-appreciated benefits:

• Up to $100 airline incidentals statement credit every year
• Up to $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit every 4 years

You’ll even get purchase security, extended warranty, return protection, no foreign transaction fee, and no additional annual fees for authorized user cards.

Runner-up: Bank of America^® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card

Next up is the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card, which offers immense cash-back rewards, starting with a welcome bonus.

It earns up to 3% cash-back as follows:

• 3% cash-back in the category of your choice (you can choose from gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings) and 2% cash-back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (on the first $2,500 in combined purchases every quarter)
• 1% cash-back on other purchases

If you’re a Preferred Rewards member, you can earn up to 75% more rewards. This means you could earn 3.75%-5.25% cash back on purchases in your choice category.

This credit card also comes with contactless payments, overdraft protection, monthly FICO score access, and no additional annual fees for authorized users.

Best Business Card for Cash-back

Now that we’ve wrapped up our favorite personal cards for cash-back, let’s look at our best business cards for cash-back.

Winner: Bank of America^® Business Advantage Unlimited Cash Rewards

The Bank of America Business Advantage Unlimited Cash card is great because it allows you to earn an unlimited 1.5% cash-back on all purchases without caps or expiration dates.

This card’s rewards are eligible for up to 75% more cash-back through Preferred Rewards for Business, which would elevate your earnings to 2.62% cash-back on all purchases.

This simplistic business credit card also offers travel accident insurance, emergency assistance services, contactless payments, zero liability fraud protection, overdraft protection, and no additional annual fees for employee cards.

Runner-up: Bank of America^® Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card

The Bank of America Business Advantage Customized Cash card is our runner-up option. It earns up to 3% cash-back:

• 3% cash-back in the category of your choice from gas stations, office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom and wireless, computer services, or business consulting services
• 2% cash-back on dining purchases
• 1% cash-back on other purchases

At the moment, you’re capped at earning 3% cash-back or 2% cash-back on the first $50,000 in combined purchases every calendar year

Best Balance Transfer Credit Card

The very last section we’ll be discussing in this guide is relating to balance transfer credit cards. The truth is that you shouldn’t be worried about accumulating rewards if you’re accruing high-interest debt in the process (or if you already have high-interest debt).

In this guide, we’ll walk you through our favorite balance transfer credit cards between Chase and Bank of America.

Winner: Chase Slate Edge℠

The Chase Slate Edge card is our top winner in the balance transfer segment. The welcome bonus is focused less on rewards and more on debt management.

To incentivize you to build strong credit habits, you can lower your interest rate by 2% every year, and you can also get an automatic review for a higher credit limit when you pay on time and spend $500 in your first 6 months.

With the Chase Slate Edge card, you’ll have access to Chase Credit Journey to help you monitor your credit, plus contactless payments, access to Chase Offers, a 3-month complimentary DoorDash DashPass membership (activate by December 31, 2024), purchase protection, extended warranty, zero liability fraud protection, secondary rental car insurance, and roadside dispatch.

Runner-up: BankAmericard^® Credit Card

Bank of America offers attractive balance transfer promotions with its credit cards, but our favorite is the BankAmericard, which usually offers the longest introductory balance transfer APR period.

There’s a small welcome bonus, no penalty APR, and monthly FICO Score access. You can also use contactless chip technology and overdraft protection with this card.

Final Thoughts

Bank of America and Chase both have deep credit card portfolios.

Chase generally offers better credit cards for travel rewards, and these include mainstays such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Chase Sapphire Reserve card, Ink Business Preferred card, and United Explorer card.

On the other hand, Bank of America offers fantastic credit cards for cash-back, especially when used in conjunction with its acclaimed Preferred Rewards program for deposit and investment accounts. Some of these include the Bank of America Premium Rewards card, Bank of America Premier Rewards Elite card, and the Bank of America Unlimited Cash Rewards card.

We hope that you’ve found this guide useful in helping you determine the best credit cards for your situation if you’re deciding between Bank of America and Chase.

The information regarding the Bank of America^® Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.