IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card Unlocks Great Value for IHG Loyalists

The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card is worth it for business owners who frequently stay at IHG properties and want to maximize their hotel loyalty benefits for a reasonable price. With a $99 annual fee, this card offers a generous welcome bonus and lets cardholders rack up points quickly. You’ll get up to 26 points per $1 at IHG hotels, plus strong earning rates on travel, gas, dining, advertising and everyday business purchases.

What sets this card apart is the exclusive hotel perks: a free anniversary night worth up to 40,000 points, Platinum Elite status and every fourth night free when redeeming points. Add in a $100 statement credit and 10,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 each calendar year and a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck®/NEXUS credit every four years and it’s clear that this is one of the most rewarding hotel business cards available.

However, keep in mind that IHG points hold a relatively low redemption value compared to competitors and rewards are less flexible since they’re largely tied to IHG stays.

Annual fee: $99

Regular purchase APR: 19.99% - 28.49% Variable

Foreign transaction fee: $0

Sign-up bonus: Earn 140,000 Bonus Points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening

Rewards: 3X - 26X points

• Earn up to 26 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel.
• Earn 5 points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, at gas stations, select advertising, and restaurants.
• Earn 3 points per $1 spent on all other purchases
  

Other benefits:

• Anniversary night worth up to 40,000 points each year
• Automatic IHG Platinum elite status
• Up to $120 statement credit for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck® or NEXUS application fee every four years
• Fourth night free on award stays
• $100 statement credit and 10,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 each calendar year

Recommended credit: Good / Excellent

• Get several hotel nights with its sign-up bonus

  The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card comes with a hefty sign-up bonus that lets you earn 140,000 Bonus Points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s enough for several nights at a lower-end IHG hotel. While higher-end properties in major cities can be more than 100,000 points per night, a weekend stay at a Holiday Inn Express near Nashville can be as low as 23,500.

  LendingTree values IHG points as being with 0.5 cents each*, which makes this sign-up bonus worth about $700, depending on how you redeem your points.

  See our value methodology for more details
  Point-saving tip: You can stretch your IHG rewards points further by taking advantage of IHG’s “Redeem three nights get fourth Reward Night free” policy.

• Up to 26X points on IHG purchases

  The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card offers an impressive amount of points on IHG stays. You’ll earn up to 26 total points per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel. Earn 5 points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, at gas stations, select advertising, and restaurants. Earn 3 points per $1 spent on all other purchases.

  Keep in mind, this earning rate isn’t quite what it seems. It includes the 10X base points that you already earn as an IHG Rewards member and the 6X points you get from Platinum Elite status. Your card adds 10X points to these earnings. Still, it’s a lot of points on IHG purchases that can quickly add up to a free night.

  If you’re not already a member of IHG One Rewards, you can join for free. You’ll get automatic Platinum Elite status as a cardholder.

• Get a free anniversary night each year

  A standout feature of the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card is that you automatically get a free night certificate each year on your card anniversary. There’s a redemption cap of 40,000 points, but this benefit can still easily justify the card’s $99 annual fee.

  For example, the Candlewood Suites Nashville North has rooms for 39,000 points per night with a cash price of $196 — almost double the annual fee.

  Also, if your preferred hotel is over the 40,000-point limit, you can add points from your IHG One Rewards account to make up the difference.

  A weekend stay at the Holiday Inn Nashville requires 52,000 points per night. If you choose it as your free anniversary night, you only need to redeem 12,000 points for one night. This lets you take full advantage of the free night’s value.

  Your free anniversary night award is available on your anniversary date each year and is valid for 12 months. Your stay must be booked and completed within 12 months from the date of issue.

• Get a fourth night free on award stays

  Another standout perk that’s only available to cardholders is a fourth night free when you redeem your points for stays of three consecutive nights or more. There’s no limit to how often you can use this benefit and it’s a great way to stretch out your points. It’s essentially a 25% discount on your reward stays.

  For example, for a room that costs 40,000 points per night, you could get a four-night stay for just 120,000 points. You could also tack your award certificate onto the end of your stay to get a five-night stay for the cost of three nights.

  Pro tip: Occasionally, IHG offers a 100% bonus on points purchases. Many cardholders buy 200,000 points and get another 200,000 points for free. They pair them with longer stays to further reduce the overall cost of travel.

• Automatic Platinum Elite status

  Card membership automatically qualifies you for Platinum Elite status with IHG One Rewards, as long as you’re an IHG One Rewards member and your membership is in good standing.

  Perks that come with IHG Platinum Elite status include:

  • 60% bonus points on hotel stays
  • Rollover nights for next year’s status
  • Five Star Hertz Gold Plus Rewards® status
  • Reward night discounts
  • Complimentary upgrades (subject to availability)
  • Guaranteed room availability for reservations made 72 hours in advance
  • Welcome amenity at check-in (either extra points or a free drink or snack)
  • Early check-in (subject to availability)
  • Late check-out (subject to availability)

  Some cardholders view this status as a low-value perk because it seems hard to get complimentary upgrades in the United States, where there is more competition for upgrades. However, international travelers claim that they do get value from the benefit, in terms of early check-ins, better rooms and complimentary snacks throughout their stay.

  Not to mention, the bonus-point-earning opportunities, car rental status and discounts provide tangible value. Combined with the card’s other perks, its elite status perks make it a good choice depending on your travel frequency and preferences.

  Money-saving tip: Unfortunately, IHG Platinum Elite status doesn’t offer free breakfast like popular competitors, Hilton and Marriott. If you want to save on meals, look for IHG properties like Holiday Inn Express and Avid Hotels, which offer free breakfast at many locations.

• Other valuable travel benefits

  You’ll get a few other valuable perks with the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card, including a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck®/NEXUS that can help offset the annual fee:

  • Global Entry/TSA PreCheck®/NEXUS statement credit: Cardholders are eligible for a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck®/NEXUS statement credit up to $120 every four years.
  • Discount on rewards point purchases: Save 20% when you buy with your IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
  • Earn a $100 statement credit and 10,000 IHG points each year when you spend $20,000 in purchases: This can help offset the cost of future hotel stays.
  • No foreign transaction fees: This is a great money-saver when your travels take you to IHG properties outside of the United States. Since foreign transaction fees typically range from 3% to 5%, this means you could save $150 to $250 on a $5,000 international trip.

  → See more cards that offer Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® credits

• Travel and purchase protections

  When life or travel plans go awry, the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card has a couple of benefits that can offset associated costs.

  • Purchase protection against theft or damage on eligible new purchases for 120 days (90 days for New York residents) from the purchase date, with up to $10,000 per item.
  • Trip cancellation and interruption insurance for covered situations. Up to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip for pre-paid, non-refundable travel paid for with your card.

  You should note that you can find more comprehensive protections on similarly-priced cards like the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card, which also offers primary auto rental coverage, extended warranty protection and cellphone insurance. If you use rental cars while on business trips, it’s a better option.

  → See the best credit cards for travel insurance

• Annual fee

  The $99 annual fee may be a dealbreaker if you won’t use the card often enough to get maximum value from it. In the first year, the welcome offer helps to offset the fee. But in future years, you’ll need to make use of other perks like the free award night or statement credit for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck® or NEXUS.

  That said, if you stay with IHG hotels frequently, the fee can be well worth it for benefits like extra point earnings and a fourth night free on award stays.

  → Want an annual fee-free card? See our picks for the best credit cards with no annual fees.

• Points have a low value

  We estimate that IHG points have a value of $0.005 cents each. This means that 10,000 points are worth approximately $50. This is considerably lower than other hotel rewards programs that can see values as high as $0.02 per point for the World of Hyatt Rewards Program or $0.009 per point for Marriott Bonvoy Rewards® Program*.

  → Learn more about the IHG rewards program

  See our value methodology for more details

• Limited flexibility for rewards redemption

  This card locks you into using rewards and perks with IHG hotels. There aren’t a whole lot of ways to use your IHG points besides booking hotel stays and most of the alternative options have a very poor value. For example, you can transfer your IHG points to airline loyalty programs like American Airlines, British Airways, Delta, Emirates, JetBlue and United, but the transfer ratio is 10 IHG points to 2 miles.

  For more flexible rewards, the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card is a better option since you can transfer rewards points at a 1:1 ratio with more than a dozen airline and hotel partners, including IHG.

  Money-saving tip: Use the Points and Cash program to book stays. You can use a combination of money and points to pay for IHG hotel stays if you don’t have enough points to pay with points. You can use as few as 5,000 points, but you should know that if you cancel your reservation, you’ll be refunded in points only.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card

The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card is our pick for the best hotel credit card for business owners and is a great alternative if you prefer Hilton over IHG.

The card comes with a large welcome offer and a really generous earning rate: Earn 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on eligible Hilton purchases. Earn 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on other purchases made using the Hilton Honors Business Card on the first $100,000 in purchases each calendar year, 3X points thereafter. Terms & Limitations Apply.

It has a higher $195 annual fee (see rates & fees), but you’ll get plenty of perks to offset it, including up to $240 in Hilton credits (up to $60 per quarter), complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold status and National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status (enrollment required; terms apply).

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IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card

The Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card is a better option for business owners who want to stay with a variety of hotel chains.

With a modest $99 annual fee, the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card has one of the largest sign-up bonuses currently available. You’ll earn points at a high rate on travel and select business expenses like shipping and internet and you’ll get much more flexibility on redeeming points. Chase Ultimate Rewards® points can be redeemed for practically any travel purchase or transferred to more than 10 travel loyalty programs, including IHG.

The card also comes with a robust set of purchase and travel protections, including trip cancellation and interruption insurance, auto rental coverage, cellphone protection, purchase protection and extended warranty protection. On the downside, as a lower-cost card, it lacks premium perks like Global Entry/TSA PreCheck® reimbursement.

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IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. Capital One Venture X Business

The Capital One Venture X Business is another good alternative for those who prefer to travel across a variety of airline and hotel brands.

It has a higher $395 annual fee, but it’s offset by a generous sign-up bonus and a $300 annual credit for bookings through Capital One’s travel site. Other perks include lounge access, extended warranty and a statement credit toward your Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® application every four years.

The rewards rate isn’t as high: you’ll earn 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase; 5 Miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One's travel booking site; 10 Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One's travel booking site. But you don’t have to book your stays within one hotel chain to earn higher rewards and you’re not stuck redeeming rewards with that hotel chain. Also, the rewards are more valuable: LendingTree estimates that miles are worth about 1.8 cents each when strategically redeemed with Capital One transfer partners.

Business owners who prefer to stay at IHG properties will get plenty of value with this card. It offers some strong perks for its modest price. Unfortunately, it lacks the flexibility of a general travel credit card.

If you’re looking for a low annual fee, the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card is a good option. But if you don’t mind paying extra for better benefits, the Capital One Venture X Business is worth considering.

We take a comprehensive, data-driven approach to identify the best travel credit cards. We use an objective rating and ranking system that evaluates over 200 credit cards from more than 50 issuers. All recommendations are made by LendingTree’s editorial team, completely independent of affiliate partnerships or compensation. Every card is selected based on its merit and ability to help people achieve their financial goals. We use the following criteria to make our picks:

• Average value over two years (80% of rating): We calculate the value of rewards and perks for the average cardholder using U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and an annual spend of $20,000, minus the annual fee. This value includes the card’s sign-up bonus, annual bonus (including free night certificates) and travel perks like lounge access and travel credits. We look at the average rewards earned over two years to balance out a card’s ongoing value with its first-year value.
• Flexibility of rewards (15% of rating): We consider how easy the rewards are to use, looking at factors like expiration dates, minimum thresholds to redeem, blackout dates and the availability of flexible redemption options like travel statement credits and cash back.
• Other features (5% of rating): We also compare a card’s benefits, such as purchase protections, travel protections and elite status benefits against benefits from other cards.