IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card review 2024: Plush perks for a reasonable price

The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card * The information for the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. comes with automatic Platinum Elite status, free night stays, a solid rewards program and other generous benefits.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card basics

• Annual fee: $99.
• Welcome bonus: 140,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
• Rewards: 10 points per $1 at IHG Hotels and Resorts, another 10 points per $1 as an IHG One Rewards member, 6 points per $1 from IHG with Platinum Elite status (a benefit of this card), 5 points per $1 on travel, gas stations, select advertising and restaurants and 3 points per $1 on all other purchases.
• APR: 21.49% to 28.49% variable APR on purchases and balance transfers. A balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of each transfer, whichever is greater, applies.
• Foreign transaction fees: $0.
• Other benefits: Free anniversary night, redeem three nights and get a fourth night free, automatic IHG Platinum Elite status, purchase protection, trip cancellation/trip interruption insurance, Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS application fee statement credit every four years.
• Does the issuer offer a pre-approval tool? No.
• Recommended credit score: Good to excellent.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card review

The IHG family of hotels includes 19 hotel brands, including Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts, Kimpton, Crowne Plaza, Voco, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites, to name a few. If you find yourself able to stay in at least one of these brands for your work at least several times a year, consider adding the IHG One Rewards Premier Business card to your wallet. It comes with an array of benefits that far outweigh the $99 annual fee.

The card’s welcome bonus and rewards program are both substantial, allowing new cardholders to earn 140,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Ongoing rewards are earned at a rate of 10 points per $1 at IHG Hotels and Resorts, another 10 points per $1 as an IHG One Rewards member, 6 points per $1 from IHG with Platinum Elite status (a benefit of this card), 5 points per $1 on travel, gas stations, select advertising and restaurants and 3 points per $1 on all other purchases. Plus, the card offers the chance to earn a $100 statement credit and 10,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 each calendar year.

Cardholders are also granted IHG Platinum Elite Status, which includes early check-in and check-out, when available, member rates and discounts, as well as the ability to earn 60% more bonus points for stays and no blackout dates for rewards reservations. Only Diamond Elite status is higher.

Also included with the card is a free anniversary night, a fourth night free when redeeming points for stays of four or more consecutive nights and some handy travel benefits, such as trip cancellation/trip interruption insurance (but no car or baggage insurance coverage).   

Pros 

• Generous welcome bonus. The welcome bonus for new cardholders is enough for several free nights if used strategically.
• Solid earnings. The card earns generous rates for IHG hotel stays and other areas of spending likely to appeal to business travelers. 
• Free anniversary night. Cardholders can enjoy a free one-night stay at an IHG property every year.
• Free fourth night stay when booking for more than three nights. When booking a stay for more than three nights, get the fourth night free. There is no limit on this benefit, use it as many times per year as you want.
• Automatic Platinum Elite status. Enjoy all the perks of IHG Platinum Elite status.
• IHG points are transferable to more than 30 airlines. For example, 10,000 IHG rewards points can be redeemed for 2,000 Delta points.

Cons

• Annual fee. Even though it comes with a lot of perks, you’ll still have to pay an annual fee for the card.
• No intro APR promotional offer. This card does not offer any promotional APR deals.
• No elite travel benefits. You won’t get airport lounge access or car rental protection with this card.
• Potentially low points value. The typical value for each IHG Rewards point is less than one cent.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card rewards

The IHG One Rewards Premier Business credit card earns:

• 10 points per $1 at IHG Hotels and Resorts.
• 10 points per $1 as an IHG One Rewards member.
• 6 points per $1 from IHG with Platinum Elite status (a benefit of this card).
• 5 points per $1 on travel, gas stations, select advertising and restaurants.
• 3 points per $1 on all other purchases.

In addition, there’s a welcome bonus of 140,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. If your business spends $20,000 or more on the card each year, you will be awarded a $100 statement credit and 10,000 bonus points. 

Points can be redeemed for future hotel stays, including the ability to combine points and cash for reservations. Rewards points can also be transferred to more than 30 airlines, generally around 10,000 IHG rewards points for 2,000 airline miles, although redemption values vary between airlines. Points can also be redeemed for charity donations, gift certificates, products, special events and experiences. 

Since businesses vary in size and types of expenses, it can be hard to evaluate exactly how much the average business can earn to determine the rewards potential of the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card.

That said, using government data and other publicly available information for businesses in the United States that could be in the market for this card, we’ll use an example of an online business with $36,000 in expenses in the first year or around $3,000 a month.

Based on that data, we calculated the following rewards potential for a small business with the following spending scenarios:

SPENDING CATEGORY	SPENDING AMOUNT MONTHLY	POINTS PER DOLLAR	POINTS EARNED
IHG hotel stays	$700	26 points	18,200 points
Travel, dining, gas and select business purchases	$1,000	5 points	5,000 points
All other purchases	$1,300	3 points	3,900 points
TOTAL	$3,000		27,100 points

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A business that earns 27,100 rewards points a month has the potential to earn 325,200 rewards points annually. With the average IHG rewards point value typically worth 0.7 cents each, those 325,200 annual rewards points would be worth roughly $2,276.40 toward IHG hotel stays.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card APR details

The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card comes with a 21.49% to 28.49% variable APR on purchases and balance transfers. A balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of each transfer, whichever is greater, applies.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card perks

The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card offers up some valuable cardholder benefits, including:

• IHG Platinum Elite status. This hotel status level includes no blackout dates for rewards night reservations, access to IHG member rates and promotions as well as reward night promotional discounts, and complimentary upgrades (subject to availability).
• Free anniversary night. Every year on your account anniversary, you’ll get a free anniversary night at an IHG property that has a redemption value of 40,000 points or less. 
• $100 statement credit and 10,000 bonus points annually. This statement credit and points bonus will be awarded after spending $20,000 or more a year on purchases. 
• Fourth night free. When you redeem points for stays more than three nights, you’ll get the fourth night free for a standard room reservation.
• Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS application fee credit. When you use your card to apply for or renew one of these security clearances, you will be reimbursed up to $100 every four years.
• Purchase protection. Your card covers purchases for 120 days if the product is damaged or stolen, up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per card account.
• Trip cancellation/interruption insurance. Cardholders are covered up to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses, due to sickness, inclement weather or other covered scenarios.

How the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card compares to other business rewards cards

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card * The information for the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If you prefer Marriott hotel properties over IHG, then you should look at the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card * The information for the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. (terms apply).

While it does come with a slightly higher $125 annual fee, it also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status, a free night award, 15 elite night credits toward the next level of status and up to 99 additional employee cards at no extra cost. Other card perks that you won’t find on the IHG Rewards Premier Business card include a 7% room rate discount on eligible bookings made directly through Marriott for hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program, baggage insurance¹ and extended warranty coverage¹, but it doesn’t offer the trusted traveler application fee credit. You can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to more than 40 airlines, generally at a ratio of 3 points for each mile.

Cardholders can earn a welcome bonus of three Free Night Awards (worth up to 150,000 total Marriott Bonvoy points) after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases in the first six months of card membership. Resort fees apply. The ongoing rewards rate is 6 points per $1 at on eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program, 4 points per $1 at restaurants worldwide, U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and U.S. purchases for shipping and 2 points per $1 on all other eligible purchases. Since the two cards offer mostly comparable rewards and benefits, the right one for you will come down to where you prefer to lay your head.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. World of Hyatt Business Credit Card * The information for the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If you prefer Hyatt properties, the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card * The information for the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. , which comes with a $199 annual fee, merits a close look. The card offers up to $100 in Hyatt statement credits when you spend $50 or more at any Hyatt property, up to two times each anniversary year plus World of Hyatt Discoverist status for you and up to five employees and additional cards at no cost. The card also grants room rate discounts and comes with primary auto rental collision coverage as well as other travel and purchase protections.

New cardholders can earn 60,000 points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening. For ongoing rewards, you can earn 4 points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels, 2 points per $1 on the top three spend categories each quarter through 12/31/24, then the top two categories each quarter, 2 points per $1 on fitness club and gym memberships and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases. Although the annual fee is higher than the IHG One Rewards Premier Business card, the statement credits could help reduce that overall cost. But again, as with any hotel card, the Hyatt card is only a superior choice over the IHG card if Hyatt’s hotel locations fit into your travel plans.

IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card vs. Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card * The information for the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If you’d prefer a business card that allows you to redeem points for multiple types of travel, from airfare to hotels to rental cars, check out the Chase Ink Business Preferred.

The $95-annual-fee card comes with a welcome bonus of 120,000 points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening. It also earns 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.

The Chase Ultimate Rewards® points earned on the card are worth 25% more when redeeming for travel booked through Chase Travel℠ and can also be transferred on a 1:1 basis with Chase’s travel partners, which includes 10-plus airlines (including Southwest, JetBlue and United) and three hotel loyalty partner programs (IHG, Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt).

How do you book travel through Chase? Our guide to the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel portal makes it easy.

Should you get the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card?

Business owners who frequent IHG properties can benefit from the IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card, especially someone seeking elite status and hotel perks and who plans on using the rewards towards future stays. The card comes with a reasonable annual fee, a smattering of travel benefits and no foreign transaction fees. 

However, if you’d prefer to have a wider array of redemption options to stay at various hotels you’d be better off with a more general travel card that allows you to redeem rewards points for all kinds of travel expenses or transfer them to myriad airline and hotel loyalty programs, including IHG.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

^{¹Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.}