For professionals and businesses, business cards remain a crucial tool for networking and making a lasting first impression. The quality of your business card reflects directly on your brand. In today’s market, numerous online printing services promise exceptional results, but not all deliver on that promise. We’ve rigorously tested various card printing companies to identify those that truly stand out in terms of print quality, service, and overall value. While this isn’t an exhaustive list, it highlights the best options currently available, focusing on services that meet high standards and deliver superior business cards.
In our recent evaluations, Jukebox emerged as our top recommendation for Best Card Printing Companies. While Moo, our previous top pick, still produces visually appealing cards, Jukebox surpassed them in crucial areas. Jukebox cards exhibited superior sharpness and alignment, demonstrating a higher level of print precision. Furthermore, Moo’s cards are significantly more expensive, costing 43¢ per card, which is a price increase since our last review. When considering cost-effectiveness alongside quality, Jukebox offers a compelling advantage.
VistaPrint, another well-known company, provides cards with rich and accurate colors. However, compared to Jukebox, VistaPrint’s cards lacked the same level of high contrast. Additionally, despite design tools that allow for edge-to-edge design, our printed cards from VistaPrint unexpectedly included a white border, a discrepancy from the digital preview. While VistaPrint is a more affordable option at 28¢ per card, the inconsistencies in print and design implementation are notable drawbacks.
Zazzle stands out for its diverse and modern design templates. Unfortunately, in our last two rounds of testing, Zazzle’s print quality did not match its design appeal. Colors appeared less vibrant and somewhat muted compared to competitors. Trimming issues were also present across a pack of 100 cards, with inconsistent alignment and rough, unfinished edges detracting from the overall professional look.
Canva, known for its user-friendly design platform, presented several challenges in our tests. The service altered our design layout, inexplicably overlapping elements. Moreover, the trim quality was the poorest among all tested services. Even when selecting Canva’s “premium paper,” the card stock remained surprisingly thin, despite claims of upgrades since previous tests. Beyond print quality, Canva’s platform has usability issues, making uploading original designs less intuitive. Certain design templates and elements are also locked behind subscriptions or require additional fees to remove watermarks, adding to the cost and complexity. Customer service was also notably slow, relying on a chatbot system before eventually transitioning to email support, hindering efficient issue resolution.
GotPrint showed some improvement in card quality since our last evaluation, delivering reasonably vibrant colors. However, fine print lacked contrast, and trimming remained slightly off-center. The design templates and editing tools on GotPrint’s site feel outdated, including clip art options that seem reminiscent of the 1990s, which may not appeal to users seeking a modern aesthetic.
Staples, previously recommended for same-day business card printing, faced quality issues in our recent tests. Sample text appeared faded gray instead of a crisp black, and fine concentric circles were poorly rendered as a blurry black mass. Despite these quality concerns, Staples remains a budget-friendly option at only 9¢ per card (minimum order of 250) for urgent, same-day needs. This could serve as a temporary solution until a higher-quality order from a company like Jukebox is delivered.
In conclusion, for businesses prioritizing superior print quality and precision, Jukebox stands out as the best card printing company. While other services like VistaPrint and Moo offer decent alternatives, they fall short of Jukebox’s standards in sharpness, alignment, and overall value. Services like Zazzle, Canva, GotPrint, and Staples present further compromises in print quality or user experience, making them less ideal for those seeking the best possible representation of their brand through their business cards.
