Paper please!
I think I need an intervention… that is a paper intervention. There are a lot of great places to print stationery online and I am going to share my experience with some of them.
GotPrint
I used GotPrint several years ago and printed 5×7″ postcards that were 16 pt. dull with matte finish I believe. The quality was good, I would say a step above Staples and Vistaprint. The paper felt nice and smooth—although it wasn’t luxurious. For the price, you can’t really beat GotPrint. The cards were printed consistently and overall I was happy with the experience.
MOO
I’m sure you have all heard of moo. Moo is great for printing business cards. The paper is silky and smooth to the touch. I haven’t tried printing on the cotton paper but that sounds like something I would be very interested in. When passing out business cards, you know immediately when someone has printed on moo. It’s a little bit pricey, especially with all the shipping costs. The quality is consistent and the customer service is great here. If you are a small business owner, I think you can upload your business card template and easily change the information for your employees. I can’t remember if moo prints business cards that are the standard American size.
minted
I’ve printed business cards, stationery cards, and stickers at minted and was very happy with all of the products. The paper minted uses is TO DIE FOR! It is definitely pricey, but the paper is just heaven. If you like that rough, toothy, paper that artists use to paint on then you will love minted’s Mohawk paper. Minted also has designers to make sure everything is aligned and good to go before printing. Pro tip: you can make customized requests to the designers. I like to upload my own designs on minted’s blank templates they have. You can even ask minted to take off their logo on the back of cards for wedding stationery.
Society6
I have bought art prints, stationery cards, and notebooks from Society6. Society6 allows artists to upload designs and offer a wide range of products that include those designs. The quality of the art prints is amazing. The paper is quite thick and toothy and the detail on the prints is great. I bought a print of a watercolor painting and you could see all the brushstrokes and fool people into thinking it is an original piece of art! The stationery cards and notebooks are printed on a silky paper. The quality of the stationery is good, but you are limited to ordering the cards in certain sizes.
Vistaprint
I ordered some folded cards from Vistaprint and was not entirely impressed. The proof that is generated is completely automated and I just don’t feel like there is really quality control going on here. Probably not at those prices. Vistaprint gets the job done, but it is nothing to be excited about. I printed cards with a gloss finish, and it was ok. The colors did not print as vibrantly as I would have liked. Still, it is a step above Staples in my opinion and for the price and convenience it serves a purpose.
Staples
I ordered a bunch of business cards at Staples and was dismayed. The quality was meh, and as the cards are printed the image moves but there is no one adjusting for this movement. So even though I followed the safety line guidelines, I had a bunch of cards that had text cut-off and were unusable. The price is dirt cheap, so I really didn’t need all of the cards I had paid for, but you get what you pay for.
So that’s all I got, but I am always on the lookout for great place to print cards online! Have a favorite place of your own to mention? Feel free to share with me by commenting below. Thanks!