Playing Cards Printing
Custom printed playing card and game decks on coated card with a tuck or rigid box, for publishers, promotions and gaming brands.
Playing cards are printed four colour on a coated card stock, finished with a surface coating for slip and handling, die cut with rounded corners, collated into a deck and packed in a box. The decks listed here include a wholesale poker pack that comes with a free box and a gaming deck with no MOQ and free design support. The decisions are card stock and thickness, finish, card size, how many unique faces are in the deck, and the box type. A card game with 200 unique faces is a different collation job from a 54-card poker deck, so tell us the deck structure before anything else.
All 2 Products in Playing Cards Printing
What This Solves and Who Buys It
Problems It Solves
- Decks that stick together and will not shuffle, caused by a stock and coating chosen without regard to handling
- Card games needing hundreds of unique faces where suppliers quote as if it were a standard 54-card deck
- Small first print runs for a game launch or Kickstarter fulfilment that most card printers will not take
- Corners fraying after a few sessions because the stock is too light for the way the deck is used
- Box and deck sourced separately, so the tuck does not actually fit the collated stack
Who Buys It
- Independent game designers and publishers producing a first print run
- Board game companies ordering card components as part of a boxed game
- Casinos, poker rooms and card clubs branding house decks
- Marketing teams producing promotional decks as a campaign giveaway
- Museums, tourist attractions and gift retailers selling own-brand souvenir decks
Where It Is Used
- Independent card and board game print runs for retail and crowdfunding fulfilment
- Branded poker decks for casino floors and card rooms
- Promotional decks given away at trade shows and on-pack
- Souvenir and museum gift shop decks featuring a collection
- Training, education and flashcard decks for classroom and corporate use
Why Order It Here
- Offset printing on Heidelberg presses keeps face artwork and the card back in register across the whole deck, which is what stops a marked-deck effect
- Die cutting with rounded corners, collation and boxing are all done on this site, so the deck and its box are made to the same measured stack height
- Digital printing in house makes a short first run or a physical prototype deck practical in 1-2 working days before you commit to bulk
- Our own rigid and tuck box lines mean the packaging is quoted with the cards rather than bought in separately
- Every finished deck is hand checked for colour match against approved artwork and for quantity, with photographs of finished goods sent for approval before shipment
Decisions to Make Before You Order
Card Stock and Finish
Stock thickness determines how the deck feels and how long it lasts; thicker card resists bending but shuffles differently. The surface coating controls slip - a deck shuffled hard every day needs a different finish from a promotional deck used a few times. Tell us how the deck will actually be played.
Deck Structure
Say how many cards are in the deck and how many of those faces are unique. A standard 54-card deck with one back is straightforward. A game with multiple card types, jokers, rule cards and reference cards is a collation job, and getting that list right at quote stage avoids reprints.
Size and Corners
Poker and bridge widths are the common sizes, but any size can be die cut. Rounded corners are standard because square corners fray fast in play. Confirm the finished dimensions in millimetres if the deck has to fit an existing box or game insert.
Box and Artwork
A tuck box is the economical standard and the poker pack listed here includes a box. Rigid two-piece boxes and magnetic flap boxes suit retail and gift decks. Supply artwork as PDF or AI at 300dpi with fonts outlined, one file per unique face, named to match the card list.
Playing Cards Printing Questions
Can every card in the deck have a different face?
Yes - that is the normal case for a card game rather than a playing deck. Supply a numbered card list alongside the artwork files so collation matches your intended deck composition exactly, and confirm the quantity of each card type.
Is there a minimum order for a first print run?
One of the decks here is listed with no MOQ, and minimums vary by build across the range. A digital short run is the practical route for a prototype or a launch quantity; offset becomes cheaper per deck once volume rises.
Do you help with the card layout if I only have artwork?
One of the decks in this category is listed with free design support. Send what you have and we will confirm what can be set up for you and what needs to come from your designer before we preflight the files.
Will the backs be identical across the deck?
Uniform backs are essential for play, which is why deck backs are printed in register on offset rather than run digitally piecemeal. Finished decks are hand checked against the approved artwork so variation is caught before shipment.
Can you shrink wrap and add a seal for retail?
Yes. Cellophane wrapping, a tamper seal and a barcode on the box are all specified at quote stage. Tell us the retail channel, because barcode placement and pack presentation requirements differ between them.
Get a Price for Playing Cards Printing
Send the size, quantity, material and finish you have in mind. If you are not sure, send the product you want to match.