Compare Online Printing Services for Postcards
Have you already sent out your holiday cards or are you sending New Year’s cards instead?
My holiday cards arrived a couple of days ago. I normally use a local printer for my print materials but this time I used Moo, an online printing service to print my holiday cards. They came out surprisingly good. The colors are almost an exact match to the colors seen on my computer screen and the text is crisp and clear even though I used a small type. Their price is also attractive. This company has been operating for quite a while and remains popular among small businesses and freelance designers. You may have used their services already, but if not I would highly recommend trying them.
Here is a list of online printing services that I picked and a review their printing services.
MOO www.moo.com/us/
Moo offers high-end postcards using the latest in high technology. You can choose extra-thick luxury paper or standard premium paper with a slightly different thickness. I ordered my holiday cards with extra-thick luxury paper. The quality of the paper was quite impressive for the price they offer. Minimum orders start at 25 postcards / $21.00 (finish on both sides).
Pros: You can print a different design on individual postcards within the same batch. For example, if you order double-sided postcards, you can upload up to 25 different designs for the back of your cards at no extra cost. Isn't that great?
Cons: They don't offer custom sizes for postcards. You have to choose from either their unique size (5.83" x 4.13") or standard size (5" x 7").
Moo is perfect if you want to create quality and luxury postcards.
UPRINTING www.uprinting.com
Uprinting carries a lot of print products including postcards, notecards, packaging labels, catalogs, menus, calendars, and event banners all at a low price. I’ve ordered notepads at Uprinting before and they came out good. I was worried about the color, but it came out fine. The Minimum order starts at 25 postcards / $13.86 (finish on both sides).
Pros: Compared to Moo, Uprinting offers custom size postcards (4" to 11" wide x 4" x 6" height) and 4 different cardstocks of varying thickness to choose from. They also offer postcards with rounded corners that would be quite pricey if you ordered them from your local printer. Once you order, you will receive a PDF proof, so you can edit and resubmit the file as needed.
Cons: Even though Uprinting has more paper selection, the paper quality is standard and the color looks dull. If you would rather avoid white space on the card, it should be ok. Print quality is average.
Uprinting is perfect if you want to create personalized and unique postcards.
VISTAPRINT www.vistaprint.com
Similar to Uprinting, Vistaprint offers the full package of print products for small businesses and individuals. You can choose from 5 different size postcards: Standard (5.47" x 4.21"), small (6" x 4"), medium (7" x 5"), oversized (8.52" x 5.47"), jumbo (11" x 6"). They offer 2 paper stock options: one is a premium glossy cardstock and the other one is recycled matte stock.
Pros: Vistaprint offers ongoing sales and promotions for extra discounts. I just went to their site - they’re offering an extended 25-50% off discount. You can save money if you order a lot of postcards when they have a big sale running. Minimum orders start at 50 postcards / $15.00 (finish on one side only).
Cons: Vistaprint offers many design template options that are customizable, but they look too generic. Printing quality is also average.
Vistaprint is perfect if you want to create a large quantity of postcards at low cost.
There are more online printing companies and each company has different features and services. You should check a couple of their websites before ordering and choose one that aligns best with your needs.
Do you have a favorite online printing company? Please feel free to leave a comment.