With so many inkjet printers available, your choices for the best greeting card printer are better than ever. But, for the serious amateur or pro photographer with print production in mind, the field of good printers narrows considerably. From our experience, a number of key factors come together to make reliable, high quality greeting card printers. Most manufacturers have at least one printer that fits the bill for the best printer for card making. The printers in this article have been selected based on hours of printing experience in the Red River Paper print labs.
Street Price: $599
The replacement to the top selling Canon PRO-100, the PRO-200 is another "hot rod of greeting card printers". Great color reproduction, robust paper transport mechanism, and compatibility with all Red River inkjet papers make these printers good for greeting card production. An excellent choice if you want to expand into larger print sizes. All Red River Paper greeting and note cards are compatible with the Canon Pixma PRO-200.
Street Price: $329
A MegaTank printer with excellent photo quality! Many tank printers (they use large ink reservoirs instead of ink cartridges) are best suited for office and basic photo printing. However, the G620 performs so well for photos and artwork that it makes our list. The big news is that the cost of printing is much lower than cartridge printers which makes the G620 a great option for those in search of the best printer for printing greeting cards at home.
Street Price: $199
This is the first inkjet printer specifically designed to print borderless 7x10 (folds to 5x7) greeting cards! It features four dye-based photo inks and one pigment black for document printing. It can also prints 12x12 sheets without borders. Red River Paper Supports all TS Models with Printer Color Profiles.
Street Price: $699-$799
Epson printers rarely make it on this list. The reason is paper feed capability. Everything about Epson's except paper feed is usually great. If you're trying to a printer for greeting cards, they can be trouble. The Epson ET-8500 and ET-8550 are exceptions. We find the paper feed system to be better than usual. They are not Canon level quality, but they are acceptable. If you are an "Epson person", here's your chance to buy your favorite brand for greeting and note card projects.
Most EcoTank printers are best suited for office work and are difficult to color manage. Not the ET-8500 and ET-8550! Epson took the stellar Claria dye ink system and converted it to the EcoTank format. This means excellent print quality and low printing cost. Red River Paper supports these printers with ICC color profiles as well.
DO NOT USE WITH PECOS RIVER GLOSS CARDS - These printers damage the surface of Pecos during the feed cycle.
DO NOT USE WITH COTTON PAPERS OVER 250gsm - The feed system cannot handle thick fine art paper through the top tray.
HP makes fine photo printers but the paper feed system does not support cardstock paper or any paper over 11 mil thickness which is crucial for any photo card printer. Additionally, HP has removed the custom paper size feature from the Windows driver. This locks Windows users from popular greeting card sizes. If you have an HP and have successfully printed on Red River Paper greeting cards, we would love to hear from you via our Support Center.
Paper feed, print speed, and print quality are all top considerations when picking a printer for cards. Always pick printer with a top loading paper tray. Do not choose a printer that only loads from a front paper cassette. It won't work for card stock.
A popular question is "How much will it cost to print my cards?". After extensive printing and calculations on ink usage, Red River Paper produced a Cost Per Card Chart. The great news is that paper, ink, and envelope cost less than $1.00 for most papers.
Printing inkjet greeting cards is a big part of what makes inkjet printers especially useful. Red River Paper feels that photographers and artists should create a line of cards from their work. At minimum they are powerful marketing pieces. They can often be sold for $5 each at art fairs or festivals.
Red River Paper is the Definitive Source of Inkjet Greeting Cards
Ink, paper, and envelope cost less than $1.00 per card. What a deal! Red River Paper sells the best inkjet stock pre-cut and scored ready to use for card printing.
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A variety of printing techniques can be employed to craft a greeting card that is both rich in character and endearing to your recipients. From choosing a fold to a size, to including foil stamping or a die cut, you can take advantage of these advanced greeting card printing techniques to develop a greeting card for the ages.
Paper stock
Like all printed materials, the weight, texture and finish of your greeting card paper stock says a lot about your company: the better the paper, the more professional your appearance. The best greeting card paper stocks are 16-point gloss cover stock, which is super thick and has an aqueous coating that protects your greeting card; and 13-point recycled matte, which has a softer sheen for a more thoughtful approach and is also eco-friendly to satisfy your green agenda.
Greeting card size
The bigger the better is the adage, and this principle still holds true for greeting cards. Oversized greeting cards such as 10-inch by 7-inch have more impact than smaller sizes; however, it is possible to achieve a specific tone with a smaller greeting card such as 7-inch by 5-inch and 8.5-inch by 6-inch.
Folds, foil stamping and die cuts
For a truly unique greeting card, nothing beats a colored foil stamp or die cut. After you know whether your greeting card is to be folded vertically or horizontally, you can incorporate a die-cut template for a specific shape that helps you get noticed and exude a targeted message. Foil stamping adds a brilliant glean to your greeting cards that turns heads - and makes you appear more professional.
Envelopes
Instead of plain white envelopes for your printing cards, try printing full-color envelopes that add character and entice your recipients to tear them open to see what's inside. You can even begin your message on your envelope and continue it on your greeting card. There are many considerations to take when planning greeting card printing. Make sure your greeting card design is print-ready by using a greeting card template to save time and money. Follow these greeting card printing techniques to ensure your greeting cards come off the press looking as compelling as they do on your computer screen.