Looking to do a little professional networking? A business card might help, but if your company won't pay to print them, you work for yourself, or want control over what's on your card, you'll have to print them on your own. Thankfully, there are plenty of great sites that print high-quality custom business cards without busting your wallet in the process. Here's a look at five of the best, based on your nominations.
Earlier in the week we asked you which business card printing sites you thought were the best. You responded with some great nominees, all of which offer custom design tools, quality cards, and decent prices, but we only have room for the top five:
Moo
Moo earned its place with many of you for great, high quality cards and card stock, tons of designs (and the ability to customize or make your own), decent pricing, and plenty of deals with services like About.me and Facebook for free business cards. Moo offers mini cards and full-sized business cards, and you can design your cards through a great webapp that lets you tweak and customize the front and the back with virtually any text, image, or design you choose. If you choose, you can even customize your card order to include different photos or designs on each card, ideal for photographers looking to show off their work. You can even get NFC business cards if you want. It doesn't hurt that Moo reps are always a phone call away, and their printing and shipping are remarkably fast. Plus, they don't always watermark your cards—even when you get free ones.
GotPrint
Another more affordable option than some of the others in the roundup, GotPrint offers multiple card size, stock, and paper options, but make no mistake—the service prints business cards, not photo or designer cards. Those of you who nominated GotPrint noted that it's a great option if you have access to a designer or want simple, elegant, and clean business cards with a more traditional look. If you want something fancy and special though, the service does offer a number of cuts, shapes and colors, all of which are available at competitive prices. Many of you also praised GotPrint on their fast turnaround and quick shipping.
VistaPrint
VistaPrint's doesn't offer the same customization tools that some of the other competitors do, but their biggest benefit is their price. The company was one of the first to offer super-affordable business card printing for individuals who just wanted their own cards for themselves or their businesses, usually tossing 250-500 free cards to any new customer who signs up. Even now a quick Google search will turn up deals where you can get free cards as long as you pay shipping. Alternatively, other codes will shave a hefty amount off of your order or give you free shipping. You usually have to choose from predetermined designs and layouts and deal with a VistaPrint watermark on the back of your card unless you're willing to pay, but if cost is king and free is your favorite flavor, VistaPrint is where it's at.
JukeBox
An independent printing company with serious attention to detail, JukeBox offers an incredible selection of card stock types, including traditional white paper to textured pulp and beautiful recycled paper options. The company even offers wood business cards, if you want something that's truly and completely unique. They also offer a wide variety of paper colors, typefaces, and more customization and personalization options than a lot of other printing companies. You can be sure that when you order your cards from JukeBox, they won't look like everyone else's. JukeBox's pricing is competitive (although not bargain basement—their approach is that you get what you pay for.) You'll have to supply your own designs though—no online wizard to walk you through the process, but the end result is that you get truly personal cards. The company is based in Canada, but they ship worldwide.
OvernightPrints.com
Overnight Prints, like GotPrint, specializes in all kinds of mass printing, not just business cards. They give you the option to upload your own design, use their wizard, or choose from pre-defined templates, whichever you choose. You can also choose your finish, card stock, and colors—you'll find somewhat fewer customization options here (in the wizard anyway, you can upload any design you want, or contact them for something special), but the value is in the name: OvernightPrints is committed to fast, easy, affordable printing, and will get you your order quickly without breaking the bank in the process. If you're looking for fancy designer cards they may not be the best option, but if you're looking for something traditional in large quantities without spending a ton of cash, they're worth a look.
Now that you've seen the top five, it's time to put them all to a vote to decide the winner.
No honorable mentions this week - the vast majority of your nominations went to the five above. That said, if you have a nominee that didn't make the cut but you think really should have, don't just gripe about it below, let us know why it's better than the rest, or share some example cards you've ordered that you think are great!
Have something to say about one of the contenders? Want to make the case for your personal favorite, even if it wasn't included in the list? Remember, the top five are based on your most popular nominations from the call for contenders thread from earlier in the week. Make your case for your favorite—or alternative—in the discussions below.
The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it—it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!
Photo by Murat Ertürk.
