Business card maker: design your visiting card free

This free business card maker helps you design a neat visiting card in a few minutes. Type your details, pick a layout and colours, and see the card change as you type. When you are happy, download it as a PNG image for sharing or print it.

What to put on a business visiting card

A card has very little space, so every line must earn its place. Most small businesses need only these:

• Business name and logo. The biggest thing on the card.
• Your name and role, such as Proprietor, Partner or Sales Manager.
• Phone number. One main number. Mark it if it also works on a chat app.
• Email and website, if you have them. An email at your own domain looks more trusted than a free one.
• Address. Shop or office address with a nearby landmark. Very helpful in Indian towns.
• One line about what you do, such as "Wedding decoration and catering" or "AC repair and service". People forget why they took your card.
• GSTIN, if you deal with business buyers who need it for their bills. It is optional for most retail shops.
• A QR code, if it saves the customer typing, as explained below.

Leave out things like fax numbers, old landlines, long lists of services and three different phone numbers. A crowded card is hard to read and looks cheap.

Business card design tips

Keep it clean

White or empty space is not wasted. It makes the important parts stand out. A modern business card design usually has one or two colours, one font family and plenty of space.

Make text big enough

Many people who get your card will be older or reading in poor light. Keep the phone number and name clearly readable. As a rough guide, do not print the smallest text below about 7 points in size, and test a print before ordering hundreds.

Use your brand colours

Use the same colours as your signboard, logo and packaging. This makes your business easy to recognise. Dark text on a light background is the easiest to read. If you use a dark card, use white or very light text.

Use both sides

Front: logo, business name and the one line about what you do. Back: your name, contact details, address and QR code. Or print the same details in a regional language on the back, which works well for local shops.

Match the card to your business

A bakery card can be warm and playful. A chartered accountant's card should look calm and serious. A boutique can use a textured or coloured paper. Think about what your customer expects.

Business card template layouts that work

• Classic: logo top left, name and role in the middle, contact details at the bottom.
• Centred: logo and business name centred on the front, everything else on the back.
• Vertical: taller than wide. It stands out in a wallet but must still fit card holders.
• Split colour: one side or band in your brand colour, the rest white for text.

Printing tips

• Get the size right. Most printers in India use 3.5 × 2 inches. See our guide to business card size for sizes in mm and pixels, bleed and safe area.
• Use high resolution. Print files should be at 300 dpi. A low resolution image from a phone screen will print blurry.
• Keep text away from the edges. Cards are cut in bulk and the blade can move slightly. Keep text and logos a few millimetres inside the edge.
• Choose good paper. Thin paper bends in a wallet. Ask your printer for around 300 to 350 gsm for normal cards.
• Matte or gloss. Matte looks calm and is easy to write on. Gloss makes photos and bright colours pop but shows fingerprints.
• Proofread twice. Ask someone else to dial your number from the proof. One wrong digit wastes the whole box.
• Start small. Print 100 or 200 first. You will probably want to change something.

QR codes on business cards

A QR code lets a customer scan the card with a phone camera instead of typing. Put it to work:

• Contact QR: saves your name, number and email straight to the phone's contacts.
• Website or catalogue QR: opens your price list, menu or product photos.
• Map QR: opens directions to your shop. Very useful when your address is hard to describe.
• Chat QR: opens a chat with your business number.

Tips: print the QR code at least about 2 cm wide, keep a white border around it and test it with two or three different phones before printing. Use a QR that points to something you control, so it will still work in a year.

Be careful with payment QR codes on cards. They are better on a stand at your counter, where you can make sure the customer is paying the right account.

Common business card mistakes

• Too many fonts and colours. Stick to one font family and two colours.
• Tiny phone number. It is the most used line on the card, so make it easy to read.
• A blurry logo. Use the original logo file, not a screenshot from a phone.
• Light grey text on white. It looks stylish on a screen but fades on paper.
• Old details. If your number or address changes, print new cards. Do not cross out and write by hand.
• Clip art that many others use. It makes your card look like everyone else's.

Digital business card

A digital business card is a card you share on a phone instead of paper. It can be:

• An image of your card that you send in chats. Download the PNG from the maker above and save it on your phone.
• A simple web page with your contact buttons, map, photos and links. Share the link or a QR code to it.
• A tap card with a small chip that opens your page when tapped on a phone.
• A business profile on a chat app with your hours, address and catalogue.

Digital cards are cheap, easy to update and never run out. But many customers in India still like a paper card, especially older buyers, wholesale traders and people in small towns. Most small businesses do best with both.

Before you make your card, make sure your name and logo are final. See our business name generator and business logo ideas.