Cards with chip, magnetic stripe, or printed only
We print on PVC and composite, with magnetic stripe, MIFAREMIFAREA chip family for contactless reading at 13.56 MHz. MIFARE Classic 1K is the most widespread and is enough for time recording and simple access; DESFire EV2 is encrypted and belongs in… or NTAG. From 1 piece, also as a top-up for a running series. Made in Rottach-Egern.
Three cases that come in regularly
From the hotel: the room card
A printed card with a MIFARE or NTAG chip for the locking system. Bring an old card along, then we test it on the reader before a series runs.
From the club: the membership card
Card with photo, name and number, with a chip for the clubhouse on request. The data comes as a table, 80 cards run through in one go.
From the workshop floor: the works ID
ID with photo and access chip, plus the card for time recording. A reprint for a new employee starts at 1 piece.
What the cards are used for
Personalised or as a blank run — both from quantity one.
Loyalty and bonus cards
With barcode, QR code or serial number — connectable to any point-of-sale system.
Staff badges
Photo, name, department and personnel number — every card individual, even for a small team.
Access and time cards
MIFARE or NTAG for doors, barriers and time recording — we supply the chip numbers as a list.
Gift and value cards
More premium than paper, reusable, printed with an expiry date or a balance number.
Card list
All cards share one format — ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1, 85.60 × 53.98 mm at 0.76 mm thickness, exactly bank card size. What differs is what sits inside the card.
| Card type | Construction | Properties | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| White PVC, 0.76 mm | solid plastic, ISO ID-1ISO ID-1The card format standardised in ISO/IEC 7810: 85.60 by 53.98 millimetres at 0.76 millimetres thickness, with a 3.18 millimetre corner radius. Every loyalty card, staff badge and bank card has these… | standard, matt or glossy, printable on both sides | loyalty card, gift card, badge |
| Transparent / frosted PVC | solid plastic | translucent, white underprint possible | premium gift cards, design cards |
| Composite PVC/PET (60/40) | composite material | more heat resistant, laminatable, low warp | badges with a long service life |
| Card with HiCo magnetic stripe | PVC + 2750 Oe | resistant to stray fields | payment, access, loyalty |
| Card with LoCo magnetic stripe | PVC + 300 Oe | easier to encode, more sensitive | short-lived applications, hotel keys |
| MIFARE Classic 1K | PVC + 13.56 MHz | 1 KB memory, very widespread | time recording, simple access control |
| MIFARE DESFire EV2/EV3 | PVC + 13.56 MHz | encrypted, several applications per card | secure access, payment systems |
| NTAG213 / 215 / 216 | PVC + NFC Forum type 2 | readable by smartphone, 144–888 bytes | digital business card, link to a website |
| Contact chip card | PVC + chip module | contact-based to ISO 7816 | signature cards, legacy systems |
| Combi card (chip + stripe) | PVC + both | two systems on one card | transition phases during a system change |
| Key fob card | PVC with 3 break-out parts | card plus two fobs | loyalty card for a keyring |
Printing processes and finishing
| Option | What happens | Effect | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct printing (DTC) | print head prints straight onto the card | cheap, fast | leaves an approx. 1 mm white border |
| Retransfer printingRetransfer printingThe image is first printed mirrored onto a transfer film, which is then laminated onto the card. Unlike direct printing no white border remains, and chip and card edges are covered as well. | printed onto film, then laminated onto the card | borderless, higher resolution | prints over chips and edges too |
| Double-sided printing | front and back | terms, contact, barcode on the back | — |
| White underprint | opaque white as a base | required on transparent cards | retransfer only |
| Protective laminate | thin protective film | markedly extends service life | recommended for daily use |
| Numbering | consecutive or from your list | barcode, QR code or plain text | an Excel list is enough |
| Chip encoding | writing MIFARE/NTAG | we supply the UID list | with your data on request |
| Magnetic stripe encoding | writing tracks 1–3 | to your specification | — |
| Punching | slot lengthways or crossways | for badge clips and yo-yo reels | — |
Run sizes
| Quantity | What for |
|---|---|
| 1–10 cards | single pieces, samples, badges for new staff |
| 10–100 cards | the normal case: first loyalty-card run, team badges |
| 100–1,000 cards | club memberships, gift card campaigns, access cards for one site |
| Over 1,000 cards | offset printing becomes cheaper — we broker it and take on the personalisation |
The most important note up front: tell us which card reader system you run before you order. MIFARE Classic and DESFire look identical, and a reader that only knows Classic will not read a DESFire card. We settle that in five minutes on the phone — afterwards a whole run is useless.
Print data requirements
Cards are small, and every millimetre of tolerance shows. These specifications are not a formality — they decide whether your logo still sits centred after punching.
| Item | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Final size | 85.60 × 53.98 mm (ISO ID-1) |
| With bleedBleedA margin printed beyond the final size so no white slivers remain after punching. On plastic cards it is 1.5 millimetres all round, plus a 3 millimetre safety margin inwards. | 88.60 × 56.98 mm — that is 1.5 mm all round |
| Safety margin | 3 mm from the edge — everything important sits inside it |
| Resolution | 300 dpi at final size, so at least 1046 × 673 pixels with bleed |
| Colour mode | CMYK (FOGRA51/PSO Coated v3). We convert RGB — colours then shift |
| Black | Text as 100 % K, large areas as rich black (60/40/40/100) |
| File format | PDF/X-4 preferred, alternatively TIFF or PNG without transparency |
| Type | Embedded or converted to paths |
| Minimum type size | 6 pt — below that thermal transfer printingThermal Transfer PrintingA printing process in which ink is transferred from a ribbon onto a substrate using heat. It produces durable, smudge-proof and water-resistant results and is especially suited to plastic cards.… fills in |
| Corners | 3.18 mm radius — carry the bleed right into the corner |
| Magnetic stripe | Keep an area of 82.55 × 12.7 mm from the top edge clear |
| Chip module | For contact chips keep 15 × 12 mm clear at the top left |
| Barcode | Minimum height 8 mm, 2 mm quiet zone left and right, pure black |
| Personalisation | Excel or CSV with one column per field — do not forget the header row |
No print file, just a logo? That is enough — we lay out the card and show you a proof for approval beforehand.
The recurring mistake in card files: no bleed. The card is punched to format, and without 2 mm overhang a white line shows at the edge. Run the background past the edge. Second point: tell us the chip type of your existing system. MIFARE and NTAG look alike, a reader tells them apart.
Frequently asked questions about plastic card printing
From one card. Thermal transfer printing needs no tooling and no printing plate — so the first card costs almost the same as the tenth. From around 1,000 pieces offset printing gets cheaper; we then broker the printing and only handle the personalisation.
Your reader decides that, not the card. MIFARE Classic 1K is the most widespread and is enough for time recording and simple access. DESFire EV2 is encrypted and belongs in security-relevant applications. Smartphones read NTAG directly — ideal for a digital business card. Tell us your system and we pick.
Yes. Name, photo, number and barcode can differ per card — all we need is an Excel or CSV list with one column per field. Supply photos as a folder whose file names match one of the columns.
A loyalty card in a wallet lasts years. A staff badge that goes through a reader daily and dangles from a reel wears faster — for that we recommend composite material and a protective laminate. Chip and magnetic stripe outlast the printing.
Because direct printing cannot carry the print head over the card edge — about 1 mm remains. Borderless printing needs retransfer: there the image is printed onto a film first and the film is then laminated across the whole card.
That is enough. Send the logo as a vector if you can (SVG, AI, EPS or PDF) together with your wishes for colour and text. We lay out the card, respect bleed and keep-out areas and show you a proof before anything is printed.
Tell us what goes on the card.
Card type, quantity and your logo are enough — you get a quote and a proof before anything is printed.
Request cards