How to Print Playing Cards in Word (Step-by-Step Guide)

Want to design and print your own custom playing cards? With Microsoft Word, it’s easy to create stylish cards for any game or occasion.

In this step-by-step guide, as a professional custom playing card printing manufacturer, I’ll show you exactly how to make printable playing cards in Word from start to finish. You’ll learn how to set up cards, add images and text, print, and even include special finishes.

So if you’re ready to become an expert at DIY playing cards, let’s dive in!

Why Make Custom Playing Cards in Word?

Before we get our hands dirty with the how-to, you may be wondering — why use Word in the first place?

Well, here are some excellent reasons to design cards in Word:

• It’s versatile. Word gives you control over layouts, fonts, formatting, and more. You can make all kinds of cards with minimal fuss.
• It’s easy to learn. Even if you’re not a graphic designer, Word’s intuitive tools make whipping up stylish cards a breeze.
• It’s customizable. Add your own photos, illustrations, logos — anything you like! Word empowers you to personalize cards to suit any theme or occasion.
• It handles batch printing. Printing 50+ unique cards? No problem! Word can easily duplicate and print sheets of cards ready for cutting.

With the basics covered, let me walk you through exactly how to create printable playing cards with plenty of pizzazz.

How to Print Playing Cards in Word

Step 1: Set Up Your Document

First things first — we need to prep a Word doc for professionally printed playing cards. Here’s how:

1. Open Word and select the “Blank Document” option.
2. Head to the “Layout” tab and click “Size.” Punch in your desired card dimensions in inches. Common trading card sizes include:
   • 2.5′′ x 3.5′′ (standard)
   • 3.5′′ x 2.5′′ (horizontal)
   • 3′′ x 4′′
3. Still in the “Layout” tab, change the page orientation from “Portrait” to “Landscape” under “Orientation.”
4. Finally, jump back to the “Design” tab and add page borders for visual guides. Select “Page Borders” then pick a style.

And that’s the foundation for our printable playing cards sorted!

Step 2: Construct Your Card Layout

With the card canvas prepped, it’s time for the fun creative part — laying out eye-catching card designs.

Here are some pro design tips:

• Use templates – Save time with pre-built Word card templates. Search online or check Word’s collection.
• Add frames – Use shapes and text boxes as frames for images/text sections. Keep things neatly organized.
• Mind the margins – Leave equal margins around edges so content doesn’t get trimmed off.
• Be consistent – Stick to a unified layout for a pro uniform look across all cards.

For my sample playing cards, I’ll set up a simple two-column layout using text boxes.

This organized split layout works nicely for showcasing an image alongside text/icons.

💡Pro Designer’s Tip: Use alignment and grouping tools to keep objects perfectly spaced and movable in unison.

Step 3: Insert Images

Next up, let’s jazz up our playing cards with photos and graphics. Here’s how to insert images into Word cards:

1. Select the “Insert” tab then click “Pictures.”
2. Browse your files to upload a relevant high-quality image.
3. Click the image, head to the “Format” tab then pick “Crop” to trim away excess background.
4. Under “Size”, fine-tune dimensions to suit your card layout. Lock aspect ratio to avoid distortion.

For extra visual pop, you can also add icons, logos vector art. Word supports JPG, PNG, SVG, and other common formats.

💡Pro Designer’s Tip: For best print quality, use high-res images sized at 300dpi or above.

Now let’s fill up our playing card’s right text column.

Step 4: Add Formatted Text

With graphics inserted, it’s time to make our playing cards pop with stylish text:

1. Click “Insert” then “Text Box” and draw a frame for your text.
2. Type in your card title/headings and body text as needed.
3. Select text to edit fonts, colors, sizes etc via the “Home” tab.
4. For numbered lists or bullet points, use the formatting options under “Paragraph.”
5. Insert icons and shapes via “Illustrations” to spice things up.

For my sample card, I’ll add a fun retro font for the header, plus dynamic colored icons to represent card suit and numbers.

This completes the card face design. Flip over…

Step 5: Add Card Back Designs

Most playing cards feature double-sided designs with unique card backs. Here’s how to create backs in Word:

1. Close the front card page so you’re viewing the blank reverse side.
2. Insert geometric shapes from the “Insert” tab to create an interlocking design.
3. Tweak fill colors and line weights under “Format” to craft a striking style.
4. For cards in a suite, add a shared suit icon in the middle as an identifying feature.
5. Insert text boxes for serial numbers, copyright notices and branding.

And voila, DIY playing card backs complete!

💡 Pro Designer’s Tip: Get creative with patterns, textures and gradients when dressing up card backs.

At this stage, our printable playing cards should be looking slick. Let’s get these to the printer!

Step 6: Set Up Decent Print Quality

Printing clean, shareworthy playing card designs relies on decent printer settings:

1. Before printing, select suitable cardstock and enter this in your printer preferences.
2. Under print quality settings, choose “Best” or maximum DPI for extra sharpness.
3. Enable any printer color correction tools for truer color matching.
4. For the binding, select “Flip on Long Edge” so cards print face-to-back.
5. Enter the number of copies needed i.e. multiply by 52 for a full card deck.

Refer to your printer’s manual if unsure about options. Don’t be afraid to test print draft copies first to check alignments.

We’re so close now to tangible playing cards. Last step…

Step 7: Cut, Stack and Finish Cards

Hot off the printer comes the final flourish — transforming sheets into playable cards:

1. Carefully cut printed sheets down into individual cards using an art knife/blades, with a ruler for clean edges. Take your time for maximum neatness.
2. Optional: Use an edge trimmer tool to sharpen up edges for seamless card stacks.
3. Dust off stray paper remnants and flatten creased cards under a heavy book for several hours. Consider applying sealant spray to minimize scuffs for cards subject to lots of shuffling.
4. Finally, bundle cards of the same design together with elastic bands. Top with cellophane wrap plus custom labels for stylish DIY finishes.

Don’t forget to handle freshly printed cards with care to avoid smudges which could ruin your gorgeous designs!

And that wraps up our grand tour on transforming Word into a playing card design studio.

In Conclusion

The possibilities for eyecatching playing cards made completely in Word are endless. Apply what you’ve learned today about setup, templates, layouts, inserting images and text, backgrounds, printing and post-production.

Before long, you’ll be churning out collectable card decks for everything from poker and bridge to UNO and Pokémon.

So tap into your inner design talent — and deal out some sensational homemade playing cards!