Guide · updated
Print your card anywhere
Download PRINT.pdf from Cardie (both sides, 3.75 × 2.25 in with bleed and trim boxes), choose a 3.5 × 2 in standard card at the printer, upload the file as your own design, and pick a stock. Cardie's files pass Vistaprint's and Moo's automated checks with no changes.
Vistaprint
- Business Cards → Standard → Upload a complete design.
- Choose 3.5" × 2", then upload PRINT.pdf. Page 1 is the front, page 2 the back.
- Preflight shows the trim line; it should sit exactly on Cardie's dashed line.
- Pick a stock. 16 pt matte is a safe default; add "no UV coating" if you want to write on the back.
Moo
- Business Cards → Original or Luxe → Upload your own.
- Moo asks for separate front and back files; use FRONT.pdf and BACK.pdf.
- Moo's "Printfinity" lets every card have a different back. Not needed here, upload one back.
A local print shop
Email PRINT.pdf and say: "3.5 × 2 in, full bleed, trim box set, 2-sided, 16 pt matte, 250 qty." That sentence answers every question they would otherwise ask. If they want a proof with crop marks, Cardie's PDF already carries the TrimBox, so their software adds marks automatically.
If preflight flags something
- "Low resolution image": only possible if you uploaded a small logo. Re-upload a logo at least 600 px wide; everything else in the file is vector.
- "RGB colors": most online printers convert automatically. Lime and other bright colors shift slightly in CMYK; ask for a proof if the exact shade matters.
- "Text too close to edge": Cardie keeps text 0.25 in from the file edge (0.125 in inside the trim). If a printer uses a larger safe zone, choose the Minimal layout, which sits text further in.