If you love sending personalized holiday cards with cute photos of your family or pets, it can feel like you need a whole season to go from capturing the perfect photo to applying that last stamp and getting those cards out the door.
A holiday card service is like an industrious elf streamlining the task for you: Simply choose your favorite card template, upload your photo, customize messages and designs (when allowed), select a quantity, and plug in your credit card information. Some companies even offer the royal treatment (at an extra cost) by collecting addresses and mailing the cards out for you.
But we get it: You’re busy. Time is of the essence and there are countless holiday card services, all offering different customization options and à la carte add-ons like foils and paper types. Some of these sites can also be laggy, with inflexible platforms that force you to go back to the first page to make changes to your cards. In other words: All holiday card services are not created equal.
To give you one less thing to worry about, CR evaluated 10 popular holiday card services—including budget, high-end, and sustainable brands. We enlisted the expertise of CR’s in-house paper buyer Steve Schiavone, who handles paper quality for CR magazine and other print projects, CR product tester and professional photographer Artur Pietruch, and CR’s product tester Maria Grimaldi, who has evaluated photographs when testing digital cameras and printers at CR. Our experts gave each brand’s holiday cards their nods of approval (or unimpressed shakes of the head).
How We Evaluated Holiday Card Services
CR’s photo department provided a stock image of a family that resembles the quality you might get from most newer mobile phones. We used this image to evaluate 10 popular holiday card services and took notes on our experience, including how easy the site was to navigate on a Mac laptop and an iPhone (we didn’t evaluate any apps), how many customization options were offered, pricing (including for add-ons), and any extra services offered. We evaluated the diversity of holiday themes offered and noted when a company featured Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Feliz Navidad templates. Many sites offered the opportunity to design your own template rather than choosing from their selection, but we did not evaluate this feature.
To evaluate paper quality, we chose the least expensive and often the default paper option for each card. We saved our work in each service and returned to the sites after a few hours or days to evaluate how easy that was to do. We didn’t experience issues with returning later to complete the order on any of the sites. All pricing mentioned is the price prior to shipping costs and our delivery times are based on choosing the least expensive shipping method for each company. Fluctuations in pricing seem very common among holiday card companies—and sales prices affect pricing at different times of the year. Finally, we consulted with CR’s paper expert and two CR photo experts to get their professional opinions on each card’s quality.
Here are our merriest top choices and the cards that failed to give us tidings of comfort and joy.
Best High-End: Shutterfly Tiny Prints
Tiny Prints was our top high-end holiday card service pick because both its photo and paper quality were outstanding.
Shutterfly Tiny Prints Holiday Cards
Prices from: $109.50
First impressions: Tiny Prints, a brand of Shutterfly, was our top choice for high-end holiday card services because its photo and paper quality were unmatched. Its website is not busy and it was as simple to navigate this site on my iPhone as it was on a laptop. But we do wish it provided as many specific categories as some of the other companies. For example, the main categories under “Holiday” include holiday cards, Christmas cards, and New Year’s collections. Kwanzaa is not a category, and when I searched for “Kwanzaa cards,” three generic holiday templates were provided.
Customization options: You can sort holiday card templates by bestsellers or price. Out of hundreds of options, I chose a template called Powerful Plaid. I was able to choose from three foils, two design colors, two greetings (Holiday or Christmas), and two trims. The Powerful Plaid template offered only one paper option, called “personalized foil cardstock.” After uploading my photo I could change the background and add text on the back of the card—this was a perk because it provides more space than most cards for longer messages.
Photo quality: This card was Grimaldi and Pietruch’s top choice because the faces and small details in our photo were vivid and accentuated and all the photo colors were “punchy” and balanced well.
Paper quality: This card was also Schiavone’s top pick: “The card has a coating and I like how the photo looks—the colors look right. This is a good card.”
Pricing and delivery: Tiny Prints was the most expensive service we evaluated, but the card quality was a cut above the rest. You can order between 1 and 1,000 cards, which start at $4.38 each and are then discounted the more cards you order. I purchased 25 cards at $4.38 each for a total cost of $109.50 before shipping and handling (prices tend to fluctuate). It took five days for the cards to arrive.
Extra services: Tiny Prints will address envelopes for you at an additional cost of 39 cents per envelope. It can also mail cards for you at 99 cents per domestic envelope (including postage).
Best Midpriced: Nations Photo Lab
It was easy to make cards using Nations Photo Lab, and our experts were impressed with the photo quality.
Nations Photo Lab Holiday Cards
Prices from: $46.50
First impressions: In our evaluation, Nations Photo Lab’s website was among the easiest to navigate, with more helpful holiday categories than those offered at Tiny Prints. When I selected All Holiday Cards, my category options included Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year’s, religious Christmas, pet, year in review, newlywed, and holiday birth announcements. However, Kwanzaa cards did not appear when we searched for them. There were 428 holiday card templates from which to choose, and you can narrow down your search more by filtering the number of images you want to upload (from one to 12 photos), paper orientation, card color, and sentiment. My user experience was equally smooth on my iPhone and laptop.
Customization options: I first chose the Wonderful Life template and was able to select between two corner types and six paper types—costs vary depending on what you choose. After uploading my photo, I discovered my photo didn’t fit the template, but Nations Photo Lab didn’t suggest alternate templates the way Simply to Impress does (see below). I had to go all the way back and start over. I then chose the Classic Holidays template. I was able to customize a small text box on the front of the card for free and, for an additional cost, I could add a different template with text to the back of the card. It shows options to change the background, border, and style, but then it didn’t actually let me do that. For additional costs, you can customize the envelope color, remove the company logo from the back of the card, and add a gloss UV coating. You can opt for color correction (which doesn’t appear to cost more).
Photo quality: Although it lacks as many customization options as some of the other card services we evaluated, this card was Grimaldi and Pietruch’s second choice for photo quality because it featured great color, contrast, and detail.
Paper quality: “I think the photo looks great here,” Schiavone said of the Nations Photo Lab card. “The paper might not be as thick as the other cards—it’s a little flimsier—but that’s not to say it’s bad. I think it’s a beautiful card.”
Pricing and delivery: I selected an option that provided 25 cards for $1.66 per card. My total cost before shipping was $46.50 (prices tend to fluctuate). One thing I found annoying is you can’t change the number of cards you want to order at checkout unless you plan to double, triple, quadruple, etc., your order. You have to go back to the first page to do this, which takes up additional time. On the plus side, my order arrived in four days.
Extra services: Envelope addressing and mailing services are not available.
Nice Quality + Good Price: Artifact Uprising
Artifact Uprising’s prices were reasonable, and its clean, minimalist website was a pleasure to navigate.
Artifact Uprising Holiday Cards
Prices from: $40.80
First impressions: If you want a lower-cost holiday card without a cheap-feeling experience while creating your card, Artifact Uprising is a fabulous choice. Its Custom Holiday Photo Card options are minimal but include major categories: holiday, Christmas, New Year, Hanukkah, sentimental, and personalized. Once again, though, when I searched for Kwanzaa templates, nothing came up. But the website was clean, minimalist, and pleasant to the eye (both on my laptop and iPhone). You can further filter your template options by selecting the number of photos you want to include (one to 12), printing type, card orientation, and style.
Customization options: I chose a template called Scripted Greeting Holiday Card. On the first page you choose a card quantity (10 to 300), and one of three card orientations, two printing styles (foil costs extra), and three paper types (prices vary). You can also choose an envelope color and whether you want your envelope addressed. Design customization options include a small text box on the front of the card and—a major perk—the ability to add short or long amounts of text (and additional photos) on the back of the card. There are a few envelope customization options, as well, including paper type.
Photo quality: This card had fairly good photo quality, especially for the cost.
Paper quality: “The paper is substantial, thick, and has good texture, though the images don’t pop as much as some of the other cards,” Schiavone says.
Pricing and delivery: The cost for 20 cards was $2.04 each for a total cost of $40.80 before shipping (prices tend to fluctuate). The total is more than $10 more than than Staples and Walmart (both below), but Artifact Uprising’s quality and card creation experience was better. My order took five days to arrive.
Extra services: For an additional 34 cents per envelope, you can include a return address, recipient address, or both, but the company doesn’t offer to mail cards for you.
Best Sustainable: Postable
Postable’s cards are printed on 100 percent recycled paper, and it offered several fun templates.
Postable Holiday Cards
Prices from: $63.52
First Impressions: If you want to quickly navigate a site, design a card, and get out fast—and you don’t mind spending a little extra for recycled paper, Postable is the best sustainable card option. Postable has a no-frills website with a lengthy list of holiday card categories that include Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Lunar New Year. Filters that can help you find the ideal template include card format (folded, flat, postcard), no photo, one photo, or multiple photos, and the option of adding custom text on the card. The site was as simple to navigate on my iPhone as it was on my laptop, and all cards are printed on 100 percent recycled paper.
Customization options: I chose a fun template called Merry and Bright Overlap, but I could only add a salutation on the front of the card and couldn’t change the font color, type, or size. I also could not change the main message, “Merry and Bright,” and, aside from the ability to change the layout on the back of the card, a wide range of customization options was not offered.
Photo quality: This card didn’t grab Grimaldi and Pietruch’s attention, and they placed it somewhere in the middle in terms of photo quality.
Paper quality: Schiavone called the card “substantial feeling” but wasn’t overly impressed with it. “It’s uncoated, so the colors are a little duller. It looks a little faded to me.”
Pricing and delivery: Some other card services make pricing more difficult to understand, but Postable’s strength is that its messaging is simple. A pop-up box of pricing tiers shows that you can order one card or between 10 and 190 cards in groups of 10. An order of 20 cards costs $63.52 ($3.18 each), which makes Postable one of the most expensive services we evaluated (prices tend to fluctuate). My order arrived in five days.
Extra services: Postable will stamp, address, and mail your cards for you at no additional cost.
Most Convenient: Staples
Creating a card on Staples’ website wasn’t as enjoyable as other sites, but its prices were reasonable and it offers same-day pickup service.
Staples Holiday Cards
Prices from: $29.99
First impressions: My first impression of the Staples website wasn’t great. The site stalled on my laptop for a few minutes, so off to my iPhone I went to create my card. To narrow down my template choice I could choose from filters like sides, folded card, size, foil finish, holiday message, color theme, and number of photos. The most intuitive way to find a template was to click on Holiday Message and choose from New Year, Hanukkah, Happy Holidays, custom Kwanzaa, and Merry Christmas.
I didn’t find Staples to be the most pleasurable site to navigate when making cards, but if your priorities are convenience and saving money, that’s a small price to pay.
Customization options: I chose the Be Merry Classic Arch template and clicked on “create now.” From there I could select from several options: signature flat card (foil available), same-day cards, and folded cards (pickup in five days). Other customization options included colors, foil options, two sizes (one of the two size options is delivery-only and can’t be picked up), single-sided or double-sided, square corner or round corners (latter is delivery only and not available for single-sided cards), foil or no foil (foil is also delivery only and not available for single-sided cards), blank envelopes or printed envelopes (latter is delivery only). Only one paper type was offered: standard 14-point matte, which is “glare-free” and “ideal for classic designs,” according to Staples.
Photo quality: We’re not going to beat around the bush. Our photo experts didn’t think Staples’ photo quality was as good as the others. Along with Walmart and Minted, they placed it in the bottom three.
Paper quality: Schiavone was a bit more forgiving and said that, compared with Walmart’s similar budget option, the Staples pick was “thicker,” was less flimsy, and “feels like a card.”
Pricing and delivery: I was able to purchase a minimum of 25 cards for $29.99, then the price bumped up to 50 cards for $59.99, 75 cards for $84.99, 100 cards for $104.99, and up to 500 cards for $419.99 (prices tend to fluctuate). Staples was the second-lowest-priced card company we evaluated after Walmart, but its card quality was superior to Walmart’s. Staples also offers same-day pickup service. My order was delivered in four days.
Extra services: Envelope addressing and mailing services are not available.
Other Holiday Card Services We Evaluated
We evaluated five additional holiday card services. Although they all have pros and cons worth considering, they did not provide the same quality and overall positive experience as our top picks.
Simply to Impress helped us choose a different template when our photo didn’t fit our first template choice, but its card quality did not stand out to us.
Simply to Impress Holiday Cards
Prices from: $34.25
Pros: Template themes include Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, baby’s first Christmas, Feliz Navidad, and religious. When I uploaded my photo, it didn’t fit the template and one person in the picture got cut off, but the site made helpful suggestions about similar templates that it recommends. I chose a different template and my photo fit well—this was a big perk. We found the cost for 25 cards reasonable: $34.25 (prices tend to fluctuate).
Cons: I enjoyed the experience of making cards with Simply to Impress. But our photo and paper experts did not feel that its quality was memorable. “It feels nice and it’s heavy enough, though it doesn’t feel as heavy as some of the others,” Schiavone says. “The picture is okay. But it’s not standing out to me.”
Minted allows you to upload your photo first to see how it will look with different templates, but its photo appeared flat and lacked contrast.
Prices from: $69
Pros: Minted offers out-of-the-box holiday templates like Disney and dog and pet, in addition to Christmas, Hanukkah, religious Christmas, and Kwanzaa. You can also upload your photo first and browse templates to see how they will look with your photo, which is a great feature. If you can’t find the template you are looking for, you can make a design request for an additional cost.
Cons: Our photo and paper experts agreed that the photo appeared flat and lacked contrast. It cost me $69 to print 25 cards (prices tend to fluctuate), which is in the higher price range—we expect better quality if we are going to pay top dollar for a card. Given Minted’s stellar reputation, we were surprised that it wasn’t higher-ranked than Shutterfly Tiny Prints.
Mixbook provides an impressive number of customization options, but its card quality went unnoticed by our experts.
Prices from: $46.75
Pros: Templates include Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa (which you can find under “Multicultural holidays”). The site gives you the option of uploading a photo from your social media account. There are several customization options and opportunities to get creative with your card, including adding stickers.
Cons: We liked this company and card, but nothing stood out to us about them. Our photo experts didn’t consider the photo quality anything special, and Schiavone said the paper was “smooth” and “fine,” but it didn’t win him over. Its pricing is fair: 25 cards cost $46.75 at the time of our evaluation. (Note: Price fluctuations and sales are very common among holiday card companies.)
We loved Paper Culture’s commitment to sustainability, but its card quality did not evoke as strong a reaction among our experts.
Prices from: $47.49
Pros: Holiday card templates/themes include Christmas, Hanukkah, religious, and Kwanzaa. The “cards use exclusively 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper or alternative non-tree fibers,” according to the company. Each time you order cards, the company plants a tree and can dedicate it to someone for you.
Cons: The cost to order 30 cards (you can order 20 or 30 cards, but not 25) was $47.49, which is far less expensive than Postable, the other sustainable card company we evaluated (prices tend to fluctuate). Unfortunately, its photo quality was “meh” to our photo experts. Schiavone said that the paper quality was okay (he preferred Minted) but that the text on the card didn’t pop and was difficult to read.
Walmart offered a diverse selection of templates, including Kwanzaa and Feliz Navidad, and its prices were lowest, but its card quality was the worst of all of the cards we evaluated.
Prices from: $16.50
Pros: Walmart’s website is more intuitive than Staples’ site when creating a holiday card. Templates include generic holiday, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Feliz Navidad, and pet cards. One-hour and same-day pickup options are available.
Cons: Walmart was the least expensive holiday card service we evaluated—I paid $16.50 for 20 cards (prices tend to fluctuate). However, the quality of the card was the worst of all of the cards we evaluated. Grimaldi and Pietruch considered it among the bottom three choices for photo quality, and Schiavone called the card “flimsy” and said it resembled a photograph and not a card. If you can spend a little more, Artifact Uprising and Staples offer better card quality for reasonable prices.