What ID Card Printer is the Best?

What ID Card Printer is the Best?

When you talk about the "best" of anything, it's rather subjective, isn't it? What's best for one company might be outside the budget or totally unnecessary for another. There are many categories of "best" such as:

  • Best, least expensive ID card printer
  • Best ultimate professional ID card printer
  • Best quality image producing ID card printer
  • Best high-volume ID card printer
  • Best double-sided ID card printer (or single-sided)
  • Best direct-to-card printer
  • Best retransfer printer
  • Best laminating printer
  • Etc.

Perhaps saying you're looking for the "best" ID card printer requires narrowing it down a little.

 Answer the following questions first to narrow down your options and find the best ID card printer for your needs and budget.

What's your #1 reason for issuing ID cards?

Your employees or students may need theirID cards to provide access to rooms or labs, or they may need a card to track attendance/hours. Or both! Others need ID cards or badges for security reasons, so personnel can see at a glance who belongs and who doesn't. Also, encoded technology is a big reason for issuing cards to employees, students, customers, contractors, and more. Technology lets you control access, offer payment options, verify membership, and so much more.

Your major reason for issuing cards will be the first specification you look for in a "best" ID card printer. For example, if you need to store data or control access, you'll need an ID card printer that encodes technology cards like magnetic stripe, contactless, smart cards, or other programmable card types.

What kind of card are you printing on?

If you're printing on a regular PVC card with no technology, you can choose a high-quality, budget-friendly direct-to-card printer. But if you're printing on technology cards with uneven surfaces, you'll need a retransfer printer.

Part of considering your card is if you want the color to be edge-to-edge. If that's not a concern, the direct-to-card printer is a less expensive option that leaves a very thin white border around the edge of your cards. To some, it's insignificant. But if you need employee ID cards that are professional and show off your brand to its best advantage, you might want a retransfer printer.

This is the next specification you should look for: direct-to-card or retransfer printers.

How much text/graphics/images do you need on your cards?

If you're using ID cards to visually prove someone is on your staff, you can probably get away with a headshot, name, title, and company logo on a single side of your cards. But if you need more information, graphics, or images, you must print on both sides of your ID cards. That requires a special module or a double-sided printer.

One consideration is "more" doesn't always equate to "better" when it comes to ID cards. Sometimes more just becomes cluttered and you lose the essence of why you needed ID cards in the first place. It makes more sense to determine the bare minimum of what you should include before you answer this question.

This question is the third specification you should look for: a single- or double-sided printer.

How many cards do you need to print monthly or annually?

Batch printing is an important feature if you need to print thousands of ID cards in a single weekend… like universities do on freshmen orientation weekend. Or you may need to print hundreds or thousands of event badges for your company's annual meeting or customer appreciation symposium. There are as many reasons to print ID cards or badges as there are companies who need to supply them.

If you're a small, local pool that prints annual membership cards for members, you don't need the volume that an enterprise does when creating event credentials for thousands of attendees. How you answer this question will drive the type of ID card printer you consider because you may need a printer that can handle a certain volume—or volume might not be an issue for your organization.

Is durability an issue?

Do your employees, contractors, customers, or others need ID cards that can stand up to the elements? For example, construction companies, utilities, and others need ID cards or badges that can withstand harsh environments because their employees work primarily outdoors. Also think about manufacturing facilities that expose ID cards to high temperatures or dirt and debris. ID cards aren't impervious to sunlight or other environmental wear and tear.

If this sounds like what your employees, contractors, and others will face, you may need a laminating ID card printer. This can sometimes double your ID cards' lifecycle, meaning you reprint fewer cards per annum, keeping your operation costs low. So, if your employees face high heat, excess sun, harsh weather, or other environmental concerns, consider adding a laminating module or printer to your list of must-haves.

Final thoughts

This is an extremely high-level overview of what a company needs to answer in order to figure out their "best" ID card printer. Your company may need something completely different, which is why it's so hard to answer the question: "What ID card printer is the best?"

What is "best" is contacting an ID Expert at Idesco and discussing your needs. Our amazing experts have decades of experience helping companies just like yours find the "best" ID card printer with the right features and security elements at the perfect price for your budget. Over the last 75 years, we've helped thousands of companies find the right solution that fits their needs today and going forward. Call us today at 212-889-2530.


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