How to Print Employee ID Cards Without Buying an ID Card Printer

Employee ID cards are a simple but important part of running a professional organization. They help employees identify one another, make it easier to control access to facilities, and give customers and visitors confidence that they are dealing with authorized staff.

Traditionally, producing professional employee badges meant purchasing an ID card printer, blank PVC cards, printer ribbons, cleaning supplies, and card-design software. For organizations that print hundreds or thousands of cards every month, owning this equipment may make sense. But what if you only need a few employee ID cards at a time?

Fortunately, you can print professional employee ID cards without buying an ID card printer. Online ID card printing services allow businesses to design cards through a web browser, submit employee information and photos, and receive finished PVC cards in the mail.

For small businesses, nonprofits, schools, healthcare providers, contractors, churches, property managers, and companies with remote employees, outsourcing ID card printing can often be easier and more economical than maintaining an in-house printer.

Why Businesses Traditionally Buy ID Card Printers

Plastic ID card printers are specialized devices designed to print directly onto PVC cards. Depending on the printer, they may produce single-sided or double-sided cards and support features such as magnetic stripes, smart cards, RFID cards, or security overlays.

An organization with a large security department might operate its own badge-printing station. When a new employee arrives, someone takes a photograph, enters the employee’s information into the badge software, and prints the card immediately.

That approach offers one major advantage: instant printing.

However, it also creates additional costs and responsibilities.

The company must purchase and maintain the printer, keep compatible ribbons and blank cards in stock, install software, troubleshoot printing problems, clean the printer, and train employees to operate it.

For a company issuing thousands of badges, those expenses may be justified. For an organization that needs five, ten, or twenty cards per month, the equipment may spend most of its life sitting unused.

The Alternative: Order Employee ID Cards Online

Instead of printing badges internally, businesses can use an online ID card printing service.

The process is similar to ordering business cards online. You create or select a design, provide the information that should appear on the card, upload an employee photograph, and place the order. The printing company produces the card using professional equipment and ships the finished badge to you.

Using an online id maker also eliminates much of the technical work associated with operating an ID card printer.

There is no printer to configure, no ribbon to replace, and no inventory of blank PVC cards to maintain. When another employee needs a badge, you simply create or update the card and order another copy.

This model works particularly well when employee badges are needed periodically rather than continuously.

What Do You Need to Create an Employee ID Card?

The basic information required for an employee badge is usually straightforward.

Most employee ID cards contain the employee’s name, photograph, company name or logo, job title, and some form of employee or identification number.

Depending on how the card will be used, you might also include a department, office location, expiration date, QR code, barcode, emergency information, company website, or instructions for returning a lost card.

Before designing your cards, decide which information employees actually need to display.

Adding too much information can make a badge difficult to read. A good employee ID card should communicate the most important information quickly, especially the employee’s photograph and name.

Step 1: Choose an Employee ID Card Design

The first step is creating the badge layout.

You can start with an existing employee ID card template or create a custom design that matches your organization’s branding.

Most standard employee badges use the CR80 card format. This is approximately the same physical size as a standard credit card, making it convenient for badge holders, clips, lanyards, and wallets.

Both horizontal and vertical layouts are common.

Horizontal ID cards provide more room for longer names, titles, and company information. Vertical badges are especially popular when cards are worn from lanyards or badge clips.

Whichever orientation you choose, consistency matters. Employees throughout the organization should generally use the same visual format unless different designs serve a specific purpose, such as identifying employees, contractors, visitors, or volunteers.

Step 2: Upload a Good Employee Photo

The employee photograph is one of the most important parts of an ID card.

You do not necessarily need a professional photographer. A modern smartphone can produce a perfectly suitable employee ID photo when the picture is taken correctly.

Use a simple background and good, even lighting. The employee should face the camera directly, and the image should clearly show the person’s head and shoulders.

Avoid dark photographs, distracting backgrounds, screenshots from social media, heavily compressed images, or pictures where the employee’s face occupies only a small portion of the frame.

Starting with a good photograph makes a noticeable difference in the finished badge.

Step 3: Enter the Employee Information

Next, add the information that will be printed on the card.

Double-check spelling before submitting the order. Employee names, titles, and identification numbers are among the most common sources of badge-printing errors.

If your organization regularly orders employee badges, consider establishing a standard format for names and titles.

For example, decide whether titles should appear as “Sales Manager,” “SALES MANAGER,” or “Sales manager.” Small details like these help keep badges consistent across the organization.

Employee ID numbers should also follow a predictable format if they are displayed on the card.

Step 4: Add a QR Code or Barcode if Needed

Employee ID cards can do more than display a photograph and name.

QR codes have become particularly useful because almost any modern smartphone can scan them. A QR code on an employee badge might direct users to a company website, employee verification page, contact information, training records, or another online resource.

Traditional barcodes can also be printed on employee badges and used with compatible software or scanning systems.

The important distinction is that printing a QR code or barcode does not automatically create an access-control system. The printed code simply contains or references information. Your organization’s software determines what happens when that code is scanned.

Step 5: Order the Finished PVC Card

Once the design has been reviewed, the finished badge can be professionally printed onto plastic card stock and shipped to your organization.

This is where outsourcing becomes particularly convenient.

Instead of purchasing equipment to print one card, you are purchasing the finished product. The printing provider handles the printer, consumables, card stock, and production process.

When another employee is hired next week or next month, you can order another card without restarting the entire setup process.

How Much Does an ID Card Printer Really Cost?

When comparing online printing with purchasing a printer, it is important to consider more than the initial price of the machine.

An in-house ID card printing system may require a printer, card-design software, ribbons, blank PVC cards, cleaning kits, replacement printheads or other maintenance items, and possibly additional hardware for encoding technology.

There is also the cost of employee time.

Someone has to learn the software, manage templates, maintain supplies, resolve printing problems, and actually produce the cards.

For organizations printing large quantities, the cost per card can eventually become attractive. But organizations printing relatively few badges should calculate the total cost of ownership rather than simply comparing the price of a blank card with the price of an outsourced printed card.

A printer that is rarely used may not generate enough savings to justify the investment.

No Printer Maintenance or Ribbon Problems

Anyone who has managed an ID card printer knows that the printer itself is only part of the equation.

Printer ribbons must match the specific machine. Cards need to be stored properly. Dust and debris can affect print quality. Rollers require cleaning, and ribbons occasionally break or wrinkle.

If the printer stops working just when a new employee needs a badge, someone has to troubleshoot it.

Outsourcing removes most of these concerns.

Your organization manages the employee information and card design while the printing provider handles the physical production equipment.

A Good Solution for Remote and Hybrid Employees

Online ID card ordering is especially useful for organizations with employees working from multiple locations.

A centralized badge printer works well when everyone reports to the same office. It becomes less convenient when employees are distributed across several states or work remotely.

An online system allows employee information and photographs to be collected digitally. Cards can then be produced without requiring every employee to visit the company’s headquarters simply to have a badge printed.

This can also help organizations maintain consistent badge designs across multiple offices.

Instead of each location developing its own process, the organization can use standardized templates for everyone.

Can You Print ID Cards on a Regular Inkjet Printer?

Technically, you can print an employee badge design onto paper or printable card stock using an ordinary inkjet or laser printer. You could then laminate it or place it inside a plastic badge holder.

For temporary identification, conferences, visitors, or short-term events, this may be sufficient.

However, it is not the same as a professionally printed PVC employee ID card.

Paper badges are more vulnerable to moisture, bending, tearing, and general wear. Laminating them improves durability but adds another production step and often produces a noticeably different result from a standard plastic ID card.

If employees will wear their badges every day, professionally printed PVC cards generally provide a cleaner and more durable solution.

When Does Buying an ID Card Printer Make Sense?

Outsourcing is not necessarily the right solution for every organization.

Buying an ID card printer may make sense if you print a high volume of cards, need badges immediately, operate a staffed security desk, or frequently replace lost or temporary credentials.

Large universities, hospitals, manufacturing facilities, government facilities, and corporations with high employee turnover may benefit from having an in-house printing operation.

The decision largely comes down to volume, speed, and workflow.

If you print hundreds of cards regularly and need them within minutes, owning a printer can be practical.

If you order cards occasionally and can wait for shipping, online printing eliminates a significant amount of equipment and maintenance.

Don’t Forget About Badge Accessories

The printed card is only one part of an employee identification system.

Depending on your workplace, employees may need lanyards, badge clips, reels, rigid card holders, or protective sleeves.

Think about how employees will actually use the card before choosing the badge orientation and design.

For example, a vertical card may work particularly well with a lanyard, while a horizontal card may be preferable when displaying several lines of employee information.

If employees carry their cards in wallets rather than wearing them, keeping the badge at standard CR80 dimensions is especially useful.

Keep Employee ID Card Designs Consistent

One of the biggest advantages of using an online badge system is the ability to reuse the same template.

Once your organization has approved a design, future employee badges should not need to be recreated from scratch.

Instead, the employee photograph, name, title, and other variable information can be changed while the company logo, colors, typography, and overall layout remain consistent.

That consistency makes badges look more professional and helps employees recognize legitimate company credentials.

It also reduces mistakes because administrators are modifying established fields rather than designing an entirely new card every time someone is hired.

Professional Employee ID Cards Without the Equipment

You do not need to own an ID card printer to issue professional employee badges.

For many small and midsize organizations, online ID card printing provides a simpler alternative: create the badge online, upload the employee’s photograph, enter the required information, and order the finished PVC card.

There is no specialized printer to purchase, no ribbons to stock, no printhead to maintain, and no badge-printing workstation to manage.

More importantly, you can order cards as employees are hired instead of investing in equipment based on how many cards you might eventually need.

An in-house ID card printer still makes sense for organizations producing large numbers of badges or requiring immediate issuance. But when badge volume is relatively low or employees are spread across multiple locations, outsourcing production can offer a much more practical workflow.

The result is the same thing employees ultimately need: a professional, durable ID card—without having to become an ID card printing operation yourself.