How to design a business card

Design a business card in seven steps

1. Decide what the card must say

   Most cards need only your name, what you do (a job title or one line about your business), one or two ways to reach you (phone, email, website) and your logo. An address or a social handle earns a place only if people really use it. Write the list down and cut anything a new contact would not miss.

2. Open a card-sized page

   Choose "Open a business card page": it is 321 × 208 px, which is 85 × 55 mm at 96 pixels per inch, so the PDF comes out at exactly that size. For a US card, type 336 × 192 px (3.5 × 2 inches) as your own size; for a vertical card, swap the two numbers. The page is small on screen, so zoom in to work on it.

3. Mark the safe area with guides

   Printers cut cards from big sheets, and the cut can wander by a millimetre or two. Turn on the rulers from the View menu and drag a guide 12 px (about 3 mm) in from every edge: keep all text and logos inside it. A plain or white background is the safest choice, because a slightly off cut will not show.

   • If a colour or photo has to run right to the edge, ask your printer whether they need bleed (extra picture past the cut line). Print-ready PDFs with 3 mm bleed are coming with Pro.

4. Build the hierarchy with type

   Your name is the biggest text, at about 16 to 21 px on this page (12 to 16 pt when printed), with your job title smaller and your contact details smallest. Never go below 11 px (8 pt) for anything people must read. Use one or two fonts at most, for example Montserrat for your name and Inter for the details, and avoid handwriting fonts for phone numbers and email addresses.

   • Align the details to one edge rather than centring every line; it looks tidier on a small card.

5. Use your logo and colours with care

   Add your logo as a PNG with a see-through background or as an SVG (files up to 15 MB), never as a screenshot. Pick one or two brand colours plus a dark text colour, and check the contrast: pale grey text on white, or dark text on a dark colour, disappears in print. Use align and "space evenly" to line up icons and lines of contact details.

6. Design the back (optional)

   Add a second page in the pages panel for the back of the card. Good backs are simple: your logo large on a brand colour, a short line about what you do, or a QR code that links to your website, portfolio or booking page, made with the QR code tool. Make a QR code at least 15 to 20 mm wide (60 to 75 px on this page) so phones scan it easily.

   • Scan the QR code from your screen with your phone before you print anything.

7. Proof it on paper, then download a PDF

   Check your email address and website letter by letter: one typo makes 500 cards useless. Download a PDF (it includes both pages, each exactly 85 × 55 mm) and print it at home at 100% or "actual size" to see the real text sizes on paper. When it is right, send that PDF to your printer, or print on perforated business card sheets at home.