Business Card Design Vector Free Download VERIFIED
Chris Richard
In theory, any of those (plus others you haven't mentioned, like the open source alternatives Gimp and Inkscape) let you design a business card. If you are particularly proficient with one of them, you might want to consider going for that one to save time. While the three Adobe products have some similarities of use, they all require some learning time. If you have the time, I'd definitely recommend you pick one (spoilers: It's Illustrator).
So, in short, I'd say most cards get designed in Illustrator. As Confused mentions, all printers will be happy with Illustrator files, there are plenty of examples you can follow and the result will just be, overall, better.
Lots of great answers but I'm surprised none of them have talked about batch production of business cards with data merge templates. Even if you're designing for a 2-person startup, with any luck a year or two down the line they'll be coming back to you for business cards for their 8 newly hired employees, then coming back a few years later with a much bigger budget as they open their Asia office...
Don't be guided by personal preference like 'effects', 'not fun' and 'clunky interface'. They are not relevant. As a designer you should pick the right tool for the job. This is not only about business cards. But applies to all pre-press productions.
Adobes big three have overlapping tool space. But all three have their own specialty. If your design requires images (pixels) use Ps if you need illustrations (vectors) use Ai. Layout (combining pixels, vectors, and text) use Id. Make them work together and get the best of each tool.
Of course, this only makes sense since Illustrator CS4 and the addition of the multiple artboards feature. Prior to CS4, I used Indesign (Or QuarkXpress) due to the overwhelming headache of needing one Illustrator file for each name on a card. That's simply not an issue anymore with multiple artboards (and symbols).
I'm actually surprised to see so much love for Illustrator in response to this question, but all the business cards I've done have been very sober corporate designs, so I guess the drawing tools weren't necessary. Our shop used InDesign exclusively for business cards, and wouldn't have dreamed of using IL or PS.
if you need to make same business cards for lot of people (changing the name, the phone, and so on), InDesign would be a better choice : you can do templating, work on multiple pages in one document. So it can be a good choice in that case.
I do the design in Illustrator or Photoshop in the dimensions of the business card (i.e. 2" x 3.5" at 300dpi CMYK). Then I import that file into InDesign for layout. If the business card needs to be laid out 10 per page, this is as easy as copy/paste/arrange.
All printers will by happy to receive your Illustrator file, and at the end of the day, that's the biggest determinant that should drive your choice for business cards. And you'll get clean, crisp, professional edges to all your artwork with it - VERY important for business cards.
Illustrator is vector based. Meaning the files it outputs consist of lines. As such there is no resolution limitation--the text and imagery will be crisp at any size. Given that most business cards consist of vector logos and type, this is often the tool that is used.
Raster images are capable of displaying a myriad of colors in a single image and allow for color editing beyond that of a vector image. They can display finer nuances in light and shading at the right resolution. Vector images are scalable, so that the same image can be designed once and resized infinitely for any size application - from business card to billboard.
Understanding the elements of a standard business card will ensure your design is set up to the right specifications for printing. With that, you can focus on design factors, such as color, layout, and elements such as typography.
The bleed is an area that gets printed beyond the trim edge of the business card to avoid white lines when we trim it. If your business card contains a background color or graphics that extend to the edges, make sure to add a 1/8 inch bleed beyond the trim.
Business cards are not only one of the first impressions that potential customers have of you and your business, but they're also very much part of your brand imaging. Unlike brochures that are created for a specific event, business cards are designed to be handed out at any time and on any occasion. Because your business card should reflect your brand, consideration must be given not only to the color and design of the card but the font that you use as well.
As stated, your business card is part of your brand image. This means that every business has a slightly different version of the perfect font for a business card is. Beyond brand image, the second most important reason for selecting the correct font for your business card is for readability. Because the print on a business card is so small, many font options are not appropriate as they will not be easy to read in a point size between 8-16.
Designing business cards is one part creativity and one part strategy. You want your card to reflect your brand image, you want it to stand out in a stack of business cards, and you want it to be easy to read. Here are some considerations to make when deciding on the best font for your business card.
As with other parts of your business, your business card is an area where you can set yourself apart from your competition by the choices you make regarding colors, graphics, and font size. Designing the perfect card for your business requires consideration, not just about the information that you should include on the card, but how that information will be consumed and regarded. Will your potential customer squint as he or she tries to read the information in a tiny script or will he or she walk away feeling confident that you're just a phone call away? A lot of that depends on the font you choose.
Follow our Step by Step tutorial to learn how to correctly set up your business card for print in Adobe Indesign.