Every week, we receive many emails from game creators asking us to provide quotes for their games. Many of these emails are from designers interested in manufacturing card games.
Card games are usually significantly less expensive to create than board games. They contain fewer components, use less materials, and have a simpler manufacturing process than games that contain a foldable board and other pieces.
On average, it costs between $0.50 and $5 USD per unit to make a card game, depending on how complicated the game is, the number of decks, your order size, and the materials used to make your game.Â
A simple one-deck card game will typically cost between $0.50 and $1.90 per unit. Card games that are more complex, such as Sabobatage and Chicken Challengers, typically cost from $1.40 to $5 USD per unit.
It’s important to keep in mind that these numbers are averages, and that your cost will be closer to the lower end of the scale if you manufacture your game in bulk (and, like you’d expect, near the high end if you only manufacture the MOQ).
In our guide to the cost of manufacturing a board game, we covered the materials costs for the components that make up your game (the game board, tokens, meeples and other items), plus the manufacturing process costs (printing, cutting, coating, gluing, and assembly).Â
Card games generally use lower quantities of materials than board games, and almost always have a simpler manufacturing process, so not all of the costs involved in making a board game will apply if you’re making a simple card game.
Below, we’ve broken down the typical costs of a card game by materials and processes to help you understand how much you’ll likely need to spend to manufacture your card game.Â
If you would like an exact quote for manufacturing your game, feel free to contact us and we’ll provide a detailed breakdown for your specific game.Â
Card Game Paper Costs
There are seven standard playing card sizes that are commonly used in card games:
- Poker Size cards – 63x88mm
- Bridge size cards – 57x88mmÂ
- Mini size cards – 44x68mm
- Large tarot size cards – 70x120mmÂ
- Small tarot size cards – 70x108mmÂ
- Large square cards – 70x70mmÂ
- Small square cards – 63x63mmÂ
All of these cards are made of paper, which is one of the key material costs for card games. We use three types of paper for playing cards: white core, blue core, and black core.
Note: Your choice of card size will affect your game’s cost per unit, as cards are cut from sheets of paper. Some card sizes can be cut more efficiently during manufacturing, meaning less paper is needed for your game. We have covered this in more detail later.
Each type of paper can vary in quality. The highest quality playing cards are usually made from high-end German black core paper. This paper is used for the cards you see in casinos, magic shows, and other environments where a premium feel is very important.Â
For most card games, we recommend using a high quality white core paper of either 300gsm (0.32mm) or 350gsm (0.35mm). This gives an optimal balance of durability, printing quality and value for money that’s ideal for the majority of card games.Â
You can reduce the cost of your game by choosing a cheaper material for your cards. However, this will affect how your game feels, as well as the quality of the print.
Our video about playing card materials, which you can view below, goes into more detail about how paper types differ:Â
Card Game Box Costs
Your card game will need a box. To keep costs as low as possible for a simple single-deck card game, we generally recommend using a tuck box (the type of box that’s used for poker cards), as this is inexpensive and easy to manufacture.
The exact size of your box (and thus, the amount of cardboard needed to manufacture it) varies based on the number and size of cards in your game.Â
If your game contains over 100 cards (and especially if it uses thick paper), we suggest using a two-piece box. This type of box can hold multiple decks of cards, as well as other components, but costs more to manufacture than a tuck box.
Printing, Finishing & Assembly Costs for Card Games
In addition to materials, there are process-based costs involved in manufacturing a card game. These include printing your cards, applying a finish to the cards, and assembling/packaging all of your game’s components into its box so that it’s ready for sale.
The cost of printing your card game can vary dramatically based on your order size. Printing is primarily a fixed price for creating the plates and calibrating machinery. Smaller print runs cost significantly more than larger ones due to the time involved vs. number of copies printed.
If you contact us with your game idea, we can provide you with quotes for different order sizes of your game to help you get the best value for money.Â
All playing cards need to be finished in order to protect the printing. Without a finish, the ink on each card will gradually smudge and wear away. Common finishes for playing cards include oil varnish, lamination and linen finish.
Our guide to playing card finishes covers these processes in more detail. Pricing for your game will vary slightly based on the type of finish you would like applied to your cards.Â
Finally, assembly for a card game involves verifying that each deck contains the right number of cards, shrink wrapping the cards, placing them inside a box, and sealing the game. Much of this process is performed manually, and the costs can vary based on the complexity of your game.
Contact Us to Request a Quote for Your Game
We manufacture hundreds of card games every year, including Kickstarter games, educational games and others. If you are interested in manufacturing a card game, we’re happy to answer any of your questions and provide a quote for your game concept.Â
We can also help you to choose materials so that your game is made with the right balance of quality and value for money for your specific needs.Â
Contact us and our team can provide a free quote for your card game production and help you with every step of the process.Â
