How To Print On Cardstock Paper?

If you want to make your own customized greeting cards or invitation cards, then it’s necessary to learn how to print on cardstock paper. Because usually these types of cards are printed on cardstock paper. It may seem that printing on cardstock paper is difficult, but in fact, it’s not.

If you haven’t designed your card yet, you can easily find ready-made cardstock art prints on the internet to help you out. To make your printing job successful, it’s compulsory to choose the right weight of paper. To make it easier, cardstock that is thicker, durable, and more flexible than other types of card papers is the best to print invitation cards.

There are a lot of different kinds of varieties of cardstock papers with different weights, sizes, and colors. All of these can be sued to print business cards, invitations, greeting cards, scrapbooks, and more.

Some of the usual cardstock printing issues

Many people ask questions like, can you print on cardstock paper with a regular printer? And the answer is yes. You can print cardstock papers with your regular printer but you should know some of the problems that occur usually.

First, your printer may not be able to handle every type of thick paper. So, always check the specifications of the printer and paper. Also, read the documentation, and consult the concerned person if you are not sure. Because using the wrong media may cause serious issues or even damage the printer internally. You have to look at what type of media your printer can support and what’s the maximum media weight. If you use very thick media, it will cause paper jams as the printer wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Sometimes, the printer is only able to handle cardstock paper through a special tray and sometimes through the manual feed. Using the wrong tray may result in jams or misprints. When feeding the paper in the printer always remember not to overload the paper feed. Because cardstock paper is thicker and heavier than other papers, make sure to leave enough room in the feed. Also, check that your media is not creased or ripped, it can affect the printing quality as well.

To ensure the quality of the print, try doing a test print beforehand. For testing purposes, place only one piece of your heavy cardstock paper and get a print of it. Rather than feeding the whole tray at once.

However, you can also see a lot of information in your printer’s driver settings which is worth seeing and understanding. There, you can select your media type so that the printing process goes smoothly.

We have also reviewed the best laser printers for Cardstock as well. You can choose the one among the other 8 products.

How to print on Cardstock Paper?

As you have gained enough knowledge about cardstock printing and its material, now it’s time for some practical work. Below, you will find instructions on how to print on cardstock paper easily and accurately.

1. First, make sure that your printer is capable of printing on cardstock paper. You can do this by looking at your printer’s minimum and maximum paper guidelines. Usually, cardstock paper’s thickness ranges from 145 GSM (grams per square meter) to 260 GSM.
   Using too thick paper may result in roller impressions and jamming. Best Card Stock Printers will always provide top-quality printing results, especially for custom cardstock printing.
2. Now, feed the tray of your printer with your cardstock. Remember in which tray you are feeding your cardstock because you will have to specify it in the settings.
3. Select the proper paper type (Glossy Cardstock, Cardstock, Matte Cardstock, etc). You can find this setting in the “Tray Settings” or “Paper Handling” section on the printer’s menu panel.
4. Next, find the document you want to print and click File and Print. Now, go to “Properties” or “Print Properties”.
5. Now, click the “Paper”, “Paper Quality”, or “Features” section. Then, locate the “Paper Type” drop-down menu.
6. From this drop-down menu, select “Card Stock”, “Heavy Paper” or the exact paperweight.
7. After selecting the paper type, cross-check that the printer will get the paper from the desired tray. To ensure that it will select the correct tray, choose the tray number from “Paper Source”. Once you have selected the right tray, click “OK”. Then proceed to print the card by clicking on “Print”.

After clicking on “Print”, you will get the printouts on your desired material paper which is cardstock paper. If you want accurate printing, then do remember to note down the tray number you fed in, and also, select the right paper type in the settings. If you follow the above-mentioned instructions you will surely end up printing some high-quality prints.

Read Also: Best Printers for Printing Envelopes

Conclusion

Sometimes it becomes necessary to print on cardstock paper. Especially when you want to make custom cardstock printed invitation cards or greeting cards. But the problem is that printing on cardstock paper is not similar to printing on normal paper.

Hence, we have brought this guide on how to print on cardstock paper for those who want to make their own custom cards. This article covers all the necessary information about general cardstock printing and custom cardstock printing as well.

If you remember these above-mentioned 7 tips, the whole process of printing will surely become easier for you.

Additionally, we have also included some frequently asked questions about cardstock printing here. If you have any questions in your mind, look at this FAQ section. Maybe you will find your answer.

Frequently Asked Questions