Business cards are available in different finishes, such as matte, glossy, and soft touch. Each of these comes with its benefits and drawbacks that you need to consider when making a choice.

However, the right business card finish primarily boils down to your personal preference or what best suits your professional identity.

Comparison Chart: The Difference Between, Matte, Glossy, and Soft Touch Business Cards

	Matte	Gloss	Soft Touch
Appearance	Flat and no sheen	Smooth and reflective	Minimal reflectivity
Texture	More tactile feel	Very smooth to the touch	Velvety
Writability	Excellent writability	Difficult to write on the surface	Regular pens may not work on its surface
Durability	Slightly less durable than the other finishes	More resistant to moisture, folding, and fading	Thicker and sturdier and more resistant to scuffing and moisture
Best for	Simple and text-focused design	Image-focused and colorful design	Premium and elegant design

What Is a Matte Business Card?

Matte business cards have a flat finish, resulting in the lack of sheen or glare. Consequently, they are the ideal option if you want the text to be easily readable.

The lack of sheen also makes matte business cards a great choice for minimal, monochromatic, and text-laden designs because they prevent colors from looking too busy.

Unique Selling Point: More resistant to fingerprints and smudges

Appearance: Flat, subdued colors

Texture: More textured and tactile feel

Writability: You can write on its surface using pen or pencil

Durability: Slightly less durable than glossy cards

Design Tip: Choose a monochromatic or minimalist design to achieve a clean, professional, and elegant look

Best for: Simple and text-focused design

What Is a Glossy Business Card?

Glossy business cards have a shiny finish that makes the colors appear more vibrant and the contrast more eye-catching. As a result, they are an excellent choice for designs with lots of colors and images.

On the flip side, the reflective surface can make it hard to read. Thus, glossy business cards are best reserved for image-focused designs rather than those with a lot of texts.

Compared to matte cards, glossy cards are less prone to peeling and folding and are better at withstanding minor water damage.

Unique Selling Point: The glossy surface makes the colors pop

Appearance: Smooth and reflective

Texture: Ultra-smooth to the touch

Writability: Difficult to write on the surface

Durability: More resistant to fading, folding, and moisture than matte finish

Design Tip: Include vibrant colors and more images or graphics in your business card design

Best for: Image-focused and colorful designs

What Is a Soft Touch Business Card?

Soft touch business cards have a clear ultra-thin layer of coating on both sides, making them a bit thicker and more durable than standard business cards.

The smooth and velvety surface of these business cards makes them popular in the fashion, design, and hospitality industry.

You can think of soft touch lamination as a blend of gloss and matte finishes, as it allows minimal reflectivity and extra depth on its surface while having a subdued and flat appearance.

Soft touch business cards are also referred to as velvet business cards.

Unique Selling Point: Thicker and sturdier than standard business cards

Appearance: Minimal reflectivity

Texture: Smooth and velvety feel

Writability: A regular pen may not work very well on their surface

Durability: The lamination makes the cards sturdier and more scuff-resistant than standard cards

Design Tip: Choose darker colors since the lamination can slightly mute the tones of graphics

Best for: Premium and elegant design

Which Business Card Finish Is the Most Resistance to Damage?

Both the glossy and soft touch business cards have an extra layer of coating that gives them extra durability, making them more resistant to moisture, dust, and folding.

Conclusion

Whether you like the minimalist vibe of a matte finish, the slight sheen and velvety texture of the soft touch, or the vibrant color effect of glossy business card, 48HP can help print the right one for you. All you need is to choose a template, upload your logo or any artwork, and use the online design tool that you can access for free.