Free design proof on every custom order: no templates, no stock SKUs
Custom rack cards are built around your exact size, shape and stock, rather than the standard 4 x 9 or 3.5 x 8.5 dimensions most racks are made for. That flexibility matters when you're designing your own display stand, working with a non-standard slot width, or want a die-cut shape (a rounded top, an angled edge, a logo-shaped cutout) that a stock rack card can't do. Tell us the dimensions, quantity and where the card will be displayed, and we'll match the stock weight and lamination to how it'll actually be used.
Most rack cards ship in one of two standard sizes (4 x 9 or 3.5 x 8.5) because those are the dimensions most commercial literature racks are built to hold. A custom rack card order exists for the cases that don't fit that mold: a proprietary display stand with a non-standard slot, a card meant to slide into a specific binder or menu holder, or a design that calls for a shape a standard die can't produce.
Going custom opens up more than just odd dimensions. Die-cutting can follow a rounded top, an angled edge, a notch for a string or magnet, or a shape that echoes a logo or product silhouette. That kind of shaping tends to work best when there's a clear reason for it. A card meant to hang from a hook, slot into a specific fixture, or stand out visually against a rack full of rectangular competitors. Rather than as decoration for its own sake, since an unusual die adds cost and lead time.
Stock and finish follow the same logic as a standard rack card: a heavier coated cardstock, generally in the 14 pt to 16 pt range, holds its shape better in a display than a lighter sheet, and lamination. Gloss for saturated color and photography, matte for a softer, glare-resistant finish. Adds durability for a card that's meant to sit out for weeks rather than get handed to one person and set aside. If the card needs to survive outdoor exposure or heavy handling, it's worth flagging that up front so the stock and coating can be matched to the environment.
Because every custom order is priced around its own specifications, it helps to have a few things nailed down before requesting a quote: the finished size or die shape, whether it prints one or both sides, the stock weight and finish, and the quantity you need now versus what a reorder might look like later. Locking in those details early keeps the proofing process quick and avoids a second round of revisions once you can see the actual card in hand.
A rack card stands upright in a slot with nothing supporting it, so it has to hold itself straight. Below about 250gsm a card curls forward in the rack and stops being readable from the front, which is the one job it has. Cover weights from 300gsm upward stay flat through humidity and handling, which matters in the lobbies and visitor centers these usually live in.
Why do my rack cards curl? Stock too light for an unsupported upright. 300gsm and above holds straight; lighter stock bows forward within days.
Only the top portion of a rack card is visible when it sits in a slot behind other cards, so the design has to work from a partial view. Whatever identifies the card (the name, the offer, the image that makes someone reach for it) belongs in that top third. Everything below is read only after the card is in someone's hand, which is a completely different reading situation.
How much of the card actually shows? Often only the top two or three inches. Design that band as if it were the whole card, because in the rack it is.
Gloss lifts photographic imagery and resists the fingerprints that come from being picked up and put back repeatedly. Matte reads calmer and is easier for longer copy on the reverse. On anything sitting in a sunlit lobby window, a coating also slows the fading that otherwise makes a rack of cards look neglected within a season.
Does coating matter in a rack? More than you would think. Cards get handled and replaced constantly, and an uncoated card shows that wear quickly.
The finished width is the only dimension that decides whether a card works, because rack slots are built to a standard and a card that is a few millimeters too wide will not go in. Height is more forgiving. A taller card simply stands proud, which can be an advantage. Rounded corners are common because a square corner catches on the slot and bends over time.
What if it does not fit the rack? Then it does not get displayed. Measure the actual slot before ordering. Racks vary more than their nominal sizes suggest.
For displays that do not match either standard. A bespoke rack, a countertop holder with an unusual slot, a card that has to sit alongside existing collateral at a matching size, or a shape that deliberately stands out. The constraint that never moves is the slot: a distinctive card that does not fit the display it was made for is not distinctive, it is undisplayed.
What should I measure? The slot width and depth of the actual rack, not the nominal size. Send those and we will cut to them.
Ask for samples before a run. Whether a card stands straight in an unsupported slot is decided entirely here.
A bonded film that resists fingerprints and slows fading in sunlit displays. Rack cards are picked up and replaced constantly, and lamination is what stops a rack looking neglected within a season.
A small radius so the corner does not catch on the slot and fold over. It costs very little and visibly extends how long a rack of cards stays looking new.
A raised gloss or metallic element in the top third, where it catches light in the rack. Placed anywhere lower it is invisible until the card is already in someone's hand.
A shaped top edge or a cut-out that breaks the rectangle. It is the most effective way to stand out in a rack of otherwise identical cards, provided the width still fits the slot.
Same family, genuinely different jobs. Your current selection is highlighted.
| Rack card | From | Size | Order it when |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 x 9 Rack Cards | $180 | 4″ × 9″ | Broad distribution across many racks |
| 3.5 x 8.5 Rack Cards | $180 | 3.5″ × 8.5″ | Slim racks and countertop holders |
| Custom Rack Cards | $170 | Your dimensions | A bespoke display or matched collateral |
The slot width and depth of the actual rack, not its nominal size. Racks vary more than their labeled dimensions suggest, and width is the dimension that decides whether the card goes in at all.
Yes, provided the width still fits the slot. A shaped top edge is the most effective way to stand out in a rack of identical rectangles, and it does not affect fit at all.
Yes. Send a physical sample and we will match size, stock and finish. For collateral that sits together in one display, consistency matters more than any individual card.
Not necessarily. If it sits efficiently on the press sheet it prices much like a standard. An awkward proportion that wastes sheet is where cost appears, and we will tell you before you commit.
Pricing for custom rack cards starts at $170 and moves with quantity, size, material and finish rather than sitting on a fixed list. Setup is shared across the run, so the per-unit price drops steeply as the quantity rises: the gap between a few hundred and a few thousand is usually the significant one. Send the size, quantity and what it has to do and you get a firm figure back, not a range.
There is a practical minimum rather than a hard one. Every run carries artwork checks, a proof and a press setup, so a very small quantity of custom rack cards prices poorly per unit even though we will still make it. If you are ordering a small batch, ask for pricing at two or three quantities at once: the curve usually shows that a modest increase costs very little more in total.
The clock starts when you approve the proof, not when the order is placed, which is the part most people are surprised by. You get a proof first: a digital proof against trim and safe lines. Where you have told us the rack, we also mark the visible band so you can judge the top third as it will actually be seen. Turnaround after approval depends on the finish: anything laminated, foiled or die-cut adds a stage that cannot be compressed without causing problems later. Tell us the date you actually need them and we will work backwards from it rather than quoting a generic lead time.
Print-ready artwork with bleed and a safe margin, supplied as a PDF, AI or EPS. Photographic elements should be supplied at the resolution the finished size needs, not the resolution that looks sharp on screen. If your file is not print-ready, say so when you order. We would rather fix it before the proof than after the run.
In most cases they are the same product under a different name: the trade uses several terms for it depending on the region and the supplier. What actually defines this one is the build: your dimensions. Order it when a bespoke display or matched collateral. If you have seen it called custom rack cards printing elsewhere, describe what it has to do rather than which name you found, and we will match the specification.
Yes. We provide free samples, and on custom rack cards it is worth asking for one, because the difference between card and cover weight is obvious in the hand and invisible on a screen. Most orders run on cover weight, but ask for whichever you are weighing up. You also get a free design proof before anything goes to press, so nothing is printed that you have not seen.
The usual choices are lamination, rounded corners, spot uv and foil. Finish is not decoration on this product so much as a decision about how long it survives and how it reads in the hand, so it is worth choosing against the job rather than the budget. Tell us where the finished piece ends up and we will say which finish is doing real work and which is only adding cost.
Yes, and that is what almost every order here is. Nothing in this catalogue is a stock item: custom rack cards are manufactured to the specification you give us, with your artwork on them. Send your logo as vector artwork where you have it, since that scales to any size without softening. If all you have is a low-resolution file, tell us and we will say what it needs before it reaches the press.
Yes, and a repeat run is simpler than the first one. We keep your approved specification on file, so a reorder skips the setup decisions and goes straight to production. If nothing about the artwork or the specification has changed, there is nothing to re-approve. Tell us the previous order and we will match it rather than starting the specification again.
Yes. Regalo Print has been producing custom commercial print for businesses across the USA and Canada since 2008, and every order ships tracked. The tracking number reaches you the day the job leaves, not the day it arrives. If you are working to a fixed date, say so when you order so the production schedule is built around the delivery date rather than the other way round.
