We love to give photo cards for the holidays because the card itself feels like giving a gift. We have family all over and loved ones who don’t see our children regularly so photo cards just made sense for us.
Photo cards can be expensive though and when you are doing mass quantities of something, you need to really make sure you are getting the best deal possible. Shopping around and utilizing coupon codes are your best bet when it comes to purchasing your cards online.
Here is some general information on pricing for this year’s photo cards. To keep it simple, I am sticking to a basic 4×8 card with a single photo. There are many different variations on the cards now that can add to the cost of your cards so be sure to check the pricing when shopping around and remember all of those extra frills often end up in someone’s trash or recycle bin. Splurge on the things that really count!
Winkflash–
I was surprised to see the current pricing for Winkflash on their cards, but in a totally good way. They offer a one day turnaround and a money-back guarantee on their cards. Best of all, this online store requires no minimum order and a flat $.23 per card for their current sale. No sneaky pricing deals and you gotta love that! It does say to take advantage of the $.23 rate you need to use the coupon code GREATCARD8 and the offer ends November 16th! That is 40% off their normal pricing listed, but even with the normal prices it is still a great deal!
I bet you can guess where I will be ordering from this year!
Pricing on 50- $11.50 (sale price)
Pricing on 100- $23.00 (sale price)
Sam’s Club–
Of all the brick and mortar places I have explored, Sam’s Club wins on price overall. I have ordered through them for a couple of years now and I have yet to be disappointed by the quality of the cards. One downfall with shopping through them is that they are going to be more limited on the backgrounds, but if you take a really great picture of your kids, that is all that really matters in the end.
Pricing on 50- $14.50
Pricing on 100- $25.00
Walmart–
If you don’t have access to a Sam’s Club, Walmart also offers photo cards for a great price. They also have more backgrounds available. The nice thing about Walmart is that you don’t have to make a large quantity commitment, as many websites do require you to buy a minimum of 25. If you just wanted to do photo cards for close family members, you could order your cards individually. They also offer more templates to pick from so you do have more of a variety than you would through Sam’s Club.
Pricing on 50- $16.50
Pricing on 100- $33.00
Shutterfly–
One advantage of shopping through an online resource is that you can cash in on great coupon codes that aren’t often available with the brick and mortar stores. Shutterfly also takes you through a fun three question “card style finder” process where you can pick pictures that have represented the holidays to you and helps you chose a template that fits you best. The templates are amazing,but the prices are going to range widely because they have so many options. The pricing we have pulled is for one of their more basic templates.
Pricing on 50- $26.00
Pricing on 100- $44.00
Walgreens–
Walgreens offers their card quantities in twenty to a box for your ordering needs. They offer a wide range on selection and are rewarding their early bird customers (ordering before November 15th) using coupon code WRAP33 with a 33% discount on your photo order.
Pricing on 40- $19.98
Pricing on 60- $29.97
Pricing on 100- $49.95
Snapfish–
Snapfish is one of the more affordable online retailers for photo cards and offer a wide selection of holiday backgrounds. Pricing is said to be around $.29, but that is only if a quantity of 240 cards is ordered. I used the basic paper, standard 4×8, with no frills for this pricing scenario. Pricing will vary based on the extras.
Pricing on 40- $22.00
Pricing on 60- $33.00
Pricing on 100- $45.00
CVS Photo Center–
CVS offers a larger selection with 94 holiday backgrounds to choose from. These cards come in boxes of twenty and can be ordered online and can be picked up at your local CVS location. The pricing, however, is not as good as the superstores, but they do tend to offer coupon codes that can be redeemed towards your order.
Pricing on 40- $26.99
Pricing on 60- $35.99
Pricing on 100- $53.99
Photoworks-
Photoworks is a little sneakier with the pricing system. When you click on a card that says it is $.36, that number is really only acheived by ordering nine or more boxes of 25 cards. I may be in the minority, but I doubt I would need that many cards for one holiday mailing. I picked a basic card with one basic picture and came up with this rough pricing amount.
Pricing on 50- $33.00
Pricing on 100- $66.00
How do you save on those photo cards?
– Order early- Now is the time to start jumping on early bird specials. Online stores tend to reward their early customers with really great coupon codes so take advantage of those lower prices and stage a photo session with your kids that will work for the holiday season.
– Look for coupon codes- Try to cash in on those discounts and take advantage of things like free shipping or companies that are offering a free photo gift that could be use for the holiday gift-giving season.
– Buy larger quantities to redeem the bigger discounts on card pricing, but only if you will be able to use the cards that you are ordering. Make your card list first to decide quantities and then order your cards to make it the most cost-effective for your family.
– Try buying a template and then having them printed at an inexpensive printing place or printing them yourself, if you have a photo printer. You can still have a very personalized design, but pay a flat fee for the template. My friend, Simple Mom, is offering a discount to those who order early at Chickpea Designs.
– Shop through a rewards shopping site like Ebates. I am a huge fan of the company and try to do the majority of my shopping through them. You can sign up and get $5 automatically in your account and companies like Shutterfly, for example, offer 8% back on your shopping order. The site will also list coupon codes that you can use towards your order. I would love if you used this referral link because those sign-ups help with our Christmas shopping for the year.
(Photo Source: Eszter Hargittai)
Do you do photo cards? Where do you order from and how do you keep the cost low on your cards? Another fun question- how many cards do you send out? I am always curious about that!