Vertical vs Horizontal Business Cards: Which Layout Suits Your Brand

Two layouts, two different impressions

A horizontal, landscape-oriented card is by far the more common layout and reads as familiar and straightforward, while a vertical, portrait-oriented card stands out slightly just by being less expected in a stack of standard cards, without needing anything unusual in the design itself.

When horizontal makes more sense

A horizontal layout suits a card with a logo and text arranged side by side, or several pieces of contact information laid out in a row, phone, email and website reading naturally left to right the way most people expect a card to be read.

When vertical works better

A vertical layout suits a design built around a strong central image or logo, a portrait photo, or a design that already reads naturally top to bottom, a name and title above contact details below, for example. It also tends to stand out more easily on a desk or in a cardholder mixed in with standard horizontal cards.

Practical considerations either way

A vertical card doesn't fit standard horizontal card holders or wallet slots quite as naturally, which is worth considering if your card is likely to be filed away in a traditional card holder rather than kept loose. Neither layout costs more to print than the other, so the choice comes down entirely to design and how the card is likely to be stored and used.

Getting your business cards printed

Star Printers prints business cards in both vertical and horizontal layouts. See our business card printing page, browse all printing services, or contact us with your design.