Primoprint and GotPrint both sit in the budget to mid range segment of online business card printing. They sell full color, offset and digital cards with a mix of standard and specialty stocks. In your own scoring framework, both show up in the “best overall balance” and “best budget options” groups, but Primoprint is framed as “premium but affordable,” while GotPrint is the “budget workhorse.” That is the lens for this Primoprint vs GotPrint business cards comparison.
Quality (Materials and Print)
Primoprint has a quality profile that is closer to design forward shops than you would expect from the price tag. They are known for very clean printing, solid color accuracy, and cards that feel noticeably nicer than most mass market budget printers.
On the materials side, Primoprint offers a deep set of business card stocks and finishes. You can get standard matte or glossy UV coated cards, but also silk laminated, soft touch, spot UV, raised spot UV, foils, painted edge cards, and a 32 pt ModCard style triplex stock with a colored core. Taken together, these give you a lot of ways to dial the feel from simple and clean to genuinely premium.
GotPrint quality is more split. On one hand, their Trifecta line is genuinely impressive for the price. These triple layered cards run from about 24 pt to 38 pt thick with a colored core and a soft touch velvet or canvas style surface. In hand, they feel substantial and can absolutely pass as “luxe” cards.
On the other hand, reviews of standard GotPrint cards are more mixed. Many customers are happy, especially when they compare the result to the low price. At the same time, there are recurring complaints about occasional color shifts on reorders, thin feeling base stocks, or banding and minor alignment issues. That does not mean every order has problems, but the risk of inconsistency is higher than with Primoprint.
If you want everyday cards that reliably look and feel a notch above the usual budget crowd, Primoprint has the edge. If you specifically care about very thick triple layer stocks, GotPrint’s Trifecta options are a strong draw.
Price and Value
Both printers compete aggressively on price. They show up in your “best budget” cluster for a reason.
Primoprint’s positioning is “premium but affordable.” Standard business card runs often start in the single digits for 100 cards, and go to very reasonable numbers at common break points like 250 and 500. The project notes call out pricing like “100 from about $9, 500 from about $33” for standard cards. When you overlay the quality you get on top of that, the value proposition is excellent.
GotPrint is framed as “one of the cheapest reputable printers.” Their base prices on standard cards are usually among the lowest in any comparison, and their quantity discounts make mid sized runs especially attractive. Even their Trifecta cards are often priced below what similar thickness cards cost at more boutique shops.
If you look purely at dollars, GotPrint often wins by a small margin. If you look at price relative to reliability and finish, Primoprint usually comes out ahead. So the value question is really whether you want the absolute cheapest possible path or the best combination of price and consistency.
Design Templates and Customization
This is one of the clearest differences between the two.
Primoprint is very much oriented around users who already have a design or want to work with a designer. They provide good technical resources and downloadable layout templates, but their in browser design tools are basic and the template gallery is limited. In your internal notes, their templates are described more as “layout guides” than fully designed card concepts. That is great for professional designers and power users, less so for someone who wants to click, swap text, and be done.
GotPrint is friendlier for non designers. They offer a large template gallery across many industries and styles, plus an online editor that lets you change fonts, colors, layout, and add images or QR codes directly in the browser. There are also downloadable templates for people who prefer to work in design software, but the site clearly assumes many customers will build their cards online.
If you want a deep template library and a guided editor, GotPrint wins. If you already have a finished design and just need a reliable printer with advanced finishes, Primoprint’s weaker templates will not be a problem.
Customer Service
Your project files consistently put Primoprint near the top of the pack for customer service. They are described as going “above and beyond,” with a lot of anecdotes about catching file problems, offering helpful suggestions, and reprinting when there are issues. External reviews echo this picture with strong overall scores and specific praise for quick, human responses.
GotPrint’s customer service profile is more mixed. Many customers report perfectly fine experiences, especially on straightforward orders. However, third party reviews and forum threads also include a noticeable number of complaints about slow responses, difficulty resolving problems, or inflexibility when something goes wrong. It is not a disaster story, but it is not as consistently positive as Primoprint.
If you care about having a responsive partner who will help you sort out file issues or reprints, Primoprint is the safer choice.
Ordering Experience and Tools
Primoprint’s site feels like a hybrid between a trade printer and a consumer facing shop. Product pages clearly explain the differences between stocks and finishes, and you can choose between uploading print ready files, using a simple online designer, or hiring their design services. The flow assumes you are comfortable picking specific papers and coatings, but it is not overly complicated once you know what you want.
GotPrint’s experience is more template first. When you choose business cards, you are quickly offered the online design tool and template gallery. For many users, the choice is simply pick a design, adjust the text, and check out. There are also “design services” options if you want help from their in house team. The trade off is that the site can feel a bit utilitarian, and power users may find some parts of the interface clunky compared to more modern competitors.
For a designer or detail oriented user, both are workable. For a non designer who wants the simplest possible path from idea to finished card, GotPrint’s toolchain is somewhat more approachable.
Turnaround Time and Shipping
Primoprint generally quotes turnaround in the 2 to 4 business day range for most business card products, with some options available on a next business day schedule. That does not include shipping time, but for standard orders the total door to door timing is competitive. In your own scoring they are solid for speed, though not at the very top tier of rush oriented printers.
GotPrint behaves more like a high throughput production house. Standard cards usually move quickly through their workflow, and for some regions there are faster shipping or pickup options that make next day or near next day delivery possible. The trade off is that service can feel more transactional, which shows up in the mixed support reviews mentioned earlier.
If you are working on a normal timeline, both are fine. If speed is critical and you are willing to trade some hand holding for that, GotPrint gets a slight advantage.
Use Cases and “Best For”
Pulling everything together from your scoring tables, cheat sheets, and external research, here is how Primoprint vs GotPrint business cards shakes out in practical terms.
Primoprint is best for:
- Small businesses, freelancers, and agencies that want cards that feel premium without paying boutique prices
- Designers and design savvy buyers who can supply print ready files and want access to silk, soft touch, spot UV, foils, and painted edges
- People who value strong customer service and are happy to pay a few dollars more for reliable help and consistent output
GotPrint is best for:
- Buyers whose top priority is rock bottom pricing, especially on standard cards at mid to high quantities
- Anyone specifically seeking ultra thick triple layer cards with colored cores at lower cost than most premium shops
- Non designers who want to lean on a larger template library and an in browser editor, and who are comfortable with a more utilitarian interface and somewhat more variable service
Final Verdict
If you had to pick a single winner in this matchup, Primoprint is the better overall choice for business cards. It delivers a combination of high quality, strong stock and finish options, consistently good customer service, and very competitive pricing that is hard to beat. In your internal framework it belongs firmly in the “best overall balance” and “best budget” categories, with a quality profile that edges close to far more expensive design first brands.
GotPrint is still a useful player. If your budget is tight, you want thick Trifecta cards without paying boutique prices, or you need a more beginner friendly template driven design tool, it can be a smart option. You just need to go in with eyes open about the more utilitarian experience and the more mixed service and quality reviews.
In short, choose Primoprint if you want a safer, higher confidence result at a very fair price. Choose GotPrint if you are chasing the absolute lowest cost or you are specifically excited about their triple layer Trifecta stocks and you are comfortable accepting a bit more variability in return.