I frequently get asked, “What’s a good, cheap id card printer? I personally don’t like the word cheap, I prefer inexpensive. So here are a couple of quality, inexpensive card printers great for printing only a handful of badges or all the way up to 1,000 cards per year.

Magicard Pronto

Why is it cheap?

The Magicard Pronto has a hand-fed design. That means one card at a time. Because Magicard didn’t spend money investing in the card hopper and card path, the Pronto ID card printer ends up coming in at a relatively inexpensive price. The Pronto’s print quality is everything but cheap and is just as good as any other dye-sub printer on the market. And you have the Holokote feature which is great for added security at no extra cost per card. (Learn more about Holokote on the Pronto product page.) And pro-tip, though its single sided by nature, you can send a double sided print job to it. The Pronto will eject the card out after printing the first side, you can manually flip it, and it will print the second side without having to send another print job to it.

Who should buy the Magicard Pronto?

The printer is great for lobby environments because of its small size. If you have only the occasional visitor or new employee, this is the perfect ID printer since a large hopper isn’t needed anyway. So why pay for it?

Who shouldn’t buy the Magicard Pronto?

If you print many ID’s all at once, its probably not the best printer for you since you manually have to put each ID card into the Pronto for printing. No one likes long lines.

How cheap is it?

$850.00 for just the Pronto printer or you can browse pricing for a complete Pronto ID card system

Evolis Badgy200

Why is it cheap?

The Evolis Badgy200 ID card printer is a very entry level printer. While the printer has a decent print quality, I noticed that it leaves a larger than average boarder. The average print time is a tad slower than average too at 38 seconds per full color card side.

Who should buy the Evolis Badgy200?

Those looking for absolutely the lowest priced ID card printer. The Badgy200 comes with entry level software, ribbon, and 100 PVC cards which is a rarity in the industry. This ID printer is truly ready to go out-of-the-box.

Who shouldn’t buy the Evolis Badgy200?

The Evolis Badgy200 only has a 1 year warranty and probably isn’t the best choice for anyone printing for than 100 ID badges a year. And unlike the other entry level printers, absolutely no options can be added. That means if you are using magnetic stripe cards or need to network this printer so multiple computers can print to it, this is not the ID printer for you.

How cheap is it?

Complete bundle of the Badgy200 printer, ribbon, 100 cards, and entry level software for $849.00

SKU: B22U0000RS
Evolis Badgy200 ID
A true out-of-the-box entry level ID card printer system.
$ 849.00 – $ 889.00

IDP Smart 30

Why is it cheap?

The IDP Smart 30 has had a remarkable track record outside of the US and is finally starting to pick up sales in the US after boosting their US home office with added support and an experienced sales staff. However, prices seem to have stayed the same since leaving Korea making this one of the best ID card printer values. The IDP 30 and 50 are some of my favorite ID printers, not just inexpensive ones.

Who should buy the Smart 30?

Anyone looking for a great value. The Smart 30 many options avilable that are typically only available on the higher tiers of professional card printers. Its fast, has a large input hopper of 80 cards, is extremely reliable, and has a 3 year limited warranty with 3 year loaner program. The printer can realistically print 5,000+ cards per year without a sweat.

Who shouldn’t buy the Smart 30?

Well its cant laminate, but if you need to do that, this post isn’t for you.

How cheap is it?

The single sided base model starts at $1,109.00.

There you have it, the best “cheap” ID card printers available today. You may also contact us about used ID card printers that we may have available at sales@easybadges.com