Hotel Key Cards

These are real plastic cards, not coated paper. They print on 30mil white PVC, they take the encoding your access system needs, and they hold up to months of pockets, lanyards, and lock readers. Want to see how the key card sits next to the rest of the plastic lineup? Browse every style on plastic cards printing, or stay here and build yours from the choices below.

The price rewards a bigger run. A set of 250 starts at $226.11, and the per-card cost keeps sliding as the count climbs toward 10,000, so a full box for a busy season costs far less per card than a quick test batch. Tap any tier below to see the live total and exactly how much each step up saves before you commit.

Hotel key card size, the standard CR80 at 3.375 by 2.125 inches

A hotel key card is a CR80 card, the same 3.375 by 2.125 inch footprint as a credit card, printed on 30 mil plastic with rounded corners so it fits any standard lock reader and any wallet.

That is the only size a property should order. Lock readers, key card holders, wallet slots and printer hoppers are all built around CR80, so a card cut to anything else jams a reader or falls out of a folder. Everything else on the order, the stripe, the barcode, the numbering and the finish, sits inside that fixed footprint.

What size is a hotel key card? The standard hotel key card is a CR80 at 3.375 by 2.125 inches, 30 mil thick, the same size as a credit card.

Are hotel key cards the same size as a credit card? Yes. Both are CR80, so a key card sits in the same wallet slot and the same reader slot as the card next to it.

What Are Hotel Key Cards?

Hotel key cards are credit-card-size plastic cards, printed full color, that guests use to open a room. At 4OVER4 they print on 30mil white plastic at a standard 2.125" x 3.375" size with rounded corners, and you can add a magnetic stripe, a barcode, or a unique number per card in the live configurator. Front desks reach for them because one card does the whole job: it opens the door, it carries the brand, and it works as a promo or loyalty piece a guest keeps. If you need the same plastic stock for a wallet card instead of a room key, the Plastic Credit Cards run on the same base, and the hotel key card sits right beside them as the encoded version.

What Are Hotel Key Cards Made Of?

The stock is 30mil white PVC at credit-card thickness, so a card survives months of handling without cracking, unlike a paper key slip. Every card ships at the standard 2.125" x 3.375" size with rounded corners already cut in, which is why it fits any standard hotel lock reader and any wallet. For the surface you pick one of two finishes: a UV gloss that makes color pop, or a silk laminated matte that feels soft and hides fingerprints. Print full color on the front with a blank back, or full color on both sides when you want branding or check-out instructions on the reverse. All the sizing, finish, ink and encoding choices are grouped below exactly the way the live configurator presents them.

Can You Add a Magnetic Stripe or Barcode?

This is what makes a plastic card work as a key. Add a magnetic stripe in LoCo coercivity for standard hotel locks, or HiCo when your system needs a stronger, longer-lasting encode. Need the front desk to track cards? Add barcoding with numbering in Code 128 or Code 39, or drop in a signature panel for staff and membership use. For prepaid access and promotions, a scratch-off panel hides a pin until the guest reveals it. Every one of these is a live option on this product, so you build the exact card your lock or access system reads.

Lock system and encoding compatibility

The stripe is a physical option on the card, not a programmed key. Cards are printed and shipped with the stripe blank, and the property writes the key at the desk on its own encoder when a guest checks in, which is what lets one stock of cards serve every room and every stay.

Two things have to match your lock system before you order. Coercivity is the first: LoCo stripes are written with less energy and are the common choice where cards are rewritten constantly, HiCo stripes hold their data against stray magnets and pockets and suit cards that live longer. Check which one your encoder writes and order that. The second is the track your system reads and writes, so confirm it with whoever maintains the locks, since a card cut for the wrong stripe is a whole run you cannot use.

Barcoding is the alternative where the door is not the only reader. A barcode with numbering in Code 128 or Code 39 lets the same card work at a pool gate, a parking scanner or a point of sale, and a signature panel handles anything that has to be signed rather than scanned. Print a test card and run it through your own reader before committing the full quantity.

Can Each Card Carry a Unique Number?

Yes. Turn on variable data and you can drop a unique sequential number, a name, or a one-off code onto every single card in the run, so each key ships individual instead of identical. Want the number to stand off the surface? Embossed numbering raises it in a 14pt font, with gold or silver foil tipping if you want it to shine. Foil stamping adds a metallic mark to the front or back, and a lanyard slot can be punched on the short 2.125 inch edge or the long 3.375 inch edge so the card hangs the way you want. Pair variable data with a full-color back and a finish that fits, and one file prints a whole batch of personalized keys. For a numbered card built for members rather than rooms, the Plastic Membership Cards carry the same idea.

Already have your artwork? Skip the editor and download a press-ready blank instead. The blank hotel key card template is built at the real trim size with the bleed and safe margin already drawn in, so your design never crowds the cut or the stripe. Grab it, drop your art in, and upload.

How Much Do Hotel Key Cards Cost?

Hotel key cards start at $226.11 per 250, about $0.90 a card, and the per-card price keeps dropping as the quantity climbs toward 10,000, where a card lands near $0.25. So how many do you actually need? Drag the slider below to set your count and watch both the run total and the true per-card cost update live, and find the point where one more step up barely moves the budget. A busy property usually reorders in the thousands, since every checked-in guest walks off with at least one card.

A hotel key card runs from about 90 cents each on a 250 card order at $226.11, and the per card cost falls toward 25 cents as the run climbs to 10,000, which is why properties tend to order a season of keys at once instead of topping up in small batches.

How Do Hotel Key Cards Compare to the Rest of the Plastic Range?

Hotel key cards are the encoded pick when a card has to open a door, but they are not your only plastic move. If you are weighing a gift card, a membership card, or a plain plastic wallet card, it helps to see the trade-off in plain numbers. For a card guests load with value at the desk, the Plastic Gift Cards run on the same stock. The chart below lines up hotel key cards against their closest plastic siblings so you can compare the starting price on each before you choose.

The same 30mil stock and CR80 cut run across the rest of the plastic range, so a property can keep one look across every card it hands out. Plastic membership cards carry a sequential member number for a spa, a club or a residents program, plastic gift cards handle stored value at the restaurant or the shop, and plastic discount cards cover a rate card or a partner offer given at check in.

Reordering and keeping keys in stock

Standard production runs 15 business days, so keys have to be ordered against a calendar rather than against an empty drawer. Work back from the date you expect to run out and place the order with that window plus shipping in hand.

Size the reorder from room count and occupancy rather than from the last invoice. Count the keys a room turns through in a typical stay, multiply by rooms and by expected turns over the period you are covering, then add the cards that walk out in guest pockets and never come back, which is the number most properties underestimate.

A design change is the one thing that strands stock. If the artwork is changing for a season, a rebrand or a promotion, run the current design down to the date of the change instead of ordering a large quantity you will not be allowed to hand out afterwards. Keeping the property name and logo on the face and putting the seasonal element on the back is the usual way to make a run outlast a campaign.

How Fast Can You Get Hotel Key Cards?

Plastic cards take longer to make than paper, so plan for a standard 15 business day production window on hotel key cards. Because a mis-encoded stripe or a wrong room number is expensive to reprint, it pays to slow down at the file stage: choose the free online proof and check your artwork, your magnetic stripe setup, and your numbering before anything runs. Prefer to move now? Send it straight to production instead. Either way, 4OVER4 has printed cards since 1999, and every order is backed by the Gold Standard guarantees.

See the Rest of Our Cards

Hotel key cards are one stop in a much larger lineup, and you can scan the full print product range any time. If a gift card, a membership card, or a plain plastic wallet card would serve you better, the rest of the family is one tap away. Each option shows its own starting price and links straight to its product page, so finding the right fit takes seconds.

Print Your Hotel Key Cards Today

At 4OVER4.COM, quality comes first, and it is backed by a satisfaction guarantee and 25 years of printing since 1999. Whatever encoding, finish, or numbering you pick, these hotel key cards are built to open a door, carry your brand, and survive a full stay. Choose your magnetic stripe, set your numbering, and print your hotel key cards today.