Choosing a holiday card company isn’t only about finding a design you like. The options available after you choose a card can make a big difference, from how much you can edit your photos to whether you can customize the back, upgrade your envelopes, print addresses, or have your cards mailed for you. Those features are often what separate one holiday card company from another.
We compared holiday card options from Shutterfly, Minted, Snapfish, Vistaprint, Walgreens, Walmart, and CardsDirect to see how their customization features compare. While you’ll find photo cards and familiar holiday designs across these services, there are some notable differences once you start creating your card.
Holiday Card Companies at a Glance
| Feature | Shutterfly | Minted | Snapfish | Vistaprint | Walgreens | Walmart | CardsDirect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card formats | Flat, folded, gate fold, tri-fold | Multiple formats and shapes | Flat, folded, seal-and-send, magnet, ornament | Flat, folded | Flat, folded, magnet, postcard | Flat, folded | Flat, folded, postcard |
| Specialty printing and finishes | Foil, glitter | Foil, letterpress | Foil | Embossed foil | Foil | Foil | Foil on select non-photo cards |
| Paper and material options | 5 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Advanced/AI photo editing | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Back customization | Free | Available for an additional cost | Free | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Custom or colored envelopes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Limited | No | No |
| Recipient address printing | Yes | Yes | With Mail for Me | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Direct mailing | Yes | Select orders | Select cards | No | Select cards | No | Yes |
| Minimum order | 1 | 25 | 20 | 10 | 20 | 1 | 10 |
Most of the companies we compared cover the basics, including photo designs, paper choices, and foil options. The bigger differences show up in how much you can customize along the way. Shutterfly combines multiple card formats, advanced photo editing, free back-of-card customization, envelope upgrades, addressing, and direct mailing options, giving you plenty of flexibility from your first design choice through sending your finished cards.
More Ways to Customize Your Holiday Card
Flat and folded photo cards are common choices, but you’re not limited to those formats with Shutterfly. Depending on the design, you can choose from flat, folded, gate fold, and tri-fold holiday cards, along with different sizes and trim options. You can also explore foil-stamped and personalized foil designs, as well as no-mess glitter cards, when you want to add extra detail and dimension to your holiday greeting.
Other holiday card companies have their own specialty options. Minted, for example, offers formats and shapes beyond traditional flat cards along with letterpress printing, while Snapfish has options such as seal-and-send cards and magnets. These differences make card format and finish worth considering before choosing a design, especially if you already have a particular style in mind.
Paper gives you another way to customize the finished card. Shutterfly choices include Standard Smooth, Signature Smooth, 100% Recycled, Pearl Shimmer, and Luxe Double-Thick, giving you options for a classic matte finish, added shimmer, or a thicker feel. Christmas card paper choices vary across competitors as well, with options such as photo paper, linen, soft-touch, pearlescent, recycled, and heavyweight stocks available from different services.
Do More With Your Holiday Card Photos
If your favorite photo doesn’t fit the card quite the way you hoped, you don’t necessarily have to choose another one. Shutterfly’s photo editor includes familiar tools for cropping, rotating, zooming, auto-enhancing, and adding filters, along with AI-powered tools that can make bigger changes.
Expand Photo can extend the edges of an image to help it fit a photo area, while Transform includes options to change a background, open closed eyes, help faces look toward the camera, and add artistic effects. That gives you more options to work with the photos you already have instead of choosing your card based only on how the original image is cropped.
Photo editing capabilities vary by company. Most of the services we compared include at least some basic positioning or adjustment tools, and Vistaprint also offers AI-powered photo editing. If editing flexibility matters to you, it’s worth looking beyond whether a service simply lets you upload a photo and considering what you can do with it once it’s in the design.
Customize the Back and Envelope, Too
The front of your card is only part of what you can design with Shutterfly. Every Christmas card includes free back-of-card customization, so you can choose a background or use additional layouts for photos and text. Add another family picture, share highlights from the year, write a longer holiday greeting, or keep the back simple with a coordinating design.
Free back customization is also available from several of the holiday card companies we compared, although the layouts and design choices vary. Minted offers additional back-of-card customization for an added cost.
Shutterfly also gives you several ways to customize the envelope that comes with your card. White envelopes are included, or you can choose from options including colored envelopes, custom designs, pre-lined foil envelopes, and slip-in liners in solid colors or patterns. Available envelope choices vary by card.
Envelope customization is available from some competitors as well, but the choices and requirements differ. Some companies tie custom envelope designs to address-printing services, while Shutterfly allows custom envelope designs whether or not you choose printed addressing. This is one area where it’s helpful to look beyond the card itself if you want the envelope to coordinate with the design.
Make Addressing and Mailing Holiday Cards Easier
Once your cards are finished, Shutterfly can also help with the part that comes next. Addressing choices include no addressing, return address only, Address for Me, or Mail for Me® Service on eligible cards. Custom envelopes include free recipient and return address printing, so you can skip handwriting your entire holiday card list.
Address printing is available from several of the companies in our comparison, but the options aren’t always the same. Minted offers free recipient address printing with return addressing available for an additional cost. Snapfish offers return address printing on its own, while recipient addressing is available through its Mail for Me service. Vistaprint, Walgreens, and CardsDirect offer recipient and return addressing, while Walmart offers return address printing only.
If you want to skip the trip to the mailbox too, Shutterfly’s Mail for Me® Service can address, stamp, and mail eligible cards directly to your recipients using white envelopes. Direct mailing is also available for eligible orders from Minted, Snapfish, Walgreens, and CardsDirect, while Vistaprint and Walmart don’t currently offer direct mailing for the holiday cards we compared.
What You Can Customize With Shutterfly Holiday Cards
From the card itself to the envelope it arrives in, Shutterfly gives you options at each stage of creating and sending your holiday greetings:
- Your card: Choose from flat, folded, gate fold, and tri-fold formats, multiple paper types and trims, and select foil or no-mess glitter designs.
- Your photos: Crop, rotate, enhance, and add filters, or use AI-powered tools such as Expand Photo and Transform to make more substantial edits.
- Your finishing details: Customize the back for free, then choose included white envelopes or upgrade with colors, custom designs, foil lining, or slip-in liners.
- Your mailing: Add recipient and return addresses or use Mail for Me® Service on eligible cards to have your greetings sent directly to your list.
You can also order as few as one card, which gives you flexibility if you need an extra card, have a short mailing list, or want a smaller quantity.
FAQs
Which holiday card companies offer recipient address printing?
Shutterfly, Minted, Vistaprint, Walgreens, and CardsDirect offer recipient address printing. Snapfish offers recipient addressing through its Mail for Me service, while Walmart offers return address printing only. Costs and requirements vary by company. Shutterfly includes free recipient and return address printing with custom envelopes.
Which holiday card companies can mail cards for you?
Shutterfly, Minted, Snapfish, Walgreens, and CardsDirect offer direct mailing for eligible holiday cards or orders. Availability varies by company and card type. Shutterfly’s Mail for Me® Service includes addressing and postage on eligible cards using white envelopes.
Can you customize the back of holiday cards?
Yes. Shutterfly includes free back-of-card customization, with backgrounds and layouts for adding more photos and text. Several other companies in our comparison also include back customization, although the options and costs vary.
Which holiday card companies offer foil cards?
Foil options are available from all of the holiday card companies we compared, though the available colors, finishes, and printing methods differ. Shutterfly offers both Foil Stamped and Personalized Foil holiday cards, while other providers may offer options such as foil pressing, embossed foil, or letterpress designs.
Do holiday card companies have minimum order quantities?
Yes. Minimum quantities vary by company. Shutterfly lets you order as few as one card, while minimums among the other companies we compared range from one to 25 cards.
