Direct to Card Printers
Direct-to-card (DTC) printers use dye-sublimation to print colour directly onto the card surface. They're the most common type of ID card printer — fast, affordable, and perfectly suited to most Irish businesses printing staff IDs, membership cards, or visitor passes.
The trade-off is a thin white border around the card edge. If you need true edge-to-edge printing, you'll want a retransfer printer instead. But for the vast majority of card printing, DTC is the right call. Browse our printer ribbons and printer bundles.
Direct-to-card (DTC) printers use dye-sublimation to print colour directly onto the card surface. They're the most common type of ID card printer — fast, affordable, and perfectly suited to most Irish businesses printing staff IDs, membership cards, or visitor passes.
The trade-off is a thin white border around the card edge. If you need true edge-to-edge printing, you'll want a retransfer printer instead. But for the vast majority of card printing, DTC is the right call. Browse our printer ribbons and printer bundles.
Choosing a direct-to-card ID card printer for your organisation
Direct-to-card is the workhorse technology of ID printing. The printhead presses a dye ribbon straight onto the PVC, one colour panel at a time, and the card drops into the hopper seconds later. It is how most staff IDs, student cards and membership cards in Ireland are made, and unless you need print right to the card edge, it is the type of printer to look at.
The range runs from the Zebra ZC100 and IDP Smart 51 at the entry level, through the Evolis Zenius and Evolis Primacy 2 card printers and the Magicard 600, to the Entrust Sigma DS3 and Zebra ZXP Series 7. Prices start from €1,070 ex VAT.
What to look for in an ID card printer
- Single or dual-sided. A duplex model such as the Zebra ZC300 or Entrust Sigma DS3 Duplex prints both faces in one pass.
- Connection. USB is standard; the Zebra ZC300 with Ethernet or the Evolis Zenius 2 Expert with USB and Ethernet can be shared on a network.
- Encoding. If cards open doors, the Zebra ZC350 with magnetic stripe and Mifare encoders writes the credential as it prints.
Ribbons, cards and the edge-to-edge question
A direct-to-card printer leaves a thin white border, because the printhead cannot reach the card edge. For most badges nobody notices. If your design bleeds to the edge, or you print onto contactless cards with an uneven surface, look at the retransfer printers. Otherwise narrow the choice with the single-sided printers and dual-sided printers pages, or go by brand at Evolis printers. Every model takes a YMCKO ribbon matched to it, listed under printer ribbons and consumables, and prints on standard 760 micron cards.
Further reading
- Evolis vs Magicard vs Fargo: How the Big Three Compare
- When Should You Upgrade Your ID Card Printer?
- How to Remove a Card Stuck in Your ID Card Printer
Frequently asked questions
Which ID card printer suits a small business?
A single-sided model such as the Zebra ZC100 or IDP Smart 51 with a YMCKO ribbon covers most small offices. Move to duplex only if you need printed backs.
Is a Primacy card printer direct-to-card?
Yes. The Evolis Primacy 2, in Simplex and Duplex Expert versions, is direct-to-card and a common choice for Irish offices printing a few hundred cards a year.
What is the difference between DTC and retransfer?
DTC prints onto the card. Retransfer prints onto a clear film and bonds it to the card, giving full-bleed coverage at a higher cost per card and per printer.
If the list has not settled it, call 01 555 5555. We are at Pace House in Dublin and will match a printer to your card volume in a few minutes.
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