ID Card Generator - Create Bulk Identification Cards

Make ID Cards in Batches, Online

Create identification cards for staff, students, visitors, volunteers, or contractors — every card carrying its own name, role, and ID number, all generated from one spreadsheet in a single batch.

Start from a working example

• Download the sample ID card template (PNG, 1013 × 638 at 300 DPI) — a blank card at exact ISO ID-1 size with a photo box and header band
• Download the sample roster CSV — eight rows with FULL_NAME, ROLE, ID_NUMBER, VALID_UNTIL, and FILENAME

Replace the sample rows with your own roster, upload both files to the generator, and drag each column into place. The free trial produces the first three cards, which is enough to print one and check it against a real badge holder before buying.

Get the size right first

ID cards are one of the few things with a genuine international standard. ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 is 85.6 mm × 53.98 mm — the same as a credit card — which at 300 DPI is 1013 × 638 pixels. That is the size of the sample template, and it is the size you want if the card will ever go into a wallet, a badge holder, a lanyard clip, or a card printer.

Format	Physical	Template at 300 DPI
ISO ID-1 (credit card)	85.6 × 54 mm	1013 × 638 px
Portrait badge	54 × 86 mm	638 × 1013 px
Large event badge	4″ × 3″	1200 × 900 px
Lanyard insert (A7)	105 × 74 mm	1240 × 874 px

If you are printing to a PVC card printer, design at ID-1 and leave 2 mm of bleed on your artwork — card printers trim slightly and text placed at the very edge will get clipped.

Adding a photo per person

Batchr matches images by filename, which makes photos straightforward:

1. Name each photo file after something unique — EMP-00142.jpg, EMP-00143.jpg, and so on.
2. Add a column to your CSV holding those filenames.
3. Upload the whole folder of photos alongside your CSV and template.
4. Map the filename column to the photo box on the template.

Each row then pulls its own image. Crop your photos to a consistent aspect ratio before uploading — the sample template's photo box is 4:5 portrait, and mixed aspect ratios are the main reason a batch of cards ends up looking uneven.

Types of card, and what belongs on each

Employee and staff cards — full name, role or department, employee number, and an expiry date. Keep the expiry on the card even if your access system is the real gate; it makes a lapsed badge visible without a scanner.

Student ID cards — name, student number, programme, and academic year. Generate the whole intake in one batch from the enrolment export.

Visitor passes — name, company, host, and the date. Visitor passes should look obviously different from staff cards at a glance: a different header colour on the template does that job better than any text.

Contractor and vendor badges — name, company, project, and expiry. Contractors are the group most likely to still be holding a badge a year after the job ended, so a printed expiry date earns its space.

Volunteer credentials — name, role, and shift or zone. For a one-day event, printing the shift on the card saves an enormous number of questions.

Naming the output files

Use the FILENAME column. Batchr names each generated image from any column you pick, so setting it to the ID number means EMP-00142.png comes out of the ZIP ready to find. When someone loses a badge, you reprint one file rather than regenerating the batch and hunting through 400 images.

Printing

• PVC card printer — the durable option, and what you want for anything worn daily. Feed the generated PNGs directly.
• Laminating pouch — print on card stock, trim to ID-1, and laminate. Far cheaper, holds up well for a season, and needs no special hardware.
• Paper insert in a rigid holder — right for events and visitors, where the card lives for a day and gets recycled.

Whichever route, print one and put it in the actual holder before running the batch. Badge holders have a visible window slightly smaller than the card, and text placed too close to the edge disappears behind the plastic lip.

New to the tool? The getting started guide covers upload and mapping.

Cost

Outsourced ID card production commonly runs $3–8 per card with setup fees and a turnaround measured in days. For 500 cards that is $1,500 or more, and a reprint means going back to the supplier. Batchr is $19 once, with no per-card cost, no minimum, and no waiting — the constraint becomes your printer, not your budget.