20 of the Best Business Card Designs [+ Free Business Card Generator]

The business card isn't dead yet.

As long as there are parties, industry events, and networking opportunities, there will be business cards. And it's important that yours isn't thrown to the bottom of the pile because of a lackluster design.

Whether you work at a bigwig agency or as a freelancer, your business card should make a memorable first impression

To help you out on the inspiration front, we've compiled a list of 20 of the best business card designs from agencies, designers, and businesses around the world. Ranging from artistically elaborate to decidedly simple, these examples are certain to inspire your next business card redesign.

20 of the Best Business Card Design Examples

1) Aurora

Featuring a botanical illustration of tropical blooms and a clean sans-serif font, these business cards from Aurora certainly make a stylish first impression. The South African studio specializes in whimsical artwork and design, so it's fitting that their business cards reflect their unique skill set. The cards were designed in-house and include gold embossed details.

Image via Aurora

2) HubSpot

Don't have money to spend on a template or professional business card design? Don't worry. Here's a colorful sample business card my colleague Carly whipped up using our free Business Card Template Generator. 

This free tool let's you choose from nine fully customizable business card templates, so you're sure to find one that suits the look and feel of your business. We particularly love the bold shapes and bright colors used in the template below, as it stands out in a pile of plain white business cards. 

3) Chomp

In a literal interpretation of the company's name, London-based agency Chomp designed business cards with a bite-size chunk missing from one corner. The shape of the card stock mimics the detail of their logo -- which also bears teeth marks.  

Image via How Design

4) Garage Culture

If you want your business card to stand out, non-traditional materials will help you do just that. Designed by Rodrigo Cuberas, this bike garage business card uses cotton paper stock as the base for its stunning, simplistic design. 

Image via Behance

5) Matheus Dacosta

Brazilian designer Matheus Dacosta puts an artistic spin on traditional business cards, adding kaleidoscopic, hand-painted designs to every individual card. Each miniature work of art is sure to make a memorable impact -- or at the very least, make the recipient reluctant to simply toss it.

Images via Design Milk

6) Trick & Treat

Here's a great example of a business that played to its strengths. Trick & Treat-- and branded entertainment company -- offers one of the most creative business cards we've ever seen. The design transforms into a tabletop game, which aligns perfectly with Trick & Treat's playful brand. 

Image via Behance

7) Nymbl

Nymbl, a 3D design and virtual reality studio, wanted to project a more accessible, playful image in their new marketing materials. To get the job done right, they turned to UK-based agency Big Fan, who spun up a bold, two-tone business card design concept as part of their new branding. The cards feature paper cut-outs on royal purple stock.

Image via Big Fan

8) Wendigo

This video production agency may get its name from a spooky folk creature, but the quality of their business card design is far from terrifying. Designed by the talented folks at The Distillery, these unusual cards put the focus on meticulously detailed, embossed illustration: a feather, a piece of wood, and a beastly skull can be seen behind the contact information. A pair of interlocking antlers -- presumably from the feared Wendigo itself -- form the "W" in the agency's name.

Image via The Distillery

9) Brathw8 Studios

These gold-foiled business cards designed for a professional photographer serve as a great example of how to effectively marry pattern, texture, and simplicity. We especially love how they cut the pattern in the middle to create a clean canvas for the contact information. Tastefully done. 

Image via CardObserver

10) Katsy Garcia

Illustrator and graphic designer Katsy Garcia whipped up this simple but effective business card concept for her own personal branding. Instead of displaying her contact information in the usual straightforward format, Garcia serves up a fresh twist, displaying hers in an instantly recognizable text message composition. The resulting effect is equal parts charming and sharply clever.

Image via Katsy Garcia's Behance Portfolio

11) Omelet

In a nod to their native L.A., Omelet created business cards centered around sleek city imagery. The photographs are artfully silhouetted by their company logo -- which if you look closely, is actually an ambigram.

Image via Digiday

12) Counter Creatives

Designed to resemble a classic take-a-number ticket, this inventive business card was devised for Dutch agency Counter Creatives by designer and art director Valery Overhoff. The compact format and unconventional shape called for a creative use of space, and Overhoff manages to feature multiple typefaces and both vertical and horizontal text.

Image via Valery Overhoff's Cargo Collective Portfolio

13) IS Creative Studio

Thanks to airy swipes of neon spray paint, these otherwise minimal business cards from IS Creative Studio make a big impact. The Peru-based agency has developed three iterations of these award-winning cards, increasing the breadth and intensity of the color pallette each time. This most recent version highlights everything from electric pinks to vibrant greens.

Images via IS Creative Studio's Behance Portfolio

14) Confetti Studio

These business cards from Confetti Studio combine two powerful elements -- punchy orange card stock and gold embossed metallics -- to a create a mesmerizing and modern effect. One side of the card is completely covered in gilded speckles, while the other side displays the agency's logo and contact information -- also gilded. They fittingly call the end result "cardfetti."

Image via Confetti Studio

15) Tricota

Buenos Aires-based agency Tricota found an interesting way to highlight the two sides of their business: perforated cards that split in half. Once side features information for their communications and graphic design services, while info for their illustration services appear on the other side. Each half includes a variation of their "T" logo: a typeface "T" for their communications side and and an hand-drawn "T" for their illustration side.

Image via Tricota's Behance Portfolio

16) Tait

When this design studio wanted to give their corporate identity a facelift, they turned to fresh card stock in yellow, smokey blue, and azure. Using minimal text against a sophisticated color palette yields sleek results.

Image via Tait's Behance Portfolio

17) Claire Bruining

Graphic designer Claire Bruining developed these playful business cards for her own personal branding. Splashes of overlapping patterns and colors appear on one side, and Bruining's contact information appears on the reverse in a clean sans serif font. The dark blue text and border adds an unexpected pop to the basic layout.

Image via Claire Bruining's Behance Portfolio

18) Don't Try Studio

Monge Quentin, the Parisian illustrator behind Don't Try Studio, created these lively and colorful business cards to promote his design work. Thanks to an embossing technique, the face of the cards are embellished with confetti-like brush strokes and shapes in a muted orange and blue color scheme. His name appears in a handwritten print. 

Image via Don't Try Studio

19) Bespoke

The logo on these business cards for digital production studio Bespoke is so large, it actually wraps around from the front of the card to the back. A fellow New York agency -- Studio Newwork -- designed these cards to be both minimal and unexpected.

Image via Studio Newwork

20) Atelier Irradié

At first glance, the face of these Atelier Irradié business cards look like otherworldly color swatches. In stark contrast to the metallic, jewel-toned gradient on the front, the back of these cards don't even use ink -- just simple, imprinted text displaying their contact information.

Image via Atelier Irradié's Behance Portfolio

21) Kristin Tora 

Designed by luxury printing studio, Elegante Press, these business cards offer an unexpected twist: each one can be painted with watercolors to create a unique 

Feature image credit: Atelier Irradié's Behance Portfolio