How to Print Wedding Invitations at Home: Cardstock, Sizes & Settings

Printing your own wedding invitations can save you hundreds of dollars — but only if they come out looking professional rather than "printed on the home office Inkjet." The difference comes down to a few choices: the paper, the size, and your printer settings. Here's how to get it right.

First, decide: home printer or print shop?

Home printing makes the most sense when you have a small guest list (say, under 50 invitations) and a decent printer. For larger quantities, heavy specialty cardstock, or finishes like foil, a local or online print shop will usually give a better result for the time saved. The good news: because you're starting from an editable template, you can print at home or hand the same file to a print shop — you're not locked in.

Choose the right cardstock

Paper weight is what makes an invitation feel expensive. Standard printer paper (around 20–24 lb) feels flimsy. For invitations, aim for:

• Invitations: 80–110 lb cardstock (about 216–300 gsm). 110 lb is a lovely, sturdy weight.
• RSVP and details cards: 80–100 lb works well and still feeds smoothly.

Buy cardstock from a paper specialist rather than a general office store — you'll get far more colors, finishes (matte, linen, cotton), and consistent quality. Always order a little extra for test prints and mistakes.

Check your printer first: Not every home printer handles heavy cardstock. Look up your model's maximum paper weight before you buy a stack of 110 lb.

Know your sizes

The most common US wedding invitation size is 5" x 7". RSVP cards are usually 3.5" x 5" and details cards 4" x 6" or 5" x 7". You have two ways to print these at home:

• On pre-cut 5x7 cardstock — cleanest result, no trimming, but you feed sheets one at a time.
• Two invitations per 8.5" x 11" sheet — more economical; you trim them down afterward with a paper cutter.

Dial in your printer settings

This is where most DIY invitations go wrong. Before you print the full batch:

1. Set scale to 100% (never "fit to page" — it shrinks your design).
2. Turn on borderless printing if your design runs color to the edge.
3. Select the correct paper type ("cardstock" or "heavy") so the printer adjusts ink and feed speed.
4. Choose best / high quality print mode.
5. Use the rear feed tray for heavy stock if your printer has one — it reduces jams and curling.

Always run one test print on regular paper first, hold it against the light to check alignment, then do a single test on your real cardstock before committing the whole stack.

Trimming for a clean edge

If you printed multiple per sheet, use a guillotine-style paper cutter (not scissors) for straight, professional edges. Design files set up with light crop marks make this almost foolproof — just cut along the guides.

Get a print-ready file in minutes

Professional results start with a properly built file. Every Paper Vow suite is sized correctly for standard US invitations and exports as a high-resolution, print-ready PDF straight from Canva — no guesswork on dimensions. Pick the look that fits your day: Wildflower, Terracotta Desert Boho, Minimalist Editorial, or Cherry Red.

Before you print

Make sure your template is fully customized first — here's how to edit a Canva wedding invitation template — and double-check your wording against our invitation wording guide.