Birthday Invitations

What Are Birthday Invitations

Birthday invitations are flat, full-color cards you mail or hand out to invite guests to a birthday party, printed in 3 sizes from 4.25 by 5.5 inch up to a 6 inch square on any of 20 stocks. You set whether the card prints color on the front with a blank back, color on the front with a black-ink back, or full color on both sides, then pick the stock, the size and the finish, and the price updates live as you go. The same card prints for every occasion on the calendar, so if the celebration is a cap and gown or a new baby instead, the Graduation Invitations and Baby Shower Invitations use the exact same options.

Kids Birthday Invitations

A kids party invitation has two readers. The child looks at the picture; the parent looks for the drop-off time and whether to stay. Print for both.

Themes and photos

Dinosaurs, unicorns, superheroes, soccer, space, a favorite film character. Whatever the theme is, keep it to the front and leave the back for details. A photo invitation works the same way: one large picture of the birthday child on the front, printed full color, with the party information on the back. Choosing full color on both sides rather than a blank back is what makes that layout possible, and on a photo card the gloss stocks hold skin tones and bright party colors better than the uncoated ones.

RSVP wording for parents

Parents need four things printed, not implied: the drop-off and pick-up times, the address, whether a parent is expected to stay, and an RSVP name with a phone number or email. Add any allergy note or a line about siblings being welcome. If the party is at a pool, a trampoline park or anywhere with a waiver, say so on the card so nobody arrives unprepared.

The size that fits an envelope

The 4.25" x 5.5" card is the classic mailer and the one that slips into a matching white wove envelope for handing out at the school gate. The 5" x 7" gives a big photo more room. The 6" x 6" square is the one to check before you post, since square cards want a square envelope rather than a standard one.

Adult and Milestone Birthday Invitations

A milestone card is judged the moment it is picked up, so the stock does as much work as the artwork.

21st, 30th, 40th and 50th

The number is the design. Set the age large on the front and keep the rest short: host, date, time, place, dress code, RSVP. For a 21st, the venue and whether there is a bar matters. For a 30th and a 40th, people need to know if it is a dinner or a drop-in. For a 50th, print the RSVP deadline plainly, since a seated dinner needs a real count.

Surprise party wording

Put the word Surprise at the top, not buried in the paragraph, and print the arrival time separately from the guest of honour's arrival time. Add the line asking guests not to mention it, and give an RSVP contact who is not the person being surprised.

Formal stocks and metallic looks

Twenty stocks run from 10pt to 26pt. White linen and cream carry a formal evening invitation. Soft touch gives a matte, suede-like feel in the hand. The metallic pearl shades come in ice, champagne, silver and gold, and StarLustre platinum is the brightest of them, which is why gold and champagne end up on 50th cards and silver and ice on a 25th or a winter party. A High Gloss UV coat on top of a gloss stock is the loudest finish on the list; Standard finish is the quiet one.

What Size Should a Birthday Invitation Be

The right size comes down to how much you need to say and how you plan to send it. The 4.25 by 5.5 inch card is the classic mailer, small enough to slip into a standard envelope and cheap to post. Step up to 5 by 7 inch when the design needs room for a photo or a longer note, the size most people picture for a proper invitation. The 6 by 6 inch square reads modern and stands out in a stack of rectangles on the fridge. Need a shape none of those hit? Order a custom size up to 6 by 7 inch. All 3 set sizes, both finishes and the full stock list are grouped below exactly the way the live configurator presents them, so you know what you can change before you change it.

Why Pick a Custom Size for a Birthday Invitation

A custom size lets the card fit the party instead of the other way round. A theme with a tall shape, such as a rocket or a champagne bottle, reads better on a narrow card, and an odd size stands out in a pile of standard mail. It also lets you match an envelope you already have: measure the envelope, take a little off each side, and order the card to that size, up to 6 by 7 inch.

Choosing between 4x6 and 5x7? The 5 by 7 inch is one of the 3 set sizes and the one most people picture for a proper invitation, with room for a photo and the RSVP details. A 4 by 6 inch card is not a preset here, but it sits inside the custom range, so you can order it as a custom size. The other set sizes are the 4.25 by 5.5 inch mailer and the 6 by 6 inch square.

Three choices below make the card feel like an event: the stock, the design and your own artwork.

Pick a stock that feels like more

A heavier coated stock gives the card real presence in the hand. A cream or kraft uncoated reads warm and handwritten, the white linen adds texture you can feel, and the metallic pearl stocks in ice, champagne, silver and gold catch the light like foil without the foil price. The default keeps it bright and cheap, and a High Gloss UV coat makes a birthday photo snap. Thickness runs from 10pt right up to a sturdy 26pt for a card that feels like an event, not a flyer.

Design it without a designer

Start from a professionally built layout in our design templates, then change the colors, the copy and the photo in the online editor. Put the age or the birthday child's photo on the front, the date, place and RSVP on the back, and print.

Already have your artwork? Skip the editor and download a press-ready blank instead. Each blank template is built at the real trim size with the 1/8" bleed and safe margin already drawn in, so your design never crowds the cut. Grab the size that matches your order below, drop your art in, and upload.

How Much Do Birthday Invitations Cost

Twenty-five cards cost $19.77, about 79 cents each, and at 100,000 the price works out to about 2 cents a card. Between those, 700 cards cost $106.55 and 6,000 cost $238.14, across 41 quantity tiers. Enter your guest count on the slider below for the exact total.

Can You Add Envelopes and Round the Corners

Yes. A birthday invitation usually needs to travel, so you can add matching white wove envelopes right in the configurator and skip the separate envelope hunt. Prefer a softer shape? Round the corners at a 1/8 inch or 3/8 inch radius for a card that feels finished. And before a big run prints, you choose how you approve the file: send it straight to production when you trust your artwork, request a free online proof to check it on screen, or order a next-day hardcopy proof to hold the real card in your hand. You can also bundle the finished cards and split an order into multiple sets.

How Do Birthday Invitations Compare to Other Occasions

Birthday invitations are the everyday pick, but they share the same press, stocks and sizes as the rest of the invitation family, so choosing the right one is really about the occasion on the front. If you are also weighing a graduation, a shower or a wedding, it helps to see the starting price on each side by side. The chart below lines birthday invitations up against their closest siblings, including Wedding Invitations, so you can compare before you choose.

How Fast Can You Get Birthday Invitations

Birthday invitations print on a 3 business day standard turnaround, and when the party sneaks up you can move that to 2-day, Next-Day or even Same-Day production. Each step buys back time for a set percentage on top of the base price, so you only pay for speed when you actually need it. Same Day orders need to be approved by the daily cutoff to ship that day. Compare every turnaround tier below and see exactly what the rush adds before you pick.

See the Rest of Our Invitations

The full print product range holds everything we print, and invitations printing keeps the invitation family together, each card with its own starting price and product page.

See the whole range on invitations printing, order the thank-you notes that follow the party as birthday thank you cards, or browse the rest of the birthday printing range for banners, signs and favors that match the card.

Print Your Birthday Invitations Today

At 4OVER4.COM, quality comes first, and it is backed by our five Gold Standard guarantees and 25+ years of printing since 1999. Whatever size, stock or finish you pick, these birthday invitations are built to feel good in a hand and set the tone for the day. Cutting it close to the party? Our same-day printing keeps you covered. Print your birthday invitations today.