What Are Plastic Playing Cards?

Plastic playing cards are just like any other playing cards except that they are made of PVC instead of paper. They are much longer wearing than paper playing cards and most are washable. (Please follow the manufacturers' cleaning instructions to avoid damage or loss.) Plastic playing cards at first may feel a little more slippery than paper playing cards, but after a couple of hands you probably will ask yourself why you didn't switch earlier. They tend to be more flexible and require less effort to shuffle after some practice.

Please don't confuse plastic playing cards with plastic coated playing cards. Plastic coated playing cards are regular paper cards with a thin plastic coating to give them more longevity. But while the plastic coating helps, they don't have the same properties as 100% plastic playing cards.

Plastic playing cards come in two quality standards. High end cards, which we sell, and low end cards which are considered a type of toy. A number of Asian casinos plastic playing cards manufactured in non-Chinese countries in the Far East. These cards are normally only sold to casinos and are a bit better than low end cards. So far all Chinese playing cards are considered low end. Transparet plastic playing cards are a novelty and are considered low end cards. Unfortunately famous brands of playing cards historically have been and continue to be counterfeit, so only buy them from a reputable reseller (yes, we guarantee that our cards our genuine).

When treated with the same care as paper playing cards, plastic playing cards should last much longer – but they’re not indestructible. You often can remove creases and marks from plastic playing cards, but rough play can leave permanent marks or other damage. The ink used to print playing cards does not stick to the PVC, so plastic playing cards depend on a several coatings to adhere and protect the ink. If the ink fades or flakes, you probably have scratched the coatings or dissolved them through exposure to solvents. Accordingly, we strongly recommend using plastic playing cards on felt and other soft surfaces, as the manufacturers' warranties typically won't cover scratched coatings. 

KEM cards are usually classified as plastic playing cards but they actually are made from cellulose acetate. This gives them their unique silky feel, but the material "breathes" and can bow due to changes in humidity and temperature. While this bowing often can be fixed by placing the cards in their case with a couple of cut cards to maintain downward pressure, a fix is not guaranteed. This is not, however, a manufacturing defect. 

Our company has done business with every major plastic playing card manufacturer. We have found that most of our money (and your money) goes into the materials. The best materials come from Europe, Brazil and the United States, but they cost substantially higher than Asian materials. Asian materials, to date, have known problems including coating adhesion failures and bowing. While no manufacturer is immune to defects, we've found that the brands we carry experience much lower defect rates than other brands. They are the state-of-the-art in the playing card industry and preferred by commercial customers such as top casinos and entertainment companies, as well as sophisticated card players.