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The best large-print playing cards
A standard deck prints each card's number and suit small, in two corners. If you hold the cards close, tilt them toward the light, or have to ask what a card is, a deck with bigger print will help. Bigger print is easier on older eyes and easier to read in a dim room, and it can help when a child is learning the cards. If you read your cards easily, you do not need one.
These decks come in three kinds: jumbo index, large print and low-vision decks. The sections below explain each one, how big the cards are, and which game suits which deck. The four picks are ranked by how many readers each one suits.
How we chose these decks
We have not handled these decks ourselves. The picks come from the makers' and retailers' product pages, including shops that serve low-vision customers, and from buying guides on other sites. Where we quote the size of the print, it comes from a retailer's page and we say so.
We show no prices. They change, and the Amazon page has the current one.
The four picks
Bicycle Jumbo Index Playing Cards (2-pack)
Best first choice when the small corner numbers are hard to read
The same poker-size cards as a regular Bicycle deck, with the numbers and suits in the corners printed larger (jumbo index) and the air-cushion finish. The pack holds two decks, one red and one blue, so one can be shuffled while the other is dealt. It is first because it changes the least: it plays like any deck you own, so it works for every game on our rules pages.
Gives up: only the corner numbers grow. The cards stay poker size and paper, and bigger corners are a choice for eyes that need them, not an upgrade for everyone.
Bicycle Large Print Bridge Size Playing Cards
Best for tired eyes in a familiar deck: big print on narrower bridge-size cards
This is Bicycle's classic Rider Back design with big numbers, letters and suit symbols; a retailer lists the numbers and letters at 1 1/4 inches high. Bridge-size cards are about a quarter inch narrower than poker-size cards, so a thirteen-card hand is easier to hold. Retailers sell it for older players and for teaching younger ones.
Gives up: bridge-size cards will not match a poker-size deck, and paper cards wear out faster than plastic. The back color may be red or blue.
Bicycle E-Z See / Lo-Vision Playing Cards
Best for readers who cannot read a regular or jumbo-index deck
Each suit has its own color (green, blue, red and black), so you can tell the suits apart without reading the small symbol. A low-vision retailer lists the markings at 1 5/8 inches high and sells the deck for seniors, people with low vision and classrooms. The cards are poker size.
Gives up: the four suit colors may take some getting used to, and they remove the link between red and black that some games use. In Euchre the left bower is the jack of the other suit of the same color, and the usual game of Solitaire builds in alternating red and black. It is also a paper deck.
Copag 1546 100% Plastic Playing Cards, Jumbo Index
Best for large corners in a deck that wipes clean
Plastic all the way through, so spills wipe off with a damp cloth, which suits a table with drinks and snacks. It is the Copag 1546 line from our waterproof guide. The line comes with jumbo or regular corners, and this one has jumbo-index corners on poker-size cards. This listing is the Black/Gold set, and the maker sells that set as two decks in a hard plastic case.
Gives up: plastic is stiffer and slicker than paper, and the set costs more than the paper decks above.
For a specific game: Pinochle and Bridge
Pinochle needs its own 48-card decks, and Bridge is usually played with two decks of the narrower bridge size. These two picks are made for those games.
Bicycle Pinochle Playing Cards, Jumbo Index, 2 Decks
Best for older eyes: the same Pinochle decks with larger corner numbers
Pinochle is played with 48-card decks that have no 2s through 8s, so an ordinary deck will not do on its own. Retailers list this pack as two decks, one red and one blue, with jumbo-index corners and the air-cushion finish.
Gives up: it only helps if the print is the problem. If you read regular corners easily, regular-index Pinochle cards play the same.
Copag 1546 100% Plastic Playing Cards, Bridge Size, Jumbo Index
Best for bridge players who want large corner numbers on washable plastic cards
Bridge players usually use two decks, one being shuffled while the other is dealt. The maker sells this set as two decks, red and blue, in the narrower bridge size, with jumbo-index corners and a hard plastic case. Bridge-supply shops sell all-plastic decks and jumbo-index decks, so both are ordinary choices at a bridge table.
Gives up: plastic is stiffer and slicker than paper, and the set costs more. Larger corners only help if regular print is hard for you to read.
Side by side
| Deck | Card size | Material | In the pack | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bicycle Jumbo Index | Jumbo-index corners | Poker | Paper, air-cushion finish | Two decks, red and blue | Small corner numbers that are hard to read |
| Bicycle Large Print Bridge | Big numbers, letters and suit symbols; 1 1/4 in (retailer) | Bridge | Paper, air-cushion finish | One deck with two jokers | Tired eyes; a hand that is easier to hold |
| Bicycle E-Z See | Four suit colors; markings 1 5/8 in (retailer) | Poker | Paper, air-cushion finish | One deck | Low vision |
| Copag 1546 Jumbo Index | Jumbo-index corners | Poker | 100% plastic | Sold by the maker as two decks in a hard case | Wipe-clean decks for heavy use |
| Bicycle Pinochle Jumbo Index | Jumbo-index corners | Poker | Paper, air-cushion finish | Two 48-card decks | Pinochle |
| Copag 1546 Bridge Size | Jumbo-index corners | Bridge | 100% plastic | Sold by the maker as two decks in a hard case | Bridge |
What the words mean, and who each deck suits
Jumbo index
The number and suit in each of the two corners are printed about twice the usual size. The rest of the card is the same as any other deck, so this is the smallest change. If you can read regular corners without trouble, you do not need them: our glossary notes that regular corners suit games where you hold a close fan of cards, like Gin Rummy, because more of each card stays visible.
Large print
Large print is the seller's name for a deck with big numbers, letters and suit symbols. The Bicycle Large Print Bridge Size deck is one: a retailer lists its numbers and letters at 1 1/4 inches high. Sellers use the words loosely, though. The Amazon title for the Bicycle Jumbo Index 2-pack also says "Large Print", so read what a listing says about the size itself.
Low-vision decks
A low-vision deck also adds color. In the Bicycle E-Z See each suit has its own color, so you can read the suit without the small symbol, and a low-vision retailer lists the markings at 1 5/8 inches high. The cost is the link between red and black that some games use, as the E-Z See pick explains.
Who each deck suits
- Older eyes, or corners that are a little hard to read: jumbo index (pick 1).
- Tired eyes, or a full hand that is hard to hold: large print in bridge size (pick 2).
- Low vision: the E-Z See (pick 3).
- A dim room: any of these reads more easily than a standard deck, and the bigger the print, the easier it is.
- A child learning the cards: retailers sell the Large Print and E-Z See decks for teaching younger players, and bigger print is easier for anyone who is new to the cards.
- Wipe-clean, or heavy use: the plastic Copag (pick 4).
Poker size or bridge size?
Poker-size cards are 2 1/2 inches wide. Bridge-size cards are 2 1/4 inches wide, a quarter inch narrower. The narrower card is easier to hold when you have thirteen cards, as you do in Hearts, Spades and Whist. The two sizes do not mix, so buy decks of the same size for a game that uses two. The size of the card does not set the size of the print: each deck above lists its own.
Which deck for which game
- Euchre: you use 24 cards from an ordinary deck, the 9 through ace of each suit. Any of the four picks works except the E-Z See, because the left bower is the jack of the other suit of the same color. A bower is one of the two jacks that become the strongest cards.
- Hearts, Spades and Whist: each player holds thirteen cards. Any of the four picks works, and the narrower bridge-size cards are easier to hold.
- Gin Rummy: you hold ten cards and look through them again after every draw, so you read the corners many times. Jumbo index or large print helps if they are hard to read. If they are not, regular corners are fine.
- Solitaire: the cards lie face up on the table, so you read them at arm’s length rather than in your hand, and large print helps. Skip the E-Z See: the columns are built in alternating red and black, and its four suit colors hide which suits are red.
- Cribbage: any of the four picks works, because the deck only supplies the cards. See our guide to cribbage boards for the other thing you need.
Common questions
Is jumbo index the same as large print?
Not quite. Jumbo index is a corner size: the numbers and suits in the two corners are printed about twice the usual size. Large print is what some sellers call a deck with big numbers, letters and suit symbols. Some listings use both words for the same deck.
Can I use bridge-size cards for games other than Bridge?
Yes. Any game that uses a 52-card deck works with bridge-size cards, which are only narrower. Do not mix the two sizes in one game.
Paper or plastic?
Paper decks cost less and wear out faster. Plastic wipes clean and lasts longer, but it is stiffer and slicker, and it costs more. If a deck will get heavy use, see our guide to waterproof playing cards; the Copag deck there is the same line as pick 4.