Top 10 Best Sites for eCards

How eCards Work and How to Send Them

Whether it’s your birthday, anniversary, graduation, or just because someone loves you, receiving a greeting card or gift card instantly picks up your day. And thanks to digital innovations, sending friendly greetings, heartfelt sentiments, and random salutations is easier than ever. With the advent of ecards, the industry of spreading love and cheer took a major boost, and the trend seems to be one that’s here to stay.

What are ecards exactly, anyway? Ecards are basically digitally-rendered greeting cards. Like the paper versions, the best free ecards come in every shape, size, color, and style. You can find ecards for all special occasions, including birthday eCards, anniversaries, get well, holiday, funny eCards, graduations, father's day, mother's day, and so much more.

And like traditional paper cards, you can send ecards to anyone you want. Sometimes, these digital greeting cards are sent to an email address. Other times, you can share them directly with someone via a social media channel like Facebook. Regardless, it’s always done digitally, which makes ecards more convenient and cheaper than traditional greeting cards.

Strapped for cash? No worries. There are plenty of excellent top free eCard sites that allow you to send free eCards with no registration that you can choose from to express yourself through, as well. So, you can send a card to tell someone how much they mean to you, congratulate a friend on a job well done, wish someone a happy birthday, or elicit a laugh-out-loud moment in the middle of a busy office without spending a dime!

Ready for some fun? Check out 10 of the best sites for free eCards on the web:

1. Punchbowl

If you like the convenience and price savings of ecards but don’t want to give up on that familiar style of traditional greeting cards, Punchbowl is a good option. Each card is beautifully-designed and comes with its own envelope and stamp for good measure. These ecards are a breeze to customize, and Punchbowl also lets you attach digital gift cards to top stores like Sephora, Zappos, and Amazon to really make your recipient smile.

2. WWF

Care about the planet? Love those majestic tigers? If you are a fan of wildlife preservation and natural resource conservation, and are in search of a unique ecards website, then the World Wildlife organization (WWF) has just the thing for you. The site is filled with tons of greeting cards that you can send to friends and family online.

Sending ecards is totally free with the WWF, and you can choose from some breathtaking scenes, adorable candid cameras, and poignant wildlife moments. The free ecards come with sweet phrases like “Sending you HedgeHugs” (with a picture of a friendly hedgehog) and “I’m not lion when I say I love you”! And best of all, these cards increase awareness of this important mission. So, you can send a greeting that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

3. Paperless Post

Paperless Post is another great option for ecard fans. That’s because these cards are absolutely stunning. You can customize everything from the lining of your envelope to the backdrop of the card, font face, size, color, and postage. Choose from more than 1000 free ecards, invitations, flyers, or other greeting cards, or opt for the premium options that you can customize for every occasion from birthdays to holidays to corporate events.

4. Jacquie Lawson

Jacquie Lawson ecards are next level greeting cards. Artfully-designed and entirely inspiring, these digital salutations will simply take your breath away. In fact, some of the cards take weeks or even months to design, containing hand-painted elements for the realistic effects and textures.

When you begin to browse the gorgeous collection of animated designs, you’ll quickly agree that Jacquie Lawson is a step above the rest. And if you love the idea of art-inspired ecards, also check out Ojolie, another top free ecard site with stunning designs.

5. Smilebox

Smilebox is not your typical ecard website. Rather, it invites you to download the software and have fun creating your own greetings cards for every occasion. Bursting with customization tools, Smilebox cards are the ultimate in giving over your own personal message, flavor, and designs. Plus, Smilebox offers some awesome tools, including playlist upload, unlimited storage, video stills, guest tracking, and more.

6. American Greetings

American Greetings is one of the oldest and most well-known ecards sites, but don’t let its time in the business fool you. Far from being old hat, American Greetings has kept up with the times and features some of the most entertaining, adorable, and hilarious ecard animations and videos on the market. You can also get attractive invites, printables, gifts, and even wrapping paper with your personalized design all over it.

7. Ojolie

A site that’s akin to Jacquie Lawson, Ojolie has turned ecards into an artform. And we have to say, it’s done an outstanding job. Each animated ecard is inspired, and every detail is intricately planned, designed, and sketched until it is crafted into a powerful and moving sentiment. The animated videos are truly something to be experienced, and Ojolie ecards are guaranteed to wow whoever you send them to.

8. Jibjab

Ever wanted to create a truly personalized greetings card? Well, now you can put your friends and family in the spotlight with a Jibjab ecard. From birthday wishes to anniversary vows and just downright bizarre thinking of you messages, Jibjab puts your recipient’s face directly into the ecard and video for everyone to enjoy. Laugh it up as your friends feature in these hilarious animations that are the perfect greeting for anyone who balks tradition.

9. Wrong Cards

If you’re of the mind that you can’t go wrong with a good meme, then Wrong Cards is the right address for you. Loaded with some hilarious, colorful, and sometimes wildly inappropriate memes, Wrong Cards is a great way to express yourself in a sarcastic, humorous, or sardonic fashion. Sending these ecards is fast and simple, just the click of a button.

So, you don’t have to worry about investing a lot of time. Just pick a witty meme, enter the email address, and you’ll be LOLing it up with friends in no time! SomeeCards is another good option for this style of greeting with less convenient sharing options.

10. Hallmark

No pun intended, but Hallmark is literally the hallmark of greeting cards. Around since 1910, Hallmark has been helping us convey our thoughts and feelings for over a century. And in 2024, Hallmark is continuing the tradition with one of the most professional ecards sites out there.

Not only does the site cover every category and occasion you could possibly encounter (did you even know there was an Admin Professionals’ day??), but it is well-organized, easy to use, and faster than any other ecard site we tried. And for $5 a month, you can access all of the loveable Hallmark characters like Hoops & Yoyo, Maxine, and Peanuts.

How to Choose the Right eCards Site For You

The best sites for ecards are the ones that fit your criteria and needs for your loved one's special day. Here are a few things to consider when comparing your options:

Customization

This isn’t important for everyone, but if you want to be able to personalize your ecards, then you’ll certainly need to check that the service you opt for has this capability. Some of the best digital cards sites don’t allow you to customize things (what you see is what you get). But there are still plenty of services that do offer this kind of functionality.

Customization varies from personalizing your message to choosing colors, backgrounds, and even envelope linings (here’s looking at you Paperless Post!). And Smilebox lets you totally personalize things from A to Z. So, decide how much customization you want, and pick from among the websites for sending ecards that allow you to make things your own.

Subscriptions & pricing

Many of the big named websites for sending free ecards have a truly impressive array of options to choose from. These come with a monthly or yearly membership that lets you send an unlimited amount of ecards anytime you want.

This is a really economical way of sending greetings, especially if you are the type of person to send cards frequently. It’s also a more cost-effective option if you are planning an event, making a wedding or large gathering, and want to send invites to a lot of people.

While even the best digital cards sites aren’t going to break the bank for most people (we’re talking $1-$5 a month), you might be looking for something even more affordable. On a budget? No problem, there are plenty of free online ecards sites that you can use to wow friends and family with your artistic ability, witty sense of humor, and technological know-how.

Style

Some websites for sending ecards have specific styles or themes. Ojolie, for example, is an artistically-rendered form of eGreeting. Meanwhile, Wrong Cards is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum when it comes to sites for sending online greeting cards. So, if you’re looking for something in particular, check out the flavor of the site to find one that fits your mood.

Ease of use

Another thing you’ll want to look out for when choosing the right sites for sending online greeting cards is usability. A site might have a nice selection of ecards, but if it’s painful to navigate, it is likely that it will be an exercise in futility, frustration, and four-letter word flinging. Look for a site that has clear categories, intuitive options, and makes it easy to take the actions that you want to do.

Selection

Finally, you want to find an ecard service that has a good selection. After all, it kind of gets boring sending the same cards over and over again. Variety is the spice of life. So, add some zest to your eGreetings by selecting one of the sites for sending online greeting cards that has a sizable library of cards to choose from.

In addition to having a wide selection of attractive and relevant ecards, check out which sites offer alternative types of greetings and services. For example, Jibjab has a hilarious animation that allows you to put the recipient’s face directly into the animated greeting card (or anyone else’s for that matter).

The best sites for ecards will have a hearty selection of entertaining options, including animations, video cards, musical cards, and more. So, don’t limit yourself to static pictures if you’re looking for something more exciting.

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