The first time I tried How to Make MTG Proxies at Home, I learned two things fast: scissors lie, and “fit to page” is your mortal enemy. The good news is you don’t need a fancy setup to get clean, readable proxies that shuffle well. You just need the right method, the right sizing, and a tiny bit of patience.
This guide walks you through the main at-home proxy routes (paper slips, sticker proxies, and full prints), plus the file prep and print settings that keep your deck from looking like it came out of a gas station printer in 2004.
Quick reality check (so your proxies don’t cause drama)
Home proxies are for playtesting and casual games. Keep them clear, readable, and consistent in sleeves. And yeah, don’t try to pass them off as real cards. That’s not “being clever,” that’s being a problem.
If you do one thing for table sanity: make sure every proxy is instantly identifiable at a glance.
What you need (and what you don’t)
Here’s the simple gear list. You can upgrade later if you get picky.
Must-haves
- A printer (inkjet or laser)
- Paper (more on this in a second)
- A cutting tool (paper trimmer is easiest, scissors work if you’re careful)
- Sleeves (opaque sleeves make life easier)
- Backer cards (bulk commons or basic lands)
Nice-to-haves
- Corner rounder (this is the “why do my proxies feel janky” fixer)
- Metal ruler + craft knife + cutting mat (for cleaner edges than scissors)
- Self-adhesive laminate sheets or a light protective top coat (helps with smudging)
Stuff you can skip at first
- Printing backs. If you’re using opaque sleeves, don’t waste ink on card backs.
Pick your method: fast, clean, or “I care about feel”
There are three common ways to do this. Here’s the honest comparison.
| Method | Cost | Time | Shuffle feel | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper slip in a sleeve + backer card | $ | Fast | Surprisingly fine | Tonight’s game, quick tests |
| Sticker paper on a junk card | $$ | Medium | Close to “real” if thickness is right | People who hate flimsy proxies |
| Full print on heavier paper/cardstock | $$ | Medium | Depends on paper + sleeves | Clean visuals with less mess |
If you’re brand new, start with paper slips + backer cards. It’s the least frustrating way to learn sizing and cutting.
How to Make MTG Proxies at Home: the sizing cheat sheet
If your sizing is off, everything looks off. Borders get fat, rules text creeps toward the edge, and the deck feels inconsistent.
Standard MTG card trim size
- 2.5″ x 3.5″ (63.5mm x 88.9mm)
Bleed (optional, but helps avoid white edges)
- Add about 0.125″ (1/8″) on all sides
- That makes your full document size 2.75″ x 3.75″ if you’re building files with bleed
Safe zone (don’t put important stuff near the edge)
- Keep critical text/art at least 0.125″ (1/8″) inside the trim line
And if you’re thinking in pixels: at 300 PPI, a 2.5″ x 3.5″ face is 750 x 1050 px. If your source image is smaller than that, it’s going to look soft. No setting can fix missing pixels.
Where to get card images that don’t look crunchy
You have a few options, but the big rule is: start with a clean source.
A reliable path is using Scryfall images. They offer high-resolution image downloads and multiple image sizes, including PNG options on many card pages. If you’re building a lot of proxies, their API image endpoints are also useful.
If you want a deeper rabbit hole on making images print clean (upscaling, sharpening, avoiding artifact soup), this post helps: MTG Proxy Image Prep
Build a print sheet (the part everyone underestimates)
You can print one card per page, sure. But you will hate your life.
Instead, make a sheet like:
- 3×3 grid (9 cards) on US Letter (8.5″ x 11″)
- or 3×3 / 3×4 on A4 depending on margins and your printer
Tips that save you from chaos
- Add thin cut lines between cards (light gray works well)
- Leave a little breathing room so your trimmer can stay accurate
- Export as PDF when possible. PDFs are less likely to randomly rescale.
Printer settings that actually matter (and the ones that don’t)
Most “my proxies printed wrong” issues are just one checkbox.
1) Turn off scaling
- Disable: “Fit to page,” “Scale to fit,” “Shrink to printable area”
- Enable: 100% or Actual size
2) Pick the correct paper type
- If you’re using photo paper, tell the printer it’s photo paper.
- If you’re using thicker stock, choose “cardstock” or “thick paper” if available.
3) Print quality
- Use High or Best.
- Draft mode is how you get fuzzy text and sad blacks.
4) Do one test sheet
Print ONE page. Cut ONE card. Sleeve it with a backer. Then decide if you’re good.
If you want a more step-by-step walkthrough that’s still DIY-friendly, this guide is solid: Mastering Printing MTG Cards
Paper choices that work (without getting weird)
Paper choice changes two things: color and feel.
For slip-in proxies
- Regular paper is fine because the backer card gives thickness.
- Go a bit heavier if you want less transparency.
For full prints
- Many people land in the 170–200 gsm range as a sweet spot for home printing.
- Heavier can feel nicer, but some home printers hate thick stock and jam.
For sticker proxies
- Full-sheet sticker paper + bulk commons can feel really good in sleeves.
- It’s more work, but it’s consistent.
If you’re using an inkjet, remember: prints can be “dry to the touch” quickly, but still need time to fully cure. If you start stacking and cutting immediately, you can smudge your blacks and hate everything.
Cutting cleanly (without slowly losing your mind)
Cutting is where “pretty good” becomes “wow, these shuffle fine.”
Best tool: a paper trimmer
Best cheap upgrade: a corner rounder
Cutting tips
- Cut long strips first (rows), then cut individual cards.
- Always square one edge before you start measuring cuts.
- Don’t chase perfection on card #1. Your hands get better by page two.
About white edges
White edges usually come from one of these:
- No bleed in the file
- Slight scaling changes
- Cutting a hair inside the art
If you can’t do bleed, it’s fine. Just accept that you might see tiny white slivers sometimes, and use sleeves that don’t show much border.
Durability: keeping ink from smearing and corners from dying
A proxy that looks great fresh off the printer can still fail once it hits sleeves and shuffling.
If you’re getting smudges
- Let prints sit longer before cutting and sleeving (especially inkjet)
- Try a different paper finish (matte vs glossy behaves differently)
- Consider self-adhesive laminate sheets for the front face
- Always sleeve proxies. Always.
If your deck feels “marked”
- Use the same sleeve brand for the whole deck
- Use backer cards so thickness is consistent
- Don’t mix “paper slip” proxies with super thick sticker proxies in the same deck unless you like accidental tells
A simple “test before you commit” protocol
Do this once and you save hours.
- Print one sheet at 100% scaling.
- Cut one card from the middle of the sheet (not the edge).
- Sleeve it with a basic land behind it.
- Compare it to a real sleeved card:
- Is the border thickness similar?
- Is rules text readable at arm’s length?
- Does it shuffle without catching?
Then adjust exactly one thing at a time (paper, scaling, print quality, file size). Don’t change five settings and guess which one fixed it.
Common problems (and the real fix)
Problem: Borders are too thick or too thin
Fix: Your print is being scaled. Reprint with 100% actual size.
Problem: Text looks fuzzy
Fix: Source image is too low-res, or you printed in draft mode. Use higher-res art and high quality print settings.
Problem: Colors look dull or too dark
Fix: Wrong paper setting, or your file is getting converted weirdly. Try the correct paper profile and do a test print.
Problem: Ink smears when you sleeve
Fix: Let it cure longer, switch paper, or add a protective layer.
Final thoughts
Once you dial it in, How to Make MTG Proxies at Home becomes a repeatable little workflow: build a sheet, print at 100%, cut clean, sleeve with a backer. That’s it. Your first page might be rough. Page three usually looks way better.
And if you catch yourself about to print 100 cards without a test sheet… don’t. That’s how people end up rage-printing at 1:00 AM.