Plastic vs Paper Playing Cards: Which Should You Buy?

Playing cards come in two materials: card stock (paper, usually with a coating) and plastic (usually PVC or a similar polymer). They look the same on the table. They do not behave the same in the hand, and the right choice depends entirely on what the deck is for.

Plastic playing cards: built to last

A plastic deck is made from a single sheet of polymer rather than layers of paper.

• Durability. A plastic deck can last years of weekly games. Paper decks soften, crease and pick up marks within a few sessions.
• Waterproof and washable. Spill a drink on a plastic deck and wipe it off. Take it to the pool, the beach or a boat. Paper swells and is ruined.
• They spring back. Bend a plastic card and it returns flat. Paper keeps the crease.
• Feel. Plastic is a little heavier and slicker, and some people find it slides more when spread on a hard table.

This is why serious poker is played with plastic. A card room cannot have marked or creased cards giving information away, and a plastic deck stays clean and flat for thousands of hands.

Paper playing cards: the magician's and the flourisher's choice

Paper decks are layered card stock with a textured coating — the dimpled "air-cushion" style finish lets cards glide over each other evenly.

• Fanning and spreading. A good paper deck fans in a perfect arc. Plastic decks fan less evenly.
• Cardistry and magic. Springs, riffles and most sleight of hand rely on a paper deck's flex and texture. Nearly all trick decks, including the Svengali deck, are paper for this reason.
• Price. Paper decks cost less, which matters when they wear out.
• Lifespan. The trade-off: weeks or months of regular use, not years.

Which should you buy?

• For poker nights and regular card games: plastic. It will outlast twenty paper decks and survive the evening's drinks.
• For travel, the beach or the pool: plastic or a waterproof PVC deck.
• For older players or low light: a plastic deck with jumbo index corners, where the number and suit are printed large.
• For magic tricks and cardistry: paper.
• As a gift: a striking plastic deck — clear, black and gold, or foil — because it is still in use a year later.

What "jumbo index" means

The index is the small number and suit in the corner. A standard index is the usual size; a jumbo index is roughly twice as tall. Poker players like jumbo indices because they can read their hole cards by lifting just a corner, and they are much easier for anyone who finds small print hard to read.

A note on "waterproof" paper decks

Some paper decks are sold as water-resistant because of their coating. They will survive a splash. Only plastic will survive a soaking.