Name Badge Template: Sizes, Layout and Event Badge Design

Badge size is decided by your holders or card stock, so choose it first. The sizes below are common, but suppliers vary, so match your template to the exact insert size and printer your supplier specifies.

A badge has one main job: let people read a name and know who they are talking to. Everything else is secondary. Rank the fields and size them in that order.

1. First name or preferred name, the largest text on the badge
2. Full name, smaller, on the line below
3. Company or organization
4. Badge type, such as Attendee, Exhibitor, Speaker, Staff or Press, as a word and a color band
5. QR code or barcode for check-in, session access and lead capture
6. Optional: job title, city or country, pronouns, or an interest tag if attendees choose it
7. Event name or logo, small, since everyone already knows which event they are at

Leave out email addresses and phone numbers. They don't help a conversation, and they put personal details on display all day. If exhibitors need contact details, a lead retrieval app reads them from the code on the badge, with the attendee's consent covered by your registration terms.

Color-coding lets staff, exhibitors and security tell badge types apart at a glance. There is no industry standard for the colors, so pick your own, keep them consistent across years and print the word as well as the color.

• Use a plain sans-serif font with clear letter shapes; avoid thin, condensed or script fonts
• High contrast: dark text on a white or very light background, never text over a photo
• Set a maximum length for the large name line and shrink long names to fit rather than cutting them off
• Keep text and codes clear of the punch slot or clip area at the top
• Print both sides of lanyard badges, since they flip; put the name on both
• Put sponsor logos at the bottom or on the back, never where they compete with the name
• Leave a quiet margin around the QR code so scanners can read it
• Print a test badge on the real stock, in the real holder, and read it from a few steps away
• Check how the template handles accented characters, hyphenated names and very long company names

For accessibility, offer optional pronoun lines or ribbons, and make sure the badge type word is large enough to read. Our guide to making events more inclusive and accessible has more ideas.

The code on a badge should hold an ID, not personal data. Check-in and lead retrieval apps look the ID up and fetch the details, so nothing sensitive is readable by anyone with a phone camera, and correcting a typo doesn't mean reprinting.

• Size the code so it scans easily from a phone at arm's length, and test it on the scanners and phones you will actually use
• Keep a clear margin around it and print it in solid black on white
• Print a short human-readable code under it so staff can type it if the code won't scan
• Place it where exhibitors can scan it without asking the attendee to take the badge off
• If one code is used for check-in and lead retrieval, make sure both systems read the same value

If you are choosing a scanning tool, see event badge scanner app and QR code check-in software.

Use this layout spec to brief a designer or to build the template in your badge tool or word processor. Measurements assume a 4 x 3 inch horizontal insert and a 4 x 6 inch vertical badge; scale them to your stock.

NAME BADGE TEMPLATE: [EVENT NAME] [YEAR]

LAYOUT A: 4 x 3 in, horizontal insert
- Top band (about 0.6 in): event logo left, badge type word right, in the badge type color
- Line 1 (largest text): [FIRST NAME]
- Line 2: [FIRST NAME] [LAST NAME]
- Line 3: [COMPANY]
- Line 4 (optional, smallest): [JOB TITLE] or [CITY, STATE/COUNTRY]
- Bottom right: QR code, about 0.75–1 in square, with [SCAN CODE] printed below in small type
- Margins: at least 0.15 in on all sides; keep the top 0.4 in clear if the holder has a slot

LAYOUT B: 4 x 6 in, vertical lanyard badge
- Top (about 1.25 in): event logo and dates; keep clear of the punch slot
- Middle:
  Line 1 (largest text): [FIRST NAME]
  Line 2: [FIRST NAME] [LAST NAME]
  Line 3: [COMPANY]
  Line 4 (optional): [JOB TITLE]
  Line 5 (optional): [PRONOUNS]
- QR code: centered below the name block, about 1–1.25 in square, with [SCAN CODE] below
- Bottom band (about 0.75 in, full width): [BADGE TYPE] in large capitals, on the badge type color
- Back: repeat name and company; add Wi-Fi network, app download code or sponsor logo

TYPE RULES
- Font: [SANS-SERIF FONT NAME], bold for the first name
- First name: largest size that fits [MAX CHARACTERS] characters on one line; shrink to fit beyond that
- Text color: black or very dark gray on white
- Badge type colors: Attendee [COLOR], Exhibitor [COLOR], Speaker [COLOR], Sponsor [COLOR], Staff [COLOR], Press [COLOR]

DATA FIELDS (spreadsheet columns for a mail merge)
first_name, last_name, company, job_title, badge_type, pronouns, city, scan_code

BEFORE PRINTING
- Print one test sheet on the real stock and check alignment in the holder
- Test the QR code on the check-in and lead retrieval devices
- Read the longest name and company in the list at full size

You can pre-print every badge before the event, print each one when the attendee checks in, or combine the two: pre-print for registered attendees and print on site for walk-ups and corrections. Pre-printing means a sorting job and a pile of uncollected badges; printing on demand means printers, power and a reliable connection at the desk. Plan for the event WiFi at registration either way.

We cover the tools elsewhere: the event badge maker for designing templates, event badge printing software for printing in bulk, and on-site badge printing software for printing at check-in.

• Company logo or event artwork bigger than the attendee's name
• Names in capitals or a decorative font that is hard to read at a distance
• Color as the only signal of badge type
• QR codes that encode an email address or other personal data
• Single-sided lanyard badges that flip to show a blank back
• No plan for name corrections, walk-ups and lost badges at the desk