You’ve probably noticed that most of the cards in your wallet are the same size.
Yes, all credit card issuers must comply with regulations and standards imposed by the ISO, including exact card sizes.
This is necessary, not because they have to fit in every pocket or wallet, but because of the technologies that use these credit cards, various ATMs and financial data processing technologies. They should all work under one standard and be usable everywhere.
This means that your card issued by American bank “X”, thanks to these standards, can be used at ATM devices in Paris, Beijing, Sydney, etc.
Bank cards have undergone changes since the late 1950s, but they remain similar to their predecessors. The first credit cards were issued by American Express and Bank of America.
And now more specifically about the standard itself.
All credit cards must conform to “ISO 7810 ID-1”, namely they must be 3.375 wide, 2.125 high, with a thickness of 0.0299 inches. In metric system: 85.60mm width, 53.98mm height and 0.76mm thickness.
The standard also specifies the rounded corners of the cards and the exact radius.
The standard does not provide a specific measure for the weight of credit cards. However, most plastic cards weigh around 5-8 grams. There are also premium credit cards made of materials like aluminum, steel, and titanium, which can weigh 10-15 grams or even more.
Government and ID cards
And since we also carry ID cards in our wallets and card holders, let’s pay some attention to them as well.
Several standards exist and different countries have adopted a different standard.
In the European Union, the standard size for an ID card is CR 80, which is the same as the size of credit cards. Similarly, the size and standard of IDs in the US are also the same, including driver’s licenses, student IDs, and other types of identification cards.
CR 100 cards are larger and contain more information, and are issued in some government offices and agencies.
It is highly probable that all of your bank cards and ID cards are of CR 80 or ISO ID – 1 size, making them suitable for any contemporary card holder or standard wallet.
