We can encode Magnetic Stripe Metal Cards

With HICO or LOCO Mag Stripes

We encode on Track 1 in the following format:

%CARDNUMBER? for a 16 digit card it would look like as follows: %1111222233334444?

We can encode either numbers or letters into track 1; and the total number for track 1 is around 65 digits.

How to provide custom magnetic stripe programming

You can provide us with an XLS with the card numbers, or we can generate them for you. This is a great combination with our Variable Printing and Variable Etching options, so we can have a card number printed on the card as well as encoded to scan. A great option for gift cards, membership cards, reward programs and more!

We offer both HICO and LOCO Mag Stripes on any of our custom metal cards, with the HICO costing slightly more.

What type of equipment do you need to program your own Mag Strips?

Your POS may be able to write to the mag stripes, it depends if you have a decoder(reader) only or a reader / writer (encoder). If not and you want to customize cards on the fly with even more options, Amazon sells nice writers for around $100 you can view here – https://amzn.to/3xAmAGM - We recommend the MSR X6 or better.

Steps to make a Metal Gift Card with your existing Point-Of-Sale (POS) System

Step 1: Contact your point-of-sale system provider and let them know that you will be purchasing gift cards directly from a gift card manufacturer.
Step 2: Request “card data” from your POS provider, which we will be encoding onto your card’s magnetic stripe or used to print barcodes onto your card, depending on the type of card reader that your POS system uses. Be sure to ask for the instructions for this data as well – what "tracks" need to be written to, or what type of barcode needs to be used.
Step 3: Send your data, along with your artwork and ideas you have for your metal gift cards, to [email protected] – we will review your project and send you pricing along with .
Step 4: Once your order is placed, we'll provide a Production Proof of your metal gift cards. Approve your proof online in our easy proofing system, which will show you which production printing options and manufacturing processes we will use to make your metal gift cards. Once your proof is approved, your custom gift cards will be put into production.

Please confirm with your P.O.S. or solution provider if you have specific requirements.

Point Of Sale (P.O.S.) Specific Notes:

Toast - https://central.toasttab.com/s/article/Gift-Card-Encoding-Requirements-FAQ-1492810278469

Talech - https://help.talech.com/s/article/Gift-Card-Requirements

bLoyal - https://mysupport.bloyal.com/hc/en-us/articles/215422118-Loyalty-Gift-Card-Encoding-Instructions