Personalized Uno cards: 3 ways to make a deck with your photos
Everyone knows how to play Uno. That is exactly what makes a personalized deck such a good gift: no rules to learn, just the same game with your photos, your jokes and your people on the cards.
There are three realistic ways to make personalized Uno cards, from five minutes to a few weeks of work. Here is how each one works, what it costs in time, and which one fits your situation.
Option 1: write on the blank cards in a regular deck
Recent Uno decks come with a few blank, customizable wild cards. You write your own rule on each one, and it plays like any other wild card.
- Time: five minutes.
- Good for: house rules and inside jokes.
- Limits: only a handful of cards, and no photos.
Scroll down for a list of custom card ideas.
Option 2: print a full custom deck
For a physical deck with photos on every card, you design the cards yourself and have them printed by a custom playing card printer. Many print-on-demand card shops let you upload one image per card.
- Plan the deck. A classic deck has 108 cards: in each of the four colours, one 0, two of each number from 1 to 9, and two each of Skip, Reverse and Draw Two. Then four Wild and four Wild Draw Four cards.
- Design the card faces. Use a free design tool with a card template. Put a photo in the middle and the number or symbol in the corners, big enough to read at a glance.
- Keep it original. Uno is a trademark of Mattel, and many printers refuse files that copy the official logo or card design. Use your own layout, colours and name for the deck.
- Order a single proof first. Colours often print darker than they look on screen.
- Time: a weekend of design, plus one to three weeks for printing and shipping.
- Good for: a physical keepsake, family decks, wedding favours.
- Limits: slow, and you have to be in the same room to play.
Option 3: make an online photo deck with Heartdeck
Full disclosure: this is the one we built. Heartdeck started as a gift for my girlfriend, because I wanted a personalized card game we could actually play together, in the same room or not.
- Upload your photos, anywhere from 2 to 108. Crop and position each one.
- Write a short note they see when they open the link. Optional, but it makes it.
- Send the link. They tap it in any browser, and you play in real time on your own phones: skip, reverse, +2, wild. Same rules, your pictures on every card.
- Time: about five minutes.
- Good for: gifts, long distance couples, last-minute surprises.
- Cost: free to play for a day. A one-time payment keeps the deck forever.
Which option should you pick?
- You just want funny house rules: write on the blank cards (option 1).
- You want a physical keepsake and have a few weeks: print a custom deck (option 2).
- You want photos on every card, today, or you live apart: Heartdeck (option 3).
Personalized Uno card ideas
Whichever option you choose, custom wild cards are where the fun is. Here are ideas to write on your blank cards or add as house rules.
1.For couples
- Loser makes breakfast tomorrow.
- Tell a memory from your first month together.
- Swap hands, and give your partner a compliment.
- The next player picks the movie tonight.
- Draw two, or say three things you love about the other player.
2.For family game night
- Everyone passes their hand to the left.
- Do your best impression of another player.
- The youngest player picks the next colour.
- Skip the player who last did the dishes.
3.For friends
- Make a new rule that lasts until the next wild card.
- Everyone who has been to (your city) draws two.
- Tell an embarrassing story or draw four.
- Point at someone: they have to play or draw.
4.Photo ideas for a full deck
- One colour per year or per trip, so the deck tells your story.
- Put your funniest photos on the Draw Four cards.
- Use pet photos for Skip cards. Nobody can be mad at a dog.
- Save the best photo of you two for the Wild cards.
UNO is a trademark of Mattel. Heartdeck is an independent game and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Mattel.
Frequently asked questions
Can you make personalized Uno cards?
Yes. Recent Uno decks include a few blank cards you can write your own rules on. For a fully custom deck with your photos, you can design and print your own cards through a custom card printer, or use an online deck like Heartdeck that you play from a link.
How many cards are in an Uno deck?
A classic Uno deck has 108 cards: 76 number cards in four colours, 24 action cards (Skip, Reverse and Draw Two) and 8 wild cards (Wild and Wild Draw Four).
Can you put pictures on Uno cards?
Not on an official deck, but you can print a custom deck with your photos on every card, or make an online photo deck with Heartdeck, which turns your pictures into an Uno-style game in a few minutes.
What should I write on blank Uno cards?
Popular custom rules include "everyone swaps hands", "the player to your left picks your next drink", "say something nice about every player", and couple versions like "loser makes breakfast tomorrow".