turn the lights off
Touch Card
Overview
Payment cards are typically differentiated visually (color, layout), which fails for blind/low-vision users. Mastercard documents Touch Card as “inclusive by design,” using notches: “round for debit, square for credit, and triangular for prepaid” (product page). Its press materials add that the notches allow people with visual impairment to distinguish card types and orient during transactions (press release). Quote: “Small notch. Big difference.” Lesson: tactile standards scale inclusion across issuers.
Why it matters
Needing help to choose the right card can reduce privacy and increase transaction anxiety in public. Tactile differentiation supports independence and reduces error under time pressure. For teams building physical financial artifacts (or any standardized object), this shows an effective pattern: create a simple tactile “language,” ensure it works with existing infrastructure (ATMs, terminals), and drive adoption through partnerships so accessible design is not limited to one optional product line.
Learn more
- https://www.mastercard.com/us/en/personal/find-a-card/touch-card.html
- https://www.mastercard.com/us/en/news-and-trends/press/2021/october/mastercard-introduces-accessible-card-for-blind-and-partially-sighted-people.html
- Mastercard Launches Touch Card to Support Visually Impaired Consumers - Finovate - https://finovate.com/mastercard-launches-touch-card-to-support-visually-impaired-consumers/
- Blindness and Low Vision - https://www.afb.org/blindness-and-low-vision
Take action
Contribute
New examples each week
Join "Resonate", my weekly series that puts the best examples, tips, and insights for designing products that resonate with everyone, everywhere.
Join The Newsletter
