The Ministry of Defence operates across hundreds of sites throughout the UK and overseas, from naval bases and RAF stations to army barracks and training facilities. Across these environments, MOD lanyards support security, identification, and maintaining the professional, polished apperances expected of Britain’s Armed Forces.

Whether they’re used by Royal Navy personnel, RAF squadrons, or Army units, custom MOD lanyards offer a practical way to carry ID cards whilst reflecting the character of a unit. In settings where security and professionalism matter, a well-designed lanyard can be a useful part of everyday uniform.

Why MOD Lanyards Matter

In military and defence environments, clear identification is a key matter of security. MOD lanyards make it easy to display ID cards, helping to manage access control in restricted areas.

Used alongside photo ID cards and electronic access systems, lanyards form part of a wider security process. They do not replace other controls, but they do help staff and visitors identify credentials quickly and consistently when working alongside manned security stations and electronic key-card scanners at access control points

Beyond security, custom lanyards also help build a sense of unit pride and identity. Lanyards featuring unit badges, squadron crests, or ship names create a sense of belonging that’s always been part of military culture.

Design Considerations for MOD Lanyards

Military lanyards need to meet high standards for quality and safety. Choosing a professional custom lanyard designer ensures you’re working with someone who understands the design requirements of MOD lanyards. We can advise you on the best printing techniques, materials, and safety features whilst respecting military traditions.

• Colour schemes often reflect service branches. We offer Pantone and CMYK colour matching to ensure faithfully replicated colours for your chosen design, making it easy to match lanyards with existing uniforms.
• Badge and crest reproduction requires high-quality printing that does justice to historic military insignia. We offer high quality printing methods including dye sublimation and screen printing to accurately reproduce your military insignia. Dye sublimation is best for complex and detailed logos, whereas screen printing is best for bold and simple designs. We can advise you on the best choice between dye sublimation vs screen printing based on your needs.
• Durability is essential in military environments where lanyards face daily use in demanding environments. We offer a range of strong and versatile materials including eco-friendly options to help you meet environmental impact targets.
• Safety features including breakaway connectors protect personnel in situations where lanyards might catch on equipment. We include safety breaks as a standard on all our lanyards to reduce strangulation hazards.

Ordering MOD Lanyards

When you’re ordering custom MOD lanyards, working with a supplier who understands your needs makes the whole process simpler and smoother. Our expert teams ensure professional badge reproduction, appropriate colour matching, and clear timeframes for delivery. Our in-house artwork team can convert your logos to the right file type to ensure accurate reproduction.

We have low minimum order requirements, perfect for supplying new personnel without needing to over-order. Plus, with our bulk ordering system, the price per unit lowers with the more you order, making it cost-effective when supplying lanyards for a whole squadron, base, or ship.

Our custom lanyard design tool is simple and intuitive to use, but if you’re having trouble, you can read our guide on how to use our personalised lanyard design tool or call our team for support.

Ready to Order Your Branded Lanyards?

Creating your branded lanyard couldn’t be easier with our personalised lanyard design tool that lets you see changes directly in the editor. Choose colours, custom text, and place your company logo then preview your design immediately. Or save your design for later and download a quote to continue when you’re ready to make a decision.  

If you need a little help, you can contact our friendly team for advice or just dive in right away if you’re ready!  

We’ve got an in-depth tutorial on how to use our personalised lanyard design tool which shows you the full process step-by-step, and our designers are available to help if you get stuck. 

Start designing your custom lanyards today or get in touch with our team for support. 

Lanyards are seen across a variety of industries from offices to leisure and hospitality. Almost every workplace uses lanyards, but there’s a big difference between a plain, generic lanyard and one that’s branded with your company logo and colours. Branded lanyards reinforce your company’s professional image, strengthen brand awareness, and contribute to workplace security, and give your team a cohesive and easily identifiable look.  

So why should your business invest in custom branded lanyards? Let’s explore the benefits of custom printed lanyards. 

How Personalised Company Lanyards Create Brand Awareness  

Your staff are your best brand ambassadors! They spend 8 hours a day working for you, so they know more about your products and services than anyone and are the best people to represent your company to the public. By adding a branded lanyard to your team uniform, you help get your company in front of a wider audience in a way that doesn’t feel forced. Whenever your employees are at their desks, meeting potential clients, out on lunch, commuting, or grabbing shopping after work, they’re wearing your company logo and creating impressions of your brand.  

Cross Sector Uses for Branded Lanyards 

Branded lanyards can be used almost universally. They work across virtually every industry and business type: 

• Retail and hospitality businesses can use branded lanyards to help customers identify staff quickly for a smoother customer service experience. 

• Corporate offices may use branded lanyards to maintain a professional appearance, but also as a security feature to identify staff and control access points, which is particularly important in buildings that may host multiple offices. 

• Healthcare settings use lanyards for clear staff identification, protecting vulnerable patients and forming part of safeguarding procedures. Branded NHS lanyards help patients feel more confident in their care provider. 

• Schools and universities use branded lanyards to differentiate students, staff, and visitors. Branded lanyards for the education sector allow for access control under safeguarding policies, helping to identify anyone who shouldn’t be on site. 

• Corporate events and conferences can use branded lanyards to identify organisers, speakers, and attendees whilst also presenting an advertising opportunity for brand partners and sponsorships.  

How to Design your Custom Branded Lanyard 

Getting the most from your branded lanyards means thinking carefully about the design process to make sure your lanyard reflects your brand accurately and your logo is clear and prominent.  

We offer full colour heat transfer printing or screen printing. Heat transfer or dye sublimation works using plain white lanyards and special inks that impregnate the lanyard with dye that replicates your chosen design exactly. This type of printing is ideal for complex multicolour logos and vibrant designs and offers quick printing at the cost of some crispness and colour fidelity.  

Screen printing works best for bold, simple logos with a limited colour scheme. It takes longer to print and requires each element of your design to be printed one at a time with drying in between, but produces a clearer, sharper looking result. Screen printing works best when you have a bold design that you really want to stand out.  

Beyond dye sublimation vs screen printing, you should also consider additional lanyard accessories such as ski pass reels or ID card holders to add utility to your lanyards. 

Ready to Order Your Branded Lanyards?

Creating your branded lanyard couldn’t be easier with our personalised lanyard design tool that lets you see changes directly in the editor. Choose colours, custom text, and place your company logo then preview your design immediately. Or save your design for later and download a quote to continue when you’re ready to make a decision.  

If you need a little help, you can contact our friendly team for advice or just dive in right away if you’re ready!  

We’ve got an in-depth tutorial on how to use our personalised lanyard design tool which shows you the full process step-by-step, and our designers are available to help if you get stuck. 

Start designing your custom lanyards today or get in touch with our team for support. 

Almost every business conference, exhibition, and corporate event distributes lanyards at registration. Not only are lanyards a practical measure for security and identification, they’re also a powerful marketing opportunity – imagine thousands of people wearing your brand logo around their neck throughout multi-day events, targeted at your exact audience. There’s really no better targeted brand exposure than that. 

Promotional lanyards are often an overlooked marketing goldmine. So, how can you use conference lanyards for maximum brand exposure? 

Why Conference Lanyards Work for Corporate Events 

Lanyards offer guaranteed visibility. At corporate networking events, exhibitions or trade shows, lanyards are often distributed at the door, meaning every delegate wears your brand logo for the duration of the event. Your brand is in direct line of sight when delegates are networking, grabbing coffee, or even heading between venues. Promotional lanyards turn every delegate into a walking advertisement for your brand. 

The focused nature of industry events means you’re not broadcasting to the general public. Corporate events guarantee you’ll be reaching decision-makers who are already engaged with your sector, massively increasing conversion likelihood. Unlike a billboard or advert which is seen by everyone, promotional lanyards for corporate events guarantee you’re getting your logo in front of the right people. 

Designing Conference Lanyards for Maximum Impact 

You want your brand to be associated with quality, so your corporate event lanyards should reflect that. Professional printing, durable materials, and thoughtful design will reflect well on your brand. A cheap-looking lanyard makes it less likely your lanyards will see use after the event—reducing the longevity of your investment. 

The more practical and useful you can make your lanyard, the better! Consider adding features like retractable badge reels with your branding to increase usefulness, allowing delegates to store keys and other items without needing to take off their lanyard. Other lanyard attachments like rigid badge holders allow ID badges to be displayed clearly. Using strong metal clips instead of plastic ensures lanyards are durable and that they look and feel high quality. 

Practical Event Lanyard Solutions 

When you’re managing a large corporate event, there are a lot of moving parts to balance and the last thing you want to worry about is whether your lanyards will arrive on time. 

Our team offers 3-day express conference lanyards for last-minute corporate events using full-colour heat transfer printing (also known as dye sublimation) processes to create clean and vibrant lanyards quickly, even with complex designs. If you have a bit more time and a simpler logo, screen printing will produce superior Pantone colour matching. The choice between dye sublimation vs screen printing comes down to the complexity of your design as well as the time constraints of your project. 

Our experienced team of in-house designers at JustLanyards can advise you which printing method is best for your event. 

Getting Started with Event Lanyard Sponsorship 

Ready to start designing your custom conference lanyards? Our DIY lanyard design tool lets you create your own lanyards and preview your changes live. With our clear pricing structure, you can see the cost before you commit, save your design, and get a quote for decision-makers to review. 

We’ve got an in-depth tutorial on how to use our personalised lanyard design tool which shows you the full process step-by-step, and our designers are available to help if you get stuck. 

Start designing your custom lanyards today or get in touch with our team for support. 

The NHS logo is recognised by almost everyone in the UK. Since being introduced in 1999, the NHS logo has become one of the most nationally recognised brands signifying trustworthy, accessible healthcare for all. The NHS identity is important because patients need to perceive the NHS as a unified service they can rely on anywhere in the country. Consistent NHS branding ensures patients can recognise services and staff. Lanyards can play an important role in helping make staff and departments identifiable.

Why NHS Lanyards Are Essential Uniform

In a healthcare setting, lanyards are more than just an accessory, they’re a core part of the uniform. NHS lanyards provide assurance. When a patient sees a staff member wearing a lanyard displaying the NHS logo, it establishes trust.

Whether you’re a busy A&E nurse or a doctor on a home visit, having a lanyard with a prominent NHS logo displayed helps patients feel secure. When patients may feel vulnerable and frightened, a lanyard gives them the confidence that they are in the hands of a trusted healthcare professional.

With so many branches of the NHS, there are plenty of applications across multiple facilities.

LGBT+ Inclusion and Rainbow Lanyards

The NHS Rainbow Badge initiative has gained wider popularity in recent years. Staff wearing the rainbow pin show that they’ve undertaken equality training, recognising that LGBT+ patients face difficulties in obtaining healthcare. The rainbow badge scheme signals to LGBT+ patients that the person they are speaking to has been trained to understand their unique healthcare needs. It offers reassurance that they will be treated with empathy and support.

This can be taken a step further by offering staff members under the Rainbow Badge scheme a matching rainbow pattern custom lanyard to make them more identifiable, helping LGBT+ patients access healthcare without stigma.

Practical Considerations for NHS Lanyards

The NHS provides strict branding guidelines for lanyards, including colour and organisational logo use. You can see examples of NHS lanyards on their website. When designing your custom lanyard with us, you can use our personalised lanyard design tool to ensure your lanyards comply with your specifications.

Some other factors to keep in mind include:

• Safety breaks – these are a standard on NHS lanyards to ensure they release if grabbed. This is important when dealing with distressed and potentially disruptive patients. To further protect NHS staff, we supply our standard NHS lanyards with a double safety break system, meaning they require less force before breaking off.
• Durability – lanyards will face daily use and frequent cleaning over the course of long shifts. We recommend a quality printing method such as dye sublimation or screen printing. Dye sublimation offers a wider range of colours, but screen printing looks best for simple logos with a few colours. Which one you chose will depend on your needs.
• Badge holders and retractable reels – these allow staff to attach items such as ID cards or keys to their lanyard. In healthcare environments, staff may have touchless door opening tools they want to carry with them to prevent infection. Supplying your lanyards with clip attachments allows staff to keep tools they need regularly on hand.

Badge holders and retractable reels – these allow staff to attach items such as ID cards or keys to their lanyard. In healthcare environments, staff may have touchless door opening tools they want to carry with them to prevent infection. Supplying your lanyards with clip attachments allows staff to keep tools they need regularly on hand.

More Than Just Identification

NHS lanyards represent professionalism and the trust we place in our frontline workers. When patients see a member of staff wearing an NHS lanyard, they see trusted, hardworking professionals. Custom lanyard design helps your healthcare facility to stand out without compromising the nationally recognised NHS identity.

For help designing your lanyard, our team are on hand to offer support at every step of the way!

Choosing the Right Printing Method

We recommend dye sublimation for custom printed NHS or healthcare lanyards. By using dye sublimation, we can replicate complex designs easily with no limit on the number of colours. As the dye is directly impregnated into the fabric, we can print on both sides of the fabric simultaneously. There’s also no risk of the print cracking, so one lanyard will last a student their whole school career (provided they don’t lose it somewhere).

We also offer screen printing which may be more suitable for bold and simple logos or if you need precise colour matching. Which one is best for your school depends on several factors; you can learn more about dye sublimation vs screen printing on our guide to help you make your decision.

Get in touch or start designing today!

School lanyards are an essential part of uniforms and workwear across all stages of the education sector. From staff to students, academic institutions across the UK use lanyards to provide identification and security.

Lanyards for Education and Safeguarding

Security and safety are paramount in school settings, and lanyards play a vital role in safeguarding policy using colour coding systems. By providing an instant visual clue, lanyards help staff members identify people on site, helping to differentiate students and staff from visitors or contractors carrying out repairs.

All our lanyards come with a safety break to ensure they come away from the neck easily when pulled. We keep the following pre-printed school lanyards in stock for rapid delivery at any time of the year:

• Student lanyards – available in black, blue, purple or red
• Staff lanyards – available in black, grey, red, or dark blue
• Visitor lanyards – available in red (contact us for other colours)
• Contractor lanyards – available in orange or yellow

By using door control policies and lanyard colour coding, you can ensure safeguarding standards are met at your school. More than just an important safety feature, school lanyards can also be incorporated into the uniform to provide a sense of belonging.

Using custom printing techniques, we can incorporate your school colours, crest, logo or motto into the design to make your lanyards unique to your institution

School Lanyard Uses

Both primary and secondary schools can use lanyards to differentiate staff and visitors. Lanyards are also sometimes used to separate classes of students, though this is more common in secondary schools as younger children are likely to lose their lanyard or fidget.

Popular Lanyard Uses in Primary and Secondary Schools

Most schools use colour-coded systems to differentiate between roles.

• Staff lanyards often feature the school logo with “STAFF” prominently displayed. Dark blue and grey are popular for staff members. Many schools choose to include a clip or ski pass extension on staff lanyards, allowing teachers to attach their keys and easily manage multiple classrooms or access cupboards throughout the day.
• Visitor lanyards typically use a bright, attention-grabbing colour – we stock bright red, though we can offer other colours on request. Choosing a bright colour makes it obvious when someone unfamiliar is on site and should be accompanied by a DBS checked member of staff, helping to maintain safeguarding standards.
• Student lanyards are more common in secondary schools but can be extremely useful, especially in large schools. Using colour coding systems, you can differentiate students by year group or class, helping teachers know which students should be where – useful if you find them roaming the halls when they’re supposed to be in class! More than helping teachers identify student, lanyards for schools can create a sense of identity and belonging as part of their school uniform.
• Sixth Form lanyards can be used just like any other student lanyard, but most schools choose to make sixth form lanyards unique in some way. Whether it’s different colours or text, sixth form lanyards should make these students stand out. Older students often act as role models for younger students and play a larger role in shaping their school as mentors, prefects or members of the school council.

Lanyard Uses for Colleges and Higher Education

Colleges and universities face different identification challenges to schools, as most colleges in the UK do not require uniforms except for on certain courses like nursing. With everyone being in casual clothes, this makes it even harder to identify staff and students on campus, making lanyards even more important in higher education settings.

Colleges and universities also often have less strict entry and exit policies as attendees are older and do not need to be monitored as closely. In city campus colleges/universities, buildings may be separate from the main campus building and accessed by scanning ID cards. Most colleges and universities choose to add rigid ID card holders to their lanyard order, allowing students to attach their photo IDs or access cards.

Popular Lanyard Uses in Colleges and Universities

Student lanyards help identify genuine students across multiple buildings and accommodation blocks. Whilst older students can be trusted to be more responsible, academic institutions still have safeguarding duties. When combined with ID cards and access systems, lanyards serve part of a wider security infrastructure.

Staff lanyards allow for clear role identification. Lecturers, security, and administrative personnel may have different coloured lanyards to distinguish different staff departments.

Course or department lanyards help identify students within specific areas. This is particularly useful in large colleges and universities where different departments occupy separate buildings, and colour coding systems can help identify students on the wrong part of campus.

Event lanyards are useful for busy event days such as open days, career fairs and throughout Fresher’s week. Lanyards can be used to identify external visitors and can be kept by participants after the event is over as a gift/promotional item with your branding everyone loves a freebie!)

Custom Lanyards for Education

Creating Your Custom Design

Using our inbuilt lanyard design tool, you can build your own personalised printed lanyards quickly and easily. It takes just a few minutes and allows you to upload and position your institution logo, choose colours and add text. You can also select additional lanyard accessories such as ski pass reels, clips or badge holders. If you’re struggling to design your lanyard, we show you how to use our personalised lanyard design tool on our blog or you can talk to our team for further guidance.

Practical Considerations

When designing lanyards for your academic environment, it’s good to remember the following:

• Safety breaks are essential, particularly for younger students. They’re designed to make sure that the lanyard snaps off easily if caught or pulled, preventing serious injury. We include safety breaks as standard on all our lanyards.
• Durability is important if you expect students to be using lanyards daily. Your school lanyards will have to last the full length of their educational journey; for universities and colleges this may only be 2-4 years, but for secondary schools this can be between 4-6 years if you have an attached sixth form. To ensure your lanyards last their whole school career, you should choose a high-quality lanyard manufacturer – like us at Just Lanyards!
• Badge holders and accessories add to the practical uses of your lanyard. ID card holders protect make photo identification easy for safeguarding purposes, and other accessories like ski pass reels can be used for keys.
• Quantity planning should account for new starters as well as replacements for lost or damaged lanyards.

Choosing the Right Printing Method

We recommend dye sublimation for custom printed school lanyards, as schools often have colourful and complex logos. By using dye sublimation, we can replicate complex designs easily with no limit on the number of colours. As the dye is directly impregnated into the fabric, we can print on both sides of the fabric simultaneously. There’s also no risk of the print cracking, so one lanyard will last a student their whole school career (provided they don’t lose it somewhere).

We also offer screen printing which may be more suitable for bold and simple logos or if you need precise colour matching. Which one is best for your school depends on several factors; you can learn more about dye sublimation vs screen printing on our guide to help you make your decision.

For help designing or ordering your school, college, or university lanyards our team are on hand to help!

Get in touch or start designing today!

Creating custom lanyards has never been easier. Our personalised lanyard design tool allows you to design, customise, and order professional lanyards quickly and easily directly from your browser. No artistic experience needed!  

Why Use Our Online Lanyard Designer? 

Traditionally, custom lanyard design would involve working with a dedicated designer to bring your ideas to life, resulting in a lot of time-consuming back-and-forth before finally settling on the design. Even then, you might not have gotten to see your final design before going to print.  

With our simple and intuitive design tool, you can do everything yourself without a designer. See your design in real-time, upload logos or images and adjust colours and text to your exact specifications, no need to work with a designer. Our in-house artwork team will check your design to ensure it will produce a high-quality lanyard and help make any necessary adjustments.  

With our clear pricing structure, you can see exactly what you’re paying before you commit; save your design for later and download a PDF quote or checkout immediately. Whether you’re ordering for a corporate event, school, retail business, or healthcare setting, our custom lanyard design tool makes the entire process straightforward and simple.  

Step By Step: Our Custom Lanyard Design Process 

Choose Your Printing Method 

Before entering our editor, you’ll need to select your printing method. This is because different options are available for different types of printing/services, and the editor varies slightly.  

Choose from:  

• Heat transfer lanyards – using a specialised heat-activated ink, the design is directly impregnated into the fibres of the fabric. The full design is printed on both sides together for a fast turnaround. Great for colour gradients, complex designs, or tight deadlines. Also available as an express service or using recycled rPET material from plastic bottles.  

• Screen printed lanyards – uses traditional silk screen printing techniques to deposit one colour at a time. Great for bold, clean lines and simple designs with few colours. Available in Pantone for PMS matching. Slower turnaround but creates a sharper image. Also available in rPET material, polyester, nylon, or eco-friendly bamboo.  

• Woven custom lanyards – uses strands of different colours to directly weave your design into the fabric for a high-quality design that won’t crack or fade. Results in a double-sided design with an inverted colour scheme on the back side. Suitable for designs up to 3 colours. Creates a bold, high-quality look, but at the cost of more limited design capabilities.  

Choose Your Lanyard Style 

Once you’ve chosen your production method, you’ll start by choosing between a single ended or double ended lanyard. Single ended lanyards connect to a single point in a classic “Y” shaped design for comfort when wearing around the neck, whereas double-ended lanyards offer two potential connection points for wider versatility. Choose single ended lanyards for everyday casual wear and light badges. Choose double ended lanyards for higher visibility or for larger and heavier badges – this is great for events where you need to be instantly recognisable such as trade shows or conferences.  

Select Your Width 

Lanyard width affects how large and visible you can make your design as well as how much weight your lanyards can bear. With our design tool, you can choose from a range of sizes. Narrower lanyards are suitable for lightweight badges and casual environments, whilst wider options provide more space for detailed designs and allow for heavier badges or hanging multiple items like keys.  

The editing tool shows you exactly how your design scales across different widths, so you can choose which size works best for your artwork and intended use.  

Pick Your Colour 

Choose from an extensive colour palette to match your brand identity perfectly or use your Pantone (PMS) codes for a custom colour match. Our colour selector displays your lanyard in real-time, so you can experiment with different options and choose complimentary colours.  

Add Text and Upload Your Logo 

The text tool makes adding custom wording quick and easy. Type your text directly into the designer, adjust font and sizes, then position your message exactly where you want it.  

Uploading your logo is equally straightforward, simply select your file and our tool will display it instantly. You’ll see your logo appear on the lanyard preview, allowing you to resize, reposition, and adjust until it looks perfect. The tool accepts common file formats such as jpeg or png, but to get the best possible image quality we require editable PDF, EPS or AI (Adobe Illustrator) files. If you haven’t got these files, our in-house art designer can create these for you.  

Our real-time visual editor lets you preview and tweak your design as you go.  

Choose Your Clip Style 

We offer a range of clips including strong metal hooks, plastic, crocodile clips, or ski pass reels. Each option is clearly illustrated, helping you choose the right option for your needs such as holding badges or keys.  

Select your preferred clip style and see it appear on your lanyard design, letting you preview all options before making a decision.  

Select Your Stitch Finish 

Add your finishing touches – choose from a neatly stitched finish, metal crimp, beads, or a metal stud for improved strength. These details might seem small, but they can make your lanyards look cleaner and more professional as well as improving the strength and durability of your lanyards. 

Add Badge Holders and Ski Reels 

Enhance functionality by adding additional accessories. badge holders or ski reels directly through the design tool.  

Choose from the following:  

• Ski pass reel – a retractable reel in a metal or plastic casing, perfect for keys, access cards, or key fobs that need to be scanned frequently. This allows easy scanning without the need to take off your lanyard, reducing the change of losing items.  

• Badge holder – useful for displaying identification cards, especially helpful for education, security, or the medical sector where safeguarding may be an issue. Choose from solid plastic options which are durable but only display information on only one side, or clear wallets that allow a clear view from all sides at the cost of strength.  

• Quick release buckle – in addition to a safety break (which is included as a standard for safety reasons) a quick release buckle reduces strangulation hazards by giving wearers the option to quickly disengage their lanyard if pulled or caught. It also makes it easy to remove keys, identification badges, or access fobs then quickly reattach to the lanyard for ease of use.  

Save, Quote, or Purchase 

Once your design is complete and you’ve chosen any additional extras, you’ll have a choice to checkout immediately or save your design for later.  

Save Your Design for Later 

Not ready to order immediately? No problem. Save your design and return to it whenever you’re ready. This is particularly useful when you need approval from colleagues, want to compare different design options, or simply need time to finalise your budget. 

Your saved design remains accessible, allowing you to make adjustments or proceed with ordering whenever the time is right. 

Download a PDF Quote 

Useful for when you want to compare pricing and options, our instant PDF quote lets you download a clear breakdown of all costings, allowing you to present a range of options to colleagues/decision-makers in your company.  

Purchase Online 

When you’re ready to proceed, you can make your purchase quickly and easily. The design tool connects seamlessly to our secure checkout system, with your specifications automatically transferred, ensuring that what you’ve designed is exactly what you’ll receive. 

Our streamlined checkout process accepts various payment methods and provides immediate order confirmation, giving you the assurance that we’ve got your order and are getting ready to start working on your design.  

The Benefits of Custom Lanyard Design Online 

Instant Visualisation – See exactly what you’re ordering before you commit. No surprises, no disappointments. 

Complete Control – Make decisions at your own pace. Experiment with options until you’re completely satisfied. 

Transparent Pricing – Know the cost upfront with no hidden fees or unexpected charges. 

Time Efficiency – Design and order in minutes rather than days of email exchanges. 

Accuracy – Eliminate miscommunication by showing us exactly what you want. 

Get Started 

Our personalised lanyard design tool allows everyone and anyone to create custom lanyards whether you need them for staff uniforms, charity events, or promotional freebies. Our simple design tool makes the process quick, easy, and streamlined.  

Before we enter production, every design is approved by our in-house art team to guarantee excellent results, giving you the reassurance that your design has been quality-checked by professional lanyard designers.  

Getting started couldn’t be easier, simply follow the steps outlined above in our professional personalised lanyard design editor.  

If you’re having trouble, simply contact our team and we’ll be happy to provide support. 

When ordering custom printed lanyards, understanding the printing method makes all the difference to your final result. At JustLanyards, we use two main printing techniques: dye sublimation and screen printing. Each one offers their own advantages, and choosing the right printing technique depends on your needs. In this guide, we’ll explain broth printing processes along with the benefits and drawbacks of each.

What Are Custom Printed Lanyards?

Our lanyards feature your company branding including custom designs, logos and text. Unlike woven lanyards where the design is woven into the fabric itself, printed lanyards can offer greater design flexibility and faster production times.

We provide custom printed lanyards for a range of sectors and purposes including:

• Security
• NHS
• Education
• Trade fairs
• Charity events
• Brand promotion

Our friendly team can help you design your lanyard based on your needs and purposes.

What is Dye Sublimation Printing?

Dye sublimation is sometimes called heat transfer full colour printing. This process works by printing your design onto special transfer paper using CMYK inks, then running the paper and lanyard material through a heat press machine.

Heat transfer printing works a lot like your paper printer in your office, except it uses a specialised heat-activated ink. The process starts using a plain white lanyard, which is run through a heat printing press along with the design transfer paper. The heat from the printing press causes the ink to transform into a gas, impregnating the colour directly into the lanyard fibres rather than sitting on the surface. This creates a permanent print that won’t crack, peel, or fade over time. The entire design is printed in full colour in just a single pass through the printing press, making heat transfer printing an excellent choice for quick turnaround. This is the process we use for our express lanyard printing service.

When to Choose Dye Sublimation

Dye sublimation is an excellent choice for designs with multiple colours, gradients, photographic elements, or intricate detail. If your logo features colour transitions, shadows, or complex imagery, this printing method is the best for reproducing details accurately.

Unlike screen printing, heat transfer or dye sublimation printing doesn’t require the creation of individual screens for each colour. This makes dye sublimation ideal for projects with tighter deadlines without compromising on quality and looks.

Because dye sublimation prints in CMYK, it’s perfect for designs already created in this colour space. The full-colour capability means you’re not limited by colour count, so you can use as many colours as your design requires, making it a great choice for colourful designs.

What is Screen Printing?

Screen printing, also known as silk screen printing, is a more traditional approach to custom printing. This method involves creating a separate screen for each colour/pattern in your design and printing each colour individually on one side of the fabric. It works a bit like a stencil; the pattern is copied onto the screen, then the design is replicated onto your chosen colour of fabric by pushing the ink through the stencil. Between each colour, the fabric must be left to dry completely before the next colour can be added.

The design sits on top of the fabric rather than impregnating the fibres like dye sublimation. The final result is a bold, clear design with opaque colours and sharp lines.

When to Choose Screen Printing

Screen printing is popular due to its highly versatile nature. It can be used for almost anything that is flat and smooth, making it one of the most used methods in the industry. Screen printing is especially useful for simple, bold designs that feature 1-4 distinct colours, but it doesn’t work well for gradients. We use Pantone (PMS) colour matching to ensure exact consistency with your brand, making screen printing the perfect choice when you need a perfect colour match.

The sequential process of screen printing requires drying each colour before adding the next, means production takes longer than dye sublimation, but the trade-off is a bolder, clearer design that perfectly replicates your brand colours in Pantone.

Which is Better: Dye Sublimation vs. Screen Printing?

Both dye sublimation and screen printing have their own pros and cons. The choice ultimately depends on your specific requirements; do you have a bold logo you need copied exactly? Is time of the essence? The decision can depend on a range of factors.

Choose dye sublimation for:

• Gradients, complex imagery or photographs
• CMYK designs
• Faster production

Choose screen printing for:

• Simple vector designs
• Bold opaque colours
• Exact Pantone matching

Both methods create high-quality, durable lanyards that are suitable for daily wear. The decision comes down to design complexity, colour requirements, and timeline considerations.

We also offer our eco-friendly rPET material (made from recycled bottles) for both printing methods.

How to Choose

If you’ve got a complex logo or you need your lanyards yesterday, pick dye sublimation. You’ll be sacrificing some (barely noticeable) colour quality for complexity and quicker production, but it will work better for your needs.

If you’ve got a bold, simple logo with only a few colours and you’ve got some time to spare, choose screen printing. It takes longer and you’re limited to a few colours, but for simple designs that require sharp, clean lines and colours that really pop, screen printing guarantees a gorgeous result.

How To Order Our Custom Printed Lanyards

Whatever method of printing you choose, ordering your custom printed lanyard using screen printing or dye sublimation couldn’t be easier thanks to our digital lanyard design tool.

Using our online design tools, you can upload your logo and set your text, choosing the colour, font, placement and size.

Simply design your personalised printed lanyard online and order right away or save your design for later to get a quote.

Need help? Don’t worry. Our team are available via phone or email. Simply contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

Need custom printed lanyards fast? Whether it’s for an event, employee uniforms or something else entirely, our custom lanyards spread brand awareness and make your logo instantly recognisable. Our UK-made express lanyards deliver professional full-colour designs with a fast-turnaround of just 3-5 working days using advanced heat transfer printing technology. 

Our Express Lanyard Service Explained

Our express lanyard service is designed for businesses in a hurry. Our custom printed lanyards are manufactured and dispatched within 3-5 working days. We aim to approve all artwork within 4 hours and begin production within less than one day. Using heat transfer printing technology, we can ensure a rapid printing process, delivering high-quality branded lanyards even when deadlines are tight. We manufacture our products right here in the UK, allowing us to ship to other UK destinations quickly.

We have a minimum order of just 25 pieces, making it perfect for urgent conferences, last-minute events, or emergency replacements.

Each order includes full-colour double-sided printing, free safety break, and standard setup at no extra cost.

Who Needs Express Lanyards?

Lanyards are helpful across a range of multiple sectors and are a vital part of staff uniforms! They make your teams easily identifiable improving customer trust and addressing security concerns.  

Express custom lanyards can be used in schools to improve student safety by making staff, students and visitors easily distinguishable. Schools, colleges and universities may need lanyards on a short notice at the start of terms or throughout the term for replacements.  

Other sectors that might need custom lanyards quickly include NHS, the defence and military sector, security teams, or even utilities companies who need their teams to be identifiable to customers.  

We also supply a lot of express lanyards to trade shows, corporate events and charity fundraisers where customised lanyards are usually needed on short notice to hand out for promotional purposes. In these situations, we work to your deadline to make sure the lanyards are ready in time for your event date.  

Fast Turnaround with Heat Transfer Printing

Our express printing service uses a heat transfer process – it’s the secret to our success! Unlike traditional screen printing that requires lengthy setup and drying times, heat transfer printing allows us to get to work quickly as soon as your artwork is approved.  

Heat transfer printing (sometimes called full-colour or dye sublimation) uses a combination of heat and pressure to digitally print your pattern with unmatched accuracy. It involves using heat to transform ink into a gas to impregnate plain white fabric, printing your design and your background colour simultaneously. The result is a seamless finish with vibrant colours. Because the dye is integrated with the fabric, there’s no risk of cracking like you’d see with traditional iron-on methods.  

Heat transfer printing technology allows us to deliver clear, crisp results with high quality colour. Whereas other techniques can produce grainy results, our heat transfer press always creates a clear image, so you can be sure your logo looks spectacular.  

We also print on both sides of our lanyards for maximum brand visibility!  

Whether you need event branding, staff uniforms, or promotional freebies to hand out, we work hard to keep our quality high and our customers happy regardless of any timeline pressures. 

Express Lanyard Delivery Options

We offer two express options to match your urgency requirements: 

5-Day Express Service

Our 5-day express lanyard printing service offers quick delivery, ideal for events where you need quality lanyards without waiting. Production begins the day after artwork approval with guaranteed dispatch within 5 working days.

3-Day Rush Service

Our 3-day rush lanyard printing service handles urgent situations where every day counts! Select this premium option at checkout for priority production and dispatch within just 3 working days of approval.

Both services offer the exact same high-quality service you expect from us – we never compromise on materials or craftsmanship to meet faster deadlines.

Our Express Lanyard Artwork Approval Process

Following artwork submission, our in-house design team will review your artwork/logo to make sure that it is suitable for printing.

Whilst you can upload JPEG, PNG, or even GIF files to our online lanyard designer, for the best possible printing quality we require editable PDF, EPS or AI (Adobe Illustrator) files. If you don’t have these, we have an in-house art designer who will convert your logo to the correct format. We offer this service for free, though charges may apply if you decide not to go ahead with your order.

We begin production only once artwork is approved, so for the fastest possible service, please familiarise yourself with our FAQs and follow our guidelines closely. The less time we spend at the artwork approval stage, the quicker we can put your order into production.

Getting Started With Custom Lanyard Design

Getting started with our express custom lanyards is easy! Simply head to our express lanyard page and follow the design steps. Choose your lanyard colour from our stock options (we even have a rainbow option) or add your own pantone reference, then use the design tools to position your logo and text. Next, select any additional attachments and then submit your design. Select express shipping at checkout or our 3-day rush shipping if you’re in a hurry! 

Once your design is approved, our team will produce your lanyards.  

If you have a specific deadline, please contact our team via phone or email and we can do our best to make sure your deadline is met.  

Security workers are found in a range of industries – from your local supermarket to hotels, concerts, and even private security firms that protect buildings, valuable items and company properties.

Security workers are everywhere. Their role is to keep people safe in everyday settings by ensuring peace, order, and compliance with rules.

As people entrusted with the safety of the public, security workers are often the first people to respond to an incident. They need to appear trustworthy and be easily identifiable for the public to recognise them in emergency situations.

Why do Security Teams Need to be Identifiable?

Security teams need to be ready to respond in several scenarios depending on the sector they’re working in. Incidents security staff may respond to could include property thefts, harassment, assault, fights, shoplifting and more.

Security teams may witness incidents themselves and be on hand immediately to deal with the situation, but it is very likely that incidents may start out of the immediate view of security personnel. In these situations, security officers will often be approached and made aware of the situation by a member of the general public – which is why it’s important for security staff to be easily identifiable and instantly recognisable.

Having recognisable and clearly marked security teams can also stop security incidents before they even start, acting as a deterrent for people who would start altercations, steal, or otherwise incite incidents.

Ways to Make Your Security Team More Identifiable

Making your security teams easily recognisable often comes down to having a clearly marked uniform.

Most security workers often have uniforms consisting of:

• Practical boots for stability and ease of running
• Professional trousers for a trustworthy image
• A branded “security” top or high visibility vest for easy identification
• An ID card and lanyard

One vital piece of uniform that often gets ignored is the lanyard! A branded security lanyard projects an air of professionalism. In addition, branded security lanyards can be used to hold identification badges – these can act as key cards to restricted access areas, reduce the risk of impersonation of staff, and increase trust in your teams.

Benefits of Lanyards for Identification of Security Teams

Lanyards have a range of benefits for security personnel and are a vital part of their uniform.

• Carry ID cards – pair your lanyard with our PVC badge holders or plastic ID badge card holders to easily showcase identification badges and make it easy for your teams to prove their credentials. Having an easy way for your security staff to prove their identities increases public trust in your teams. It also reduces the chances of someone impersonating a member of security to access areas they shouldn’t be in.
• Hold keys – in the security industry, staff often have a number of keys to look after. A lanyard or custom carabiner ski pass reel lets your personnel hold all their keys in one place, keeping them secure whilst still allowing easy access.
• Easy identification for public – a custom printed lanyard with your security firm’s name or even a simple pre-printed lanyard helps make your team more identifiable to members of the public who may need to report incidents to security, allowing for faster handling of emergency situations where time may be a crucial factor.
• Promote your brand – a custom printed lanyard with your security firm’s name also serves as a piece of promotional material. Clients will remember your brand name if they see it on your staff, ensuring repeat work and exposing your business to new sources of work in future.

Why Just Lanyards are the Best Lanyards for the Security Industry

We design all of our lanyards with safety in mind. As a standard all our lanyards come with safety breakaways and 360° swivel clips.

We offer a range of personalised lanyards that can be printed with your custom company design to make your teams easily identifiable and promote your brand. With our express shipping options, we can create your lanyards and have them to you within 3-5 working days (standard shipping 9-11 days) for those in a rush.

Can’t wait that long? Our pre-printed security lanyards are held in stock and work great for last minute events requiring security teams – they also work great as spare lanyards to keep on hand if staff lose or damage their lanyard. When you choose our next-day shipping option, we can have your per-printed security lanyards with you the next day! Order before 12pm, and we’ll ship your lanyards to you on the next working day.

Key benefits of using Just Lanyards:

• Breakaway clips designed to snap off when pulled, ensuring the safety of your staff. This is especially important in the security industry when staff may be involved in physical altercations.
• Swivel clips for ease displaying identification cards.
• Pre-printed lanyards held in stock – no manufacturing time.
• Express shipping available.
• Range of additional attachments to customise your lanyard design.
• Friendly customer service team on hand to help with your order.

Ready to start designing your lanyard?

Design your own, shop pre-printed lanyards or get in touch!

Not sure where to start with your lanyard design? Get inspired with some of our custom lanyard designs for our previous clients in the security industry.

Everyone loves a freebie! Lanyards are one of the best items to give away at events – no matter the size, scale, or demographic your event is targeting, free lanyards offered at the door are guaranteed to be a big hit.  

Our wide range of plain lanyards are perfect for events of any size thanks to their low cost, light weight, and ease of use. Everyone can use a lanyard – unlike other wearable items like tee-shirts, there’s no guesswork. One size will fit everyone at your event, plus our lanyards come with a durable metal clasp, allowing them to be easily attached to a name tag holder, making those awkward ice breaker moments a bit easier.  

Plain Lanyards for Even Guest Identification

Plain lanyards don’t have to be boring! Our plain lanyards come in a range of colours, giving you multiple options to colour code your event. If you have multiple groups of people attending your event, you can use our plain lanyards to differentiate different people: for example, if you were planning a careers fair, you might use white for speakers/presenters, blue for guests who were just curious, green for guests actively looking for work, and black for VIPs. You can get creative with colour coding, or even just allow guests to choose their own colour.  

Multiple Colour Options & Fast Shipping!

We always hold the 8 most popular colours in stock, ready to ship at any time. We offer:  

• Red 

• Orange 

• Yellow 

• Green 

• Blue 

• Magenta 

• White 

• Black  

Whilst these are our standard colour options for lanyards, we can create plain lanyards in any colour upon request.  

Holding these most popular colours in stock allows us to deliver our lanyards quickly as there’s no wait time for manufacturing. Simply choose your colours and select your shipping at checkout – perfect for last minute events! We offer free delivery within 2-3 working days, or express shipping on the next working day for a small extra cost, ensuring your lanyards arrive on time, even if you’ve forgotten about them until just a few days before!  

If you have a bit longer to plan, you could also consider our range of custom lanyards and create your own personalised lanyard design, guaranteeing your guests will remember your event long after it’s over!  

No matter what, our friendly team are here to support you with anything you need – simply contact us.  

Get in Touch with Just Lanyards