I like to use colored inks for my message, if that fits a theme with the stamps, stickers, washi, whatever. Are colors harder for users to read? I always use black for the address, though. Do you think that matters?
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Hello! For me as an American, it would be fine. However I’d recommend vibrant or dark colors that show up well.
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Red in particular is very hard for many to read, especially if you put the ID number in red - I’ve noticed a few people doing this & it is quite easy to miss it.
Many people’s eyes don’t don’t have the right cones to make out red writing.
And unless your writing & printing is super easy & clear to read, I’d still to black or dark blue ink so as to not make it harder to read your message.
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Something I learned on the forum, you should not use red ink to write a person’s name in many Asian cultures.
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Unless writing a check or filling out some kind of legal document, I’ve only written in red for the last twelve years, but I also read that on the forum recently. Just in time too. I got a postcard to Japan the next day! I’m new so it was my first card to an Asian country.
For addresses, I write in red sharpie. It’s darker and waterproof.
Good to know that about cones though. Thanks!
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Colour blindness (colour vision deficiency, or CVD) affects approximately 1 in 12 men (8%) and 1 in 200 women in the world. Especially, reds and greens. An estimated 300 million people in the world with color vision deficiency. This is one visual assessment for CVD:
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I like to use colored inks to coordinate my postcard theme and stickers and washi tape, too. The Ink Joy ballpoint pens work really well. I like to write the postcard ID in a different color, so it stands out. I’m going to retire the red pen thanks to what I read in this thread!
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I’m not sure that a colourblind person couldn’t see something you wrote in red; it’s more that they confuse red and green. I think it’d be great if someone who is colourblind could weigh in as I don’t know personally, but I think if you’re not mixing those two colours (using both inks, or writing red on green), it’s likely okay. I do plan to do more research though because I don’t want to make things harder for people to read.
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I have bad eyesight and prefer dark inks. There have to be a good contrast to the background.
Lighter colours like yellow, orange, light green and pink are often hard to read, but it often depends on the ink itself, for example some yellows are darker than others.
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My students find it a little harder as ESL students
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I think one of the key issues for visual acuity is high contrast. I big difference between the color of the ink and the color of the paper will serve well to help with readability. For the addresses I would only use dark blue or black, as they are scanned (read) and sorted by machine, and high contrast is a must. The cultural issues with regard to red ink mentioned earlier in this thread are worthy of your consideration as well.
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I guess you learn something every day…I had no idea that red ink could be problematic! I’ll put my red pen out to pasture I guess.
I have poor eyesight myself and can’t read lighter colours such as oranges, pinks, lighter greens…and anything written in yellow might as well be written in invisible ink.
I use fine point Sharpies and have used black, blue, dark green, red, or purple.
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I prefer blue and black in all written text. If somebody likes to use colours, do some decorations or drawings but let the text be easy readable, please.
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I like colour inks too, but I only use a black gel pen to write the address and ID so it won’t be blurred when wet. For colour inks, I don’t recommend red ones because they are not water-resist and will fade soon.
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It might be cool To write in black ink and then go over with a thicker coloured ink so you get an outlined effect. 
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I write my addresses in Black Ink and Postcard ID (or tag/round robin name) in Red Ink.
Most of the time I write the bulk of my message in Purple Ink.
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I don’t know whether it is still done that way, but a while ago some postal machinery for automated sorting read the addresses under red light. That meant, addresses written in red could not be deciphered by the machines and had to be sorted by hand, possibly leading to delays.
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Thank you all for this interesting information. I too will be tossing out my red pen. And my green might be on the light side, so that’s going too. It’s up to the embellishments to make the back as colorful as the front. I recently sent a card to a lady who liked blue, so that’s what she got—stickers, washi tape, and ink.
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I avoid red ink when writing. Preferably, I pick a clour that would stand out from the address when I write (i.e. black ink for the address and maybe a blue for the message). I like to add colour to my card too but, most of the time the “bright” colour is the choice of highlighter I used to highlight the postcard ID, haha 
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I have exchanged several postcards with an individual in RR’s and Tags who asks on her profile to write in green ink, and I use my darkest green pen. However, I find that when I receive a card written in any color other than blue or black, it’s usually too light and I have a difficult time reading it. I put the ID in red; I’ve only sent less than 100 cards, but I haven’t had issues with recipients not being able to read it.
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