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Part of what’s fun about modern engineering is figuring out the best ways to optimize tools in terms of size and functionality. In the creation of everyday carry mini multitools, you might be surprised how many different functions you can fit into a single tool, not to mention how small you can make that tool, with the right design. A relatively recent product of this pursuit of engineering cleverness is the credit card-style multitool, a newer class of multitools specifically designed to be compact enough to fit in one of the card slots in your wallet.
Quite a few credit card-style multitools have emerged in recent years, many of which are available for purchase on Amazon. While, in theory, you would only ever need one of these tools, there is something appealing about them, especially those with a large number of advertised functions. If you’re looking for a new card multitool, either to be ready for any eventuality or just because you think they’re cool, consider one of these products.
Guardman 11-in-1 Survival Card
The basic concept of the credit card multitool is that, by cutting various shapes, grooves, and edges into a rectangular slab, you can create a variety of different tools and functions by simply holding the slab in different ways. A relatively simple example of this concept can be found in the Guardman 11-in-1 Survival Card, available on Amazon for $6.99.
This wallet-sized slab of stainless steel is advertised as being military-grade and designed to help out in various difficult situations. As the name informs, its various shapes allow it to serve the roles of 11 different tools, including a survival knife, a bottle opener, a flat screwdriver, a saw blade, a ruler, and several types of wrenches. It also has a large round indentation on the side that can serve as a direction auxiliary indication, a sort of makeshift compass that you can create by floating the tool in water, with its magnetized surface allowing it to point toward north.
Wallet Ninja Multitool Card
Developing the optimal credit card-style multitool is all about creativity, particularly in figuring out how many different functions you can create just by punching and cutting a few shapes in that same credit card-sized slab. More shapes and edges create gradually more elaborate tools, though a good balance to keep would be to have all of those tools marked on the surface. For a more balanced design, there’s the Wallet Ninja Multitool Card, available on Amazon for $14.98.
This ninja-themed card tool purports to have 18 different functions hidden around its surface, with each function labeled across the tool’s surface for extra convenience. These tools include a flat screwdriver, a smaller screwdriver specifically for the tiny fasteners on a pair of glasses, a box opener, a can opener, a bottle opener, a fruit peeler, a hex wrench, a nail puller, and a ruler. If you have another card in your wallet that you don’t mind scuffing a bit, you can insert it into the small opening on the Wallet Ninja to turn it into a stand for your cellphone.
Lever Gear Toolcard Pro
Depending on your personal needs and preferences, you may prefer your credit card-style multitool to be a little less “multi” and a little more “tool.” In other words, rather than assorted functions like knives or phone stands, you want something that’s more geared toward manual labor, something you can use to solve a practical problem like a loose fastener the moment it arises. For more tool-centric interests, there’s the Lever Gear Toolcard Pro, available on Amazon for $19.95.
This particular multitool is made of 420 heat-treated stainless steel, and doesn’t feature any sharp or jagged edges, which helps to keep it from cutting or catching on the notches of your wallet. This also helps to make it TSA compliant if you want to take it on a long-distance trip. The notches of this card feature some of the usual multitool suspects, including a bottle opener, a box opener, and can opener, a ruler, and both flat and Phillips head screwdrivers. However, it also has more work-geared functions, including a combination pry bar and nail puller, a hex bit holder, a protractor, and an assortment of 24 different wrenches for tightening and loosening various fasteners.
W4W Widget Credit Card Multitool
Theoretically, there is an upper limit on the number of tools and functions you could realistically build into a single credit card-sized and styled multitool. You can only cut so many shapes and notches into a single rectangular slab, after all. However, some brands aren’t content until they’ve really pushed the envelope of what could fit on a single tool. For instance, the W4W Widget Credit Card Multitool, available on Amazon for $9.95, purports to have a total of 43 different functions hidden around its surface.
This card is also made of 420 heat-treated stainless steel, with an extra brushed finish for that aesthetic touch, weighing in at a single ounce with no jagged edges to help keep it TSA-compliant. Its functions include, but are not limited to, multiple flat and Phillips head screwdrivers, a box cutter, a ruler, a bottle opener, a nail puller, an eyeglasses screwdriver, a cellphone stand, spoke keys, a wire cutter, a cable bender, and numerous different types of wrenches. There’s also a key ring hole if you prefer to hang it on your keychain. All of these features are included in the base version, though there’s also an alternate version that adds a money clip into the mix as well.
Victorinox Swiss Army Swiss Card
If you’ve ever owned a classic Swiss Army Knife, you’re likely familiar with its creator, the brand Victorinox. Victorinox still sells those classic folding multi-tools, of course, but it’s also branched out in newer designs to meet multiple market preferences and standards. Case in point, for those who specifically want a wallet-ready multi-tool, Victorinox offers the Swiss Army Swiss Card, available on Amazon for $43.34.
This multi-tool takes a different approach to the concept compared to its contemporaries. Rather than being a single, solid object whose function depends on how you hold it, this tool is more like a card-sized, standalone case, designed to conceal a handful of different Swiss Army Knife-styled removable tools. Said tools include a pin, a small pair of scissors, a nail file, a screwdriver, tweezers, a ballpoint pen, and a small knife. All of these tools slide in and out of their designated slots in the card-sized case, which also features a small ruler on the side. The case is made of ABS plastic, while the tools are made of stainless steel.
