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A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope and at a lower rate than a letter. The term Postcard refers to cards which were privately produced and were not sold with postage prepaid. Postcards are visual representations of people and places specific to a particular time, providing a record of changes in geography, graphic and artwork styles, social interests, and social concerns.

Deltiology, or postcard collecting, has been a popular hobby since the late nineteenth century. Germany's Heinrich von Stephan invented the concept of the postal card in 1865, and by 1870 postcards were being privately produced in the United States. The issuance of commemorative postcards at Chicago's World Columbian Exhibition (1893) followed by an act of Congress that allowed cards created by private publishers to be mailed at the same rate as government cards (1898) caused an increase in the production and collection of postcards in the United States.

The deltiology community generally divides the production of postcards in the United States into a few distinct eras. Postcards produced in the Pioneer Era (pre-1898) typically contained advertisements and appeared in urban centers in the East. Private Mailing Card Era (1898-Dec. 24, 1901) postcards had undivided backs and a Private Mailing Card logo. During the Undivided Back Postcard Era (Dec. 24, 1901-March 1, 1907), postcards had an undivided back and a Post Card logo. The Divided Back Era (March 1, 1907-1915), also known as the Golden Age of postcards, featured postcards with space on the verso for both an address and a message. Previously, only the address of the recipient was allowed on the verso. This period marks the apex of the popularity of mailing postcards. World War I, influenza epidemics, and the advent of the telephone caused the decline of the postcard after 1915. During the White Border Era (1915-1930), postcards were often produced with white borders around the screened image. The Linen Card Era (1930-1945) reflects a shift in production towards printing on linen card stock, which gave postcards a textured look and feel. Finally, during the Photochrome Era (1945-present), glossy color postcards became favored.

Until the mid-1970s, most cards produced in the United States were the "standard" size, approximately 3-1/2 x 5 inches. The "continental" size, approximately 4 x 6 inches, was a size that was common in Europe earlier than in the United States, but most of the cards sold in the U.S. since the mid-1970s are this size. Super-sized postcards approximately 5 x 7 inches were published more recently.

The printing on color lithograph postcards varies in quality. Most view cards are based on black-and-white photographs with color added. The printing on these cards often has good detail and deep colors. Greeting cards also are colorful and usually embossed, although sometimes the graphics on these cards can be of poor quality.