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NFC vs QR code

NFC sends data by radio when you tap a phone on a tag, from about 2 cm away. A QR code is a printed pattern that any phone camera can read from across a table. Choose QR for anything the public scans, because it costs nothing to print and works on every camera phone, and add NFC when a tap is worth the cost of a tag.

QR code generatorUpdated 5 min read

How each one works

QR codes are printed. Your phone's camera reads the pattern and decodes the text inside it, usually a web address. Denso Wave, which invented the format, built in error correction, so a QR code still reads when part of it is dirty or damaged. It needs a clear line of sight and enough light, and nothing else.

NFC (Near Field Communication) is a short-range radio. The NFC Forum, which writes the NFC specifications, says it runs at 13.56 MHz with a typical range of up to 2 cm. The reading side can also send power over the connection, so NFC tags need no battery. A tag holds a small, specially formatted record (NDEF) such as a web address or contact details. When you tap it, the NFC Forum says most phones simply show a prompt asking whether to open the address.

The differences that matter

  • Range: NFC works by touch, about 2 cm. A QR code can be scanned from further away, depending on its printed size.
  • Cost: a QR code is free to print on anything you already make. An NFC tag is a chip and antenna that you buy, then write.
  • Phone support: iPhones and most Android phones read QR codes in the camera app. NFC needs a phone with an NFC radio switched on, and people have to know where to tap.
  • Visibility: a QR code shows people there's something to scan. An NFC tag can sit hidden inside a card or sticker, so it needs a label or icon.
  • Changing it: a printed QR code can't be changed. The NFC Forum describes phones writing data to tags as well as reading them, so a tag's contents aren't necessarily fixed once it's made.
  • What it can do: both can hand your phone a link. NFC also does things a QR code can't, which the NFC Forum lists as operating modes: acting as a contactless bank card or transport ticket (card emulation), exchanging data between two phones, and charging small devices.

Is NFC more secure than a QR code?

It depends on which NFC you mean.

Tags that hold a link are no safer than a QR code. Both give your phone an address, and both could be swapped or stuck over by someone else. Read the address your phone shows before you open it, whichever you used.

NFC payments are a different case. For card emulation, the NFC Forum says the card can be handled by a secure element, a security chip in the phone or an NFC-enabled SIM. It says this gives the same level of security as contactless smart cards. That's about payment and ticket systems, not the tags on a poster.

Where RFID fits

RFID (radio-frequency identification) is the wider family. GS1, the organisation behind product barcodes, says that "all RFID tags are not the same": active and passive tags, NFC, UHF, HF and LF each meet different needs. So NFC is one kind of RFID, the kind phones use.

The RFID most people mean in a shop or warehouse is different. GS1 says the most widely used tags in its industries are UHF passive tags, also called RAIN RFID. Each carries a unique product code, and readers can capture them at very high rates from well beyond 10 metres, with no line of sight.

So for RFID vs QR code:

  • Use a QR code when a person needs to open something on their phone: a link, a menu, Wi-Fi details.
  • Use UHF RFID when a business needs to count or track many items at once without scanning each one. It needs dedicated readers and tags.
  • Use NFC when you want people to tap with their phone, such as a smart business card or a product tag.

Using NFC and QR together

You don't have to choose. Common setups:

  1. Business cards: an NFC chip in the card and a QR code printed on the back, both opening your profile page.
  2. Table stands and posters: a QR code for everyone, with an NFC sticker for people who prefer to tap.
  3. Product tags: a QR code on the label, and NFC or RFID inside it for the shop's own systems.

Make sure both carry exactly the same address, and test each one with a couple of phones before you order in bulk.

Make the QR code half

This page makes QR codes, not NFC tags; writing a tag needs the tag itself and an NFC app. Type the address your card or sign should open, download the QR code as PNG or SVG, and use the same address when you write the NFC tag. If you need a page to point both at, a digital business card gives you one.

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Questions

Can I use NFC instead of a QR code?

For people who have NFC phones and know to tap, yes: an NFC tag can open the same web address. But a QR code works with any phone camera and costs nothing to print, so many cards and signs carry both.

Is NFC more secure than a QR code?

For tags and codes that just hold a link, no: both hand your phone an address, and you should check it before opening. The extra security people mean comes from NFC payments, where the NFC Forum says a secure element gives the same protection as contactless smart cards.

Can an NFC tag and a QR code be used together?

Yes. Put the same web address on an NFC tag and in a QR code, and fix both to the same card or sticker. Tappers tap, everyone else scans, and both land on one page.

Is RFID the same as NFC?

NFC is one kind of RFID. GS1 lists NFC alongside UHF, HF and LF tags as types of RFID, each suited to different uses. The long-range tags used to count stock are a different kind from the NFC your phone has.