NFC or QR code: which is right for your business?
A QR code is scanned with the camera, from a distance, on any phone. NFC is read by bringing the phone close, without aiming, in a second. The first wins on distance, the second on speed: for a business, the best answer is often to use both.
By the Abracarda team3 min read
The difference in two sentences
A QR code is an image: the phone photographs it and decodes the address. An NFC chip is a component: the phone reads it by radio, within a few centimetres, without the camera.
In both cases, what's passed on is usually just a web address. What changes is the gesture needed to get it.
QR codes: universal and readable from afar
- Every phone reads them with the camera, with no setup.
- From a distance: a large enough QR code scans from several metres away, from the pavement or a queue.
- Anywhere, at no cost: it prints on a menu, a receipt, a poster, a vehicle.
On the other hand, you have to open the camera, aim, wait for focus, then tap the notification. In a dim room or on a shiny table, that takes time. And a QR code in a public place can be covered by another one leading to a fraudulent site: check yours regularly.
NFC: the shortest gesture
- No aiming: bring the phone close, the page opens. It's the contactless payment gesture everyone already knows.
- Fast, even in low light or at an awkward angle.
- Discreet: the chip is invisible, the card or stand keeps its design.
On the other hand, you need to be within a few centimetres: NFC is useless on a window or a poster. iPhones read it without an app since the iPhone XR, and Android phones need it turned on, which is the default on most models.
Which format for which spot?
- Business card: NFC first, with a QR code on the back for phones without it.
- Restaurant table, counter, till: both. NFC for the quick tap, QR for those who don't know it.
- Window, poster, flyer, vehicle: QR code only, large enough to be read from a distance.
- Receipt, invoice, printed menu: QR code only.
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Why using both is best
The two technologies don't compete: they cover different distances and different people. The right choice is a format that carries both, pointing to the same page. Customers who know NFC save time, those who don't scan, and nobody is left out.
That's the Abracarda approach: the card carries an NFC chip and a QR code printed on the back, and every page has its own QR code to download for everything else. They all open the same page, editable at any time.
Measuring scans
A QR code or chip that opens a website directly tells you nothing about how it's used. Going through an intermediate page makes it possible to count reads.
In your Abracarda dashboard, card scans and QR code scans are counted separately: you know which one works hardest, and where to move it.