Tag Selection
Seritag stock and sell a limited number of NFC tags. There are four reasons we do this.
- We specialise in NFC stickers, labels and asset tags.
We don't sell wristbands, keyfobs or other promo items. This means we can put all our time, development and investment in providing the best NFC tag services possible. - We select only the best in class NFC tags and NFC chips.
NFC tags that offer long term reliability & scan performance. There are lots of low quality, unreliable tags with substandard chips on the market. You won't find them here. - Each tag has a purpose. We don't stock tags that don't serve specific applications.
Rather than have pages and pages of tags that are either not in stock or serve no real purpose, Seritag don't waste time listing and stocking tags that you won't need. - Availability and delivery time
We hold large stocks on our selected products for fast delivery. We tune our encoding and printing machines to our tag selection for maximum accuracy and speed.
Choosing which NFC tag
If you are new to NFC tags, then even our limited selection can seem a bit confusing. We understand this and you can always contact us for reliable and friendly advice.
As a guideline to get you started let's break things down into three sections, Tag Format, Tag Size and Tag Chip.
Also note that if you will be placing the NFC tag directly onto metal, then you must use either our 29mm on-metal NFC tag or our Industrial NFC Tag.
Tag Format
Seritag have two main tag formats - stickers and disc tags. Within stickers, there are white face and clear face. There's no scan distance performance difference between white and clear.
- When you need a QR code, ID or simple logo/text print
- You like the look of a simple white tag
- You need a thin tag for hiding behind a label or lamination
- You want the cheapest possible option
- You like the look of an antenna visible tag
- Exposed outdoor use
- Industrial areas where the tag might get wet or knocked
Tag Size
As a general rule, the larger the tag, the greater the scan distance or ScanStrength. ScanStrength is how close the phone needs to be to get a response from the tag. A larger ScanStrength or scan distance means the user experience is better as they don't have to 'hunt' for the tag or be so accurate with phone placement.
With mobile phones, the peak performance is around 36-40mm. After which, the phone doesn't have enough power and performance is flat and/or starts to reduce.
All our tags have been tested with all popular phones. We only stock the best tags and even our smallest tag will scan without problem. Phone performance varies but to give an idea, our smallest Midas tag has an average scan distance of around 2cm. Our 38mm size tag has an average scan distance of around 4cm. However, bear in mind that the vast majority of people do tend to almost or actually physically touch the tags (or the fabric/card/plastic in front of the tag) when scanning, then in reality all the distances are more than enough.
- You have a small space and need a small tag
- You prefer the look of a smaller tag
- Every penny/cent counts and you want the cheapest you can get
- You need the maximum possible ScanStrength
- You want to ID print a QR code or large ID text/number
- You want the tag to be more visible
- The tag will be scanned through thick card, glass, etc
Tag Chip
Seritag stock tags with four of the most reliable and powerful NFC chips on the market - the NTAG213, the NTAG210µ (NTAG210 Micro) and NTAG413/NTAG424. The 413/424 are specialist authentication chips which need advanced encoding and software so the majority of use cases will require either the NTAG213 or NTAG210µ.
To summarise, if :
- you are planning to only store a web link or just use the tag's UID
- your link will fit on an NTAG210µ
- you can use a 22mm size tag
There's a lot more information on the technical differences on our NTAG213 or NTAG210µ page.
Questions ? We've supplied tags to thousands of projects and are always happy to offer friendly, straightforward advice.
Pricing for our encoding, scanning, ID printing and batching services.
Details of our NFC tag encoding services.
How to order ID / QR code printing on your NFC tags.
How you can order a UID scan of your NFC tags.