NFC vs. QR Codes for Google Reviews, Compared

A QR code costs nothing to make and can go on every receipt you print this week. An NFC tag costs money, sits on your counter, and only works when somebody's phone is practically touching it. We sell NFC keychains, so you'd expect us to tell you tapping wins. For some jobs it does. For others a QR code is flat-out the better tool, and pretending otherwise would waste your money.

How many steps each one takes

With reviews, every extra step is a chance for a text message to pull the customer away.

With a QR code on an iPhone, Apple's own instructions are: open the Camera app, hold the phone so the code shows up in the frame, then tap the link that pops up. Google's Android site describes nearly the same thing: open the camera, point it at the code, and pause while it detects it. So in practice it's open the camera, line it up, wait a beat, tap the banner. The lining-up part is where people fumble, especially with glare or a code that's too small.

With NFC on a newer phone, the customer holds the top of their phone near the tag and a notification appears. They tap it and the page opens. No camera, no framing.

NFC keychain

Phone is unlocked
Hold the keychain to the phone
Tap the link that pops up
Review form is open

QR code

Phone is unlocked
Open the camera
Line the code up in the frame
Tap the link that pops up
Review form is open

What the customer does, step by step. The pacing is illustrative, not a stopwatch test. Some Android phones open an NFC link without the pop-up step.

That's the real advantage of NFC at a counter. It's fewer motions, and there's nothing to aim. Saying "just tap it right here" feels quick and a little fun, which helps when you're asking a favor.

The fine print on NFC

On iPhones, Apple's developer documentation says the iPhone XS and later read tags in the background, meaning the customer doesn't have to open anything first. Apple's support pages list the iPhone XR and the iPhone SE (2nd generation and later) as reading tags automatically too. The older iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 8, 8 Plus, and X can read tags, but the phone's owner has to turn on NFC Tag Reader in Control Center first.

Even on new iPhones, Apple says background reading only happens when the phone is in use, and it doesn't work if the camera is open, if Apple Pay or Wallet is in use, or if the phone is in Airplane mode. So if your customer already has the camera open because they were trying to scan something, the tap won't fire until they close it.

On Android, Google's developer docs say phones usually look for tags whenever the phone is awake and past the lock screen, unless NFC is turned off in Settings. Some people have it off, and some cheaper phones don't have NFC at all. Google's docs also note that starting with Android 17, tapping a tag with a web link shows an "open link" notification the person has to tap, which is the same one extra tap the iPhone already asks for.

And the phone has to be close. NXP, which makes the NTAG213 chips used in a lot of tags, rates them at up to 100 mm under the right conditions, but with a real phone you're basically touching it. That's a feature at a counter and a dealbreaker on a sign across the room.

Where each one wins

Think about where the customer is standing when you ask.

At the counter or register, NFC is the better pick. The customer is right there, phone in hand, and you can hold the tag out to them. A QR code works fine here too, but you'll watch people squint and back up to get it in frame.

On a table tent at a restaurant, it's closer than you'd think. People can tap a tent, but a QR code on the same tent reaches anyone at the table without passing it around. Put both on it.

On a receipt or an invoice, it's QR, no contest. You can't embed an NFC tag in paper you hand out by the hundred.

In an email or text follow-up, neither. Just send the link. A QR code in an email makes someone on their phone take a screenshot and scan their own screen. If you need the direct link, our free Google review link tool will build it.

On a truck door, yard sign, or window decal, it's QR. People are across a parking lot. A big code can be scanned from several feet away. NFC can't.

For a leave-behind, like a card on the kitchen counter after a plumber finishes a job, a QR code on the card is the practical choice because it's cheap enough to leave. An NFC tag works if it's something the tech carries and holds out before leaving, rather than something that stays in the customer's house.

For something your staff carries on their keys or lanyard, NFC. It's always on them, there's nothing to print, and it doesn't get soggy.

Cost and durability

A QR code is free to generate and cheap to print. That's its biggest strength, and it's why it belongs on everything paper. The weak spot is the paper. Receipts fade, cards get coffee on them, laminated signs glare under shop lights. A code that won't scan is worse than no code because the customer gives up and assumes it's their fault.

NFC tags cost real money, and the nicer the housing, the more you'll pay. The chip doesn't need to be seen to work, so scuffs and grime on the outside don't stop it the way they stop a camera. Tags sealed inside plastic hold up well on a key ring, while stickers tend to peel at the corners after a while.

Tracking who actually taps or scans

Neither one tracks anything by itself. A QR code that points straight to your Google review page is just a picture of a web address. Same with an NFC tag. Nobody counts anything.

Tracking comes from sending the link through a redirect you control. The code or tag points to your own short link, that link records the visit and forwards the customer to Google. Do that and both methods are equally trackable. You can also change where it goes later without reprinting anything.

For what it's worth, that's how our NFC review keychains work: the tag and the QR code we give you in the dashboard for each link both run through the same redirect, so taps and scans land in one count (you can see it on our Pro plan) and you can change the destination whenever you want.

Scams and tampering

QR codes have a real problem here, and it's gotten a name: "quishing," short for QR phishing. The FBI put out a public warning in January 2022 about criminals tampering with QR codes, and told people to check that a code hasn't had a sticker placed on top of the original. The FTC followed in December 2023 with a consumer alert that mentioned scammers covering QR codes on parking meters with their own.

So a QR code sitting unattended where the public can reach it (a sign by the door, a patio table tent) could get covered by somebody else's sticker without you knowing. Glance at them now and then. A code printed directly on a receipt or truck wrap is much harder to swap than one on a sign.

NFC has its own version of this. Most tags ship rewritable, ours included, so somebody with an NFC writing app could hold one to their phone and put a different link on it. They'd need the keychain in their hand to do it, though, and a keychain on your crew's key ring is a lot harder to get at than a sticker on a patio table. NXP's NTAG213 chips can be locked permanently, and some sellers ship them that way. We don't, and a keychain whose chip has been reprogrammed by someone else isn't covered by our free replacement. You'd never need to rewrite ours anyway: the chip points at a redirect we host, so changing where it sends people happens in your dashboard.

Side-by-side comparison

	QR code	NFC tag
Steps for the customer	Open camera, frame the code, tap the link	Hold phone near tag, tap the notification
Phones that work	Nearly any phone with a camera	iPhone XR, XS, and newer automatically; iPhone 7 to X need Control Center; Androids need NFC on
Distance	Several feet if printed large	Basically touching
Cost	Free to make, cheap to print	You pay for every tag
Goes on paper	Yes	No
Durability	Fades, smudges, glares	Chip works through scuffs and grime
Tracking	Only through a redirect you control	Only through a redirect you control
Tampering risk	Stickers pasted over real codes	Rewriting, if the tag isn't locked
Best spots	Receipts, invoices, signs, trucks, table tents, leave-behinds	Counters, registers, staff keys and lanyards

Why we'd use both

If you only pick one, pick based on where you ask. A shop that asks at the counter will get more out of NFC. A contractor who mostly leaves an invoice and drives off will get more out of a QR code, and that's where we'd tell a contractor to start.

Most businesses are some of each, though. The setup we'd suggest for most shops is a tap at the counter for the customer who's standing in front of you, and a QR code on the receipt for the one who's in a hurry or has an older phone. The QR code covers everybody NFC misses, and NFC is faster for everybody standing right there. When both point at the same redirect, you get one count and one link to update.

Questions owners ask

Do customers need an app to tap an NFC tag or scan a QR code?

No. Recent iPhones read NFC tags and QR codes with what's built in, and Android phones scan QR codes with the camera or Google Lens. Older iPhones (7 through X) need NFC Tag Reader switched on in Control Center, and Android phones need NFC turned on in Settings.

Can I put the same link on an NFC tag and a QR code?

Yes, and you should. Point both at the same redirect link so you can count them together and change the destination in one place.

Is an NFC tag safer than a QR code?

They go wrong in different ways. A QR code left where the public can reach it can be covered with somebody else's sticker. An unlocked NFC tag can be rewritten, but only by someone holding it with a writing app, which is hard to do to a keychain that stays with your staff. Check your printed codes every so often and keep your keychains on your people.

Why doesn't the tap work on some iPhones?

The usual reasons are an older model (iPhone X or earlier) where NFC Tag Reader isn't turned on, the camera already being open, Apple Pay or Wallet in use, or Airplane mode. Have a QR code nearby for those customers.

NFC vs. QR codes for getting reviews: an honest comparison