How do NFC business cards work?
An NFC business card contains a passive chip that broadcasts a short-range radio signal. When a smartphone comes within about 4 centimeters, it reads the chip, receives a URL, and opens that page in a browser — all in under a second.
The technology: passive chips and radio frequency
NFC stands for Near Field Communication, a form of radio frequency identification (RFID) that operates at 13.56 MHz. The chip inside the card is passive — it has no battery. It draws power inductively from the phone's NFC reader when the two come close together. This is why NFC chips last effectively forever and never need charging or replacing.
What the chip actually stores
Most NFC business card chips store an NDEF (NFC Data Exchange Format) record containing a single URL — typically 150 to 250 bytes of data. The URL points to a profile page hosted online. The actual content you want to share (contact info, links, photos, forms) lives on that web page, not on the chip. This is an important distinction: the chip is a pointer, not a storage device.
What happens from tap to profile
When you tap the card to a phone, the sequence takes about 500 milliseconds total: the phone's NFC antenna detects the chip, reads the NDEF record, parses the URL, and hands it to the operating system, which opens it in the default browser. On most modern iPhones and Android devices this happens automatically without any user action beyond bringing the phone close to the card.
Does NFC work through a phone case?
Usually yes, especially through thin plastic or silicone cases. Very thick cases or cases with metal plates can reduce range but rarely block it entirely.
How far away does an NFC card work?
Practical range is 0–4 cm (roughly 1.5 inches). NFC is designed to require proximity — you have to intentionally tap or hold the card close to the phone.
Does the recipient need an internet connection?
The NFC chip itself works without internet, but loading the profile page requires a data connection on the recipient's phone. Without one, the browser will open but won't load the page.