NFC Chip Types
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Recommended NFC Chip Types
While there are many NFC chip types available, there are a limited set of common NFC chip types for Connected Things projects. It is generally recommended to use one of the commonly used NFC chip types unless a project has a specific reason to not. The benefits of using a recommended NFC chip type include:
- Usually lower prices as there is buying power in larger quantity purchases
- Greater availability at NFC tag manufacturers
- Wider variety of product types of NFC tags
- Better software support
- Better device support
- Larger support from developer community
An NFC Forum compliant NFC chip should be used, with Type 2 and Type 5 being the recommended NFC tag types. The recommended NFC chip types for Connected Things projects include:
- NTAG213: Used for a NDEF website record, NDEF text record or when just the NFC chip UID is used
- NTAG215: Used for interactive NFC games due to increased memory over the NTAG213
- SLIX2: Has a longer interaction range than a Type 2 NFC chip in some scenarios
Older and less common NFC chip types including the Ultralight, Ultralight C and Mifare Classic should generally not be used unless there is a specific historical reason.
NFC Chip Type Comparison
The following is a comparison of the commonly used NFC chip types for Connected Things projects. There are additional NFC chip types available, but they are old, uncommon or not often used for Connected Things projects.
| NFC Chip | Type | Memory | NDEF Format | Features | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NXP NTAG210 | Type 2 | 48 bytes | Pre-NDEF Formatted | 7 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; UID mirroring | NDEF formatted version of Ultralight EV1; small user memory |
| NXP NTAG213 | Type 2 | 144 bytes | Pre-NDEF Formatted | 7 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; UID mirroring; counter | Popular NFC chip type |
| NXP NTAG215 | Type 2 | 504 bytes | Pre-NDEF Formatted | 7 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; UID mirroring; counter | Popular in gaming; larger memory version of NTAG213; use only when additional memory is required |
| NXP NTAG216 | Type 2 | 888 bytes | Pre-NDEF Formatted | 7 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; UID mirroring; counter | Larger memory version of NTAG213; use only when additional memory is required |
| NXP NTAG203 | Type 2 | 144 bytes | Pre-NDEF Formatted | 7 byte UID; lockable; counter | Original product in NTAG2xx series; replaced by NTAG213 |
| NXP MIFARE Ultralight (MF0ICU1) | Type 2 | 48 bytes | NDEF Formattable | 4 byte UID; lockable | Old; insecure; limited availability; do not use unless required |
| NXP Ultralight C (MF0ICU2) | Type 2 | 148 bytes | NDEF Formattable | 7 byte UID; lockable; counter; authentication | Old; insecure; limited availability; do not use unless required |
| NXP Ultralight EV1 (MF0ULx1) | Type 2 | 48 bytes | NDEF Formattable | 7 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection | Modern version of Ultralight |
| NXP ICODE SLIX (SL2S2002, SL2S2102) | Type 5 | 112 bytes | NDEF Formattable | 8 byte UID; lockable; password protection | Longer range when used with applicable device |
| NXP ICODE SLIX2 (SL2S2602) | Type 5 | 316 bytes | NDEF Formattable | 8 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection | Modern version of SLIX; longer range when used with applicable device |
| EM4425V10 | Type 5 | 184 bytes shared NFC / UHF RFID | NDEF Formattable | 8 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; counter | Dual NFC and UHF chip; a pre-initialized version of EM4425V12 |
| EM4425V12 | Type 5 | Shared NFC / UHF RFID; configurable at initialization | NDEF Formattable | 8 byte UID; lockable; originality signature; password protection; counter | Dual NFC and UHF chip; must be initialized before use |
| NXP Mifare Classic 1k (MF1S503x) | Not NFC Forum | 1024 bytes total | Not NFC Forum | 4 byte non-unique UID | Old; not NFC Forum; not for Connected Things |
| NXP Mifare Classic 4k (MF1S703x) | Not NFC Forum | 4096 bytes total | Not NFC Forum | 4 byte non-unique UID | Old; not NFC Forum; not for Connected Things |
