NFC Tag Price in India (2026): NTAG213/215/216 by Format and Quantity, and How to Program One

Short answer: On India RFID Store an NFC tag costs Rs 12–15 ex-GST as an inlay, printed label or tamper label, Rs 15–20 as a PVC card, Rs 28 as a mini sticker in small lots, Rs 45–60 as an epoxy tag and Rs 185 as a steel business card, plus 18% GST. NTAG213 inlays, printed labels and PVC business cards carry a 1,000-piece minimum, and published tiers take 5–15% off between 500 and 19,999 pieces. Any NFC-capable Android phone or iPhone can program one with a free app.

Written for brand owners, packaging buyers, agencies and resellers pricing NFC stickers, labels or cards by the dozen or by the thousand, and for whoever then writes a link onto them. Every price below is the ex-GST list price on our product pages, checked on 4 October 2026.

How much does an NFC tag cost in India in 2026?

This table lists the store's main NFC lines, cheapest first. "Minimum" is the quantity the product page's cart enforces; a dash means none is shown.

The same NTAG213 chip sits in a Rs 15 inlay and a Rs 185 steel card, so the spread is the body, printing and handling, not the silicon. NTAG213 inlays, printed labels and PVC cards come by the thousand. For a 40-tag trial, the 12×8.5 mm NTAG213 mini sticker or the coin tag at Rs 28 costs nearly double per piece but shows no minimum. The full NFC tags and labels range has photos and specifications.

Which chip are you paying for: NTAG213, 215, 216 or something else?

NXP's NTAG213/215/216 data sheet (Rev. 3.2, 2 June 2015) gives the three chips 144, 504 and 888 bytes of user memory, with NFC Forum Type 2 compliance, a 7-byte factory UID, 100,000 write cycles and 10 years' data retention.

"Roughly 130 characters" is our arithmetic: 144 bytes less about eight bytes of NDEF framing, with "https://www." stored as one prefix code. Long campaign links and vCards are the usual reasons to step up to a 215 or 216. The Fudan rows come from Fudan Microelectronics' HF tag chip list (FM13HS01: 1K bits, NFC Forum Type 5 and ISO 15693, for anti-counterfeiting traceability and intelligent packaging) and its sensor page, which describes the FM13DT160 as a temperature logger with NFC, UHF and I2C interfaces whose NDEF data Android phones and iPhones can read.

One caution on cards: Android's developer reference says MIFARE Classic support is optional on Android NFC devices. MIFARE Classic suits door readers, but if the card must also open a link on phones, specify NTAG. Our NFC cards at Rs 20 come with several chip families, so name the chip on the order.

How do quantity slabs change the price per tag?

The store's bulk page publishes these tiers. Quotes are ex-GST; product pages also show the price with 18% GST, which is why a Rs 15 inlay displays as Rs 18 (Rs 17.70, rounded).

A worked example on the NTAG213 wet inlay at Rs 15. Its 1,000-piece minimum already sits in the 5% band, so 1,000 inlays come to Rs 14,250 ex-GST, or Rs 16,815 with GST (about Rs 16.82 each). At 5,000 pieces and 15% off, the inlay is Rs 12.75, the order Rs 63,750 ex-GST and Rs 75,225 with GST (just over Rs 15 each). The table is a published guide, so confirm the tier on your quotation.

Beyond quantity, the price moves with the format (inlay, label, PVC card, epoxy, anti-metal, steel), the chip (memory, tamper loop, sensor) and printing and encoding. Labels can be printed with logos, QR codes and serials and pre-encoded with a URL or vCard; custom shapes start at 1,000 pieces and full OEM customisation at 5,000.

For UHF and LF tag prices alongside NFC, see our broader RFID tag price guide for India. For a formal quote on any quantity, use the bulk RFID pricing page.

Is it a genuine NXP NTAG213 or a compatible chip, and how can you check?

A compatible chip is not in itself a fake. Fudan Microelectronics, for example, lists FM11NT021, FM11NT041 and FM11NT081 on its NFC tag chip page: NFC Forum Type 2, at 144, 504 and 888 bytes. The real problem is a quotation that says "NXP NTAG213" and a reel that carries something else, or a "215" that is really a 213. Four checks on a sample:

1. Read it with an analyser app. Per their Google Play listings, NFC TagInfo by NXP identifies the IC type and manufacturer, and NFC Tools shows the maker, tag type and memory size.
2. Compare the memory. A tag sold as NTAG215 that reports 144 bytes is a 213.
3. Look at the first UID byte. NXP's data sheet puts its manufacturer ID, 04h, there. A quick screen, not proof.
4. Verify the originality signature. NXP signs each NTAG21x UID with its private key at production and stores the 32-byte ECC signature in the chip. Software reads it with READ_SIG and checks it offline against NXP's public key, which NXP says verifies "with a certain confidence" that the IC is NXP-made.

Then have any supplier, us included, name the chip maker and part number on the quotation, and test samples from the production lot. Also test adhesion and read distance on your real surface.

Which NFC tags work on metal or show that a seal was opened?

• On metal. A standard sticker detunes on steel or aluminium. The HF anti-metal tag (Rs 50, minimum 1,000) reads at about 5 cm on metal.
• Fragile tamper label. The ID-4320 (Rs 12) is made to break if peeled or moved. Its FM13HS01 is a Type 5 chip, and Apple's Core NFC documentation covers NDEF tags of types 1 to 5, so iPhone apps can read it too.
• Electrical tamper detection. For the NTAG213 TagTamper wine label (Rs 12), NXP's TagTamper page says the chip checks a tamper wire at start-up, permanently records an open wire, and can mirror that status into the NDEF message a phone reads.
• Outdoors and cold chain. The reflective ABS tag (Rs 35, minimum 500) is IP67-rated for patrol points; the logger label (Rs 45) uses Fudan's FM13DT160, which Fudan says logs temperature for NFC readback.

How do you program an NFC tag on an Android phone?

1. Switch NFC on. Search Settings for "NFC"; no entry usually means no NFC radio. Android's NFC basics guide (updated 30 July 2026) notes phones usually look for tags while the screen is unlocked.
2. Install a writer app. NFC Tools and NFC TagWriter by NXP are both free on Google Play.
3. Write the record. In NFC Tools, open the Write tab, add a URL record with the full https:// address and tap Write; in TagWriter, create a new data set and write it. Hold the tag still against the back of the phone; antenna position varies by model.
4. Read it back on a second phone, ideally an iPhone, before you print or ship.
5. Protect it if needed. NFC Tools offers password protection under its Other tab; TagWriter lists write-protection and the NTAG21x password feature.

How do you program an NFC tag on an iPhone?

1. Install an app. Writing always needs one. NFC Tools and NFC TagWriter by NXP are free on the App Store and need iOS 15.6 or later.
2. Write. In the Write section, add a URL record, tap Write, and hold the iPhone near the tag when the scanning sheet appears.
3. Test without the app. Apple's guide to background tag reading says iPhone XS and later read tags without an app while the phone is in use, but not while the camera or Apple Pay Wallet is in use or in airplane mode.

The detail that matters for business cards is in the same guide: background reading acts on the first URI record (web, email, SMS, telephone, FaceTime, Maps), not custom URL schemes. Android's tag dispatch also handles MIME records such as a vCard, but a vCard written straight onto the chip will not trigger an iPhone's background read. For a card both platforms open on one tap, encode a link to a hosted contact page or .vcf file.

How do you encode and lock hundreds or thousands of tags?

• A few hundred tags. NFC TagWriter on Android writes multiple tags in sequence, writes data sets from a CSV file and can insert increasing counter values, per its Google Play listing.
• Thousands, encoded in-house. A USB desktop writer presents every tag the same way. The IDTS-RWS9 HF desktop reader-writer (Rs 4,500, 0–5 cm, USB) ships with demo software and an SDK; the HRD20 is Rs 2,000, with its SDK offered for the read/write model. Your software writes, verifies, locks and logs each UID. Confirm the SDK supports the NTAG21x commands you need before ordering.
• Thousands, encoded before delivery. Order tags pre-encoded with your URL, vCard or serial records, with a file mapping each UID to its data.

One NTAG21x feature removes most per-tag encoding. With the UID mirror, the chip inserts its own 7-byte UID, as 14 ASCII characters, into the NDEF message on every read; a read counter can be mirrored the same way. Write one URL template to every tag and each still opens a unique address, which suits authentication pages and per-tag scan counts.

Lock last: write, read back on Android and iPhone, then protect.

• Lock bits. The data sheet calls setting them irreversible. Apple likewise documents its write-lock call as permanent.
• A 32-bit password. Keeps the tag editable by you, with an optional cap on failed attempts. NXP presents it as a convenience against unauthorised access and points to application-layer cryptography where more protection is needed.

What should go on the purchase order?

Identium Tech Solutions has made RFID and NFC products in New Delhi since 2010. Send us the chip, the format, the quantity and what each tag should open, and we will quote blank or pre-encoded supply through the bulk pricing form.

Prices are ex-GST list prices from indiarfidstore.com, checked on 4 October 2026, and can change; the product page or a written quotation is the reference. This is buying guidance, not a quotation.

Frequently asked questions

What is the NFC tag price in India in 2026?

On India RFID Store, NTAG213 inlays and printed labels list at Rs 15 each ex-GST with a 1,000-piece minimum, and specialty tamper, wine and cable labels list at Rs 12–14. Mini stickers are Rs 28 with no minimum shown, epoxy tags Rs 45–60 and a stainless-steel NFC card Rs 185. GST at 18% is extra, and the published volume tiers take 5–15% off list.

What is the NFC card price in India?

A PVC NFC business card with an NTAG213 or NTAG216 chip in CR80 size lists at Rs 15 ex-GST, with a 1,000-card minimum. NFC cards with a choice of MIFARE, DESFire, NTAG or ICODE chips list at Rs 20, with a 1,500-card minimum. A stainless-steel card with an NXP NTAG213 or 215 is Rs 185, with no minimum shown.

Can I buy NFC tags in small quantities?

Yes, for some lines. The 12×8.5 mm NTAG213 mini sticker and the 10 mm NTAG213 coin tag (Rs 28 each), the epoxy tags (Rs 45–60), the tamper and wine labels and the steel card show no minimum on the cart. Wet inlays, printed labels and PVC cards carry 1,000-piece or 1,500-piece minimums, and the reflective ABS tag 500.

Which app should I use to program an NFC tag?

NFC Tools and NFC TagWriter by NXP are both free on Google Play and the App Store. On Android, TagWriter adds batch writing from CSV files and the NTAG21x UID mirror, counter mirror and password features. To check which chip a tag actually carries, use NFC TagInfo by NXP.

Can an NFC tag be rewritten after it is programmed?

Yes, until it is locked. NXP rates NTAG213/215/216 at 100,000 write cycles with 10 years' data retention. Setting the lock bits is irreversible, and Apple documents its write-lock call as permanent, so finish testing on both an Android phone and an iPhone first. A password blocks other people's writes while you keep the ability to edit.

Does an iPhone need an app to read an NFC tag?

Not for links on an iPhone XS or later. These models read tags in the background while the phone is in use and offer to open a web, email, SMS, phone, FaceTime or Maps link. Earlier NFC-capable iPhones need an app open to scan. Every iPhone needs an app, such as NFC Tools, to write a tag.

Will an ordinary NFC sticker work on a metal surface?

Not reliably. Metal detunes a standard NFC antenna, so a paper or PET sticker placed directly on steel or aluminium may read poorly or not at all. Use an HF anti-metal tag instead, which lists at Rs 50 ex-GST with a 1,000-piece minimum and reads at about 5 cm, or test the sticker on a non-metal spacer before committing to a run.