NFC Reader / Writer vs NFC Tag Manager
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
NFC Reader / Writer
This utility app allows you to read, save, and share information stored on NFC tags. It can extract data like URLs, contact cards, and text messages. Note that NFC tag reading requires an iPhone 7 or newer.
- Read NFC tags
- Save tags for later
- Share tag data
- Save contacts from tags
- Open URLs from tags
- Display text messages
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With NFC Reader you can read tags, save them for later viewing, share them, save contacts, open URLs and more! Be advised: Reading NFC tags requires iPhone 7, 8, or X. FAQ: - Will my iPhone work with NFC? That depends: iPhone 7 and up supports NFC reading and NFC reading only works when NFC tags are NDEF formatted. If you're not sure what that means, you can reach out to our support for more information. - Are NFC tags RFID tags? No, NFC NDEF tags are not RFID tags - this means your gym cards, debit/credit cards, hotel cards, etc aren't readable by this app. - Will this app help me pair to my speaker/router/camera/etc? No, this app doesn't support deep integrations into NFC enabled products - this app is intended to read NFC tags and display data within those tags. Some tags contain actionable data like website URLs, text messages, geotags, contact cards, etc. If you have any questions, reach out to me at andrew@baristable.com
NFC Tag Manager
Easily read and write NFC tags with support for plain text and URL content. Features include tag creation, cleaning, and viewing recently accessed tags.
- Read NFC tags
- Create NFC tags
- Clean NFC tags
- View recent tags
- Supports plain text
- Supports URL content
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Read, write and manage NDEF tags. Tap a tag to see exactly what it holds — every record, the chip it uses, its size and how much room is left. Write what you actually need: - Links, text and notes - Wi-Fi networks, so guests join by tapping a sticker - Numbers to call, emails and text messages - A place on a map - A chat in WhatsApp or Telegram - Home Assistant tags, actions, events and dashboards - Several records on one tag, in the order you choose Everything you read or write is kept in a library you can name, annotate and search. Erase a tag to start over, or lock it for good when it is final. Ideas and requests are welcome.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: NFC Tag Manager at 62% against NFC Reader / Writer's 16%. NFC Tag Manager also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.6) and ads (none vs shown). NFC Reader / Writer's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. NFC Reader / Writer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and NFC Tag Manager sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
NFC Tag Manager holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NFC Tag Manager has 164 ratings behind it against 19, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 16% of NFC Reader / Writer's written reviews are positive against 62% of NFC Tag Manager's.
NFC Reader / Writer ships an update monthly, NFC Tag Manager every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | NFC Reader / Writer | NFC Tag Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.6 (19 ratings) | 4.7 (164 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 16.0% of reviews | 61.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 19 | 164 — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 9 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | 18.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Andrew Sowers | Bruno Goncalves |
Customer experience
NFC Reader / Writer
NFC Tag Manager
Bugs and requests
NFC Reader / Writer
Reported bugs
7 issues- App crashes immediately on launch for devices without NFC support
- NFC reading fails on iPhone 6, 6S, and SE despite claimed compatibility
- Session invalidated - feature not supported error messages
- Apple Pay popup appears when scanning NFC tags
- Unreadable symbols displayed on screen during scanning
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- App won't open on multiple device models
- CoreNFC framework compatibility issues
Requested features
6 requests- Support for older iPhone models (iPhone 6, 6S, SE)
- Ability to open amiibo files from Google Drive
- Italian language support
- Better error handling and user notifications
- Support for writing NFC tags on all compatible devices
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- Graceful handling for devices without NFC hardware
NFC Tag Manager
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
NFC Reader / Writer
- Remove Ads$1.99
NFC Tag Manager
- Remove Ads$1.99
Questions
Is NFC Reader / Writer free?
Is NFC Tag Manager free?
Which has better reviews, NFC Reader / Writer or NFC Tag Manager?
Do NFC Reader / Writer or NFC Tag Manager have ads?
Which is updated more often, NFC Reader / Writer or NFC Tag Manager?
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