# Complete guide to RFID cards

URL: https://proudtek.com/products/rfid-cards/
Source URL: https://proudtek.com/products/rfid-cards/
Generated: 2026-03-16T01:42:30.697Z
Kind: collection
Publisher: Proud Tek Co., Limited
Author: Proud Tek Co., Limited
Credentials: ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, RoHS Compliant, CE Marking, REACH Compliant
Image: https://proudtek.com/landing-images/rfid-cards-pillar.jpg
Image Alt: Collage of six Proud Tek RFID cards. MIFARE DESFire EV3, NTAG424 DNA, employee badge, wooden, NFC business card and dual-frequency

## Description
In specification terms, RFID cards are ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 (CR80, 85.60 × 53.98 mm) contactless smart cards. A chip and antenna laminated between PVC,...

## Summary
- Covers LF, HF and NFC card formats for access control, hospitality, membership and custom printed card projects.
- Helps buyers compare blank, pre-printed, hotel, MIFARE and dual-interface cards before sampling.
- Works best when chip family, print finish, encoding flow and card thickness are confirmed together.

## Selection Guide
- Check lock or reader compatibility first: Your door lock brand decides the chip: Assa Abloy Vingcard usually needs MIFARE Classic, Salto works with DESFire, and legacy 125 kHz systems need EM4100 or T5577 cards.
- Then pick your card material: Standard PVC for everyday use, PET for thinner hotel keys, ABS for extra durability, or wood and eco-material for premium branding.
- Decide printing and encoding: Choose between blank stock, single-side or dual-side offset printing, UV spot, foil stamping, numbering, QR codes, or pre-encoded chip data.
- What to include in your inquiry: Lock or reader brand, chip family, card thickness (0.84 mm standard), print artwork files, encoding specs, and sample quantity with timeline.

## Sources
- ISO/IEC 7810:2019: https://www.iso.org/standard/70483.html
- ISO/IEC 14443-3:2011: https://www.iso.org/standard/50942.html
- NXP MIFARE Classic EV1: https://www.nxp.com/products/rfid-nfc/mifare-hf/mifare-classic/mifare-classic-ev1-1k-4k:MF1S50YYX_V1
- NXP MIFARE DESFire Family: https://www.nxp.com/products/rfid-nfc/mifare-hf/mifare-desfire%3AMC_5348
- NXP NTAG 213/215/216: https://www.nxp.com/products/rfid-nfc/nfc-hf/ntag-for-tags-and-labels/ntag-213-215-216:NTAG213_215_216

## FAQ
- Q: What is the difference between MIFARE Classic, Plus and DESFire cards?
  A: MIFARE Classic 1K is the original 1997 NXP card using the proprietary CRYPTO-1 cipher — since 2008 CRYPTO-1 is cryptographically broken and can be attacked in under a minute with a Proxmark or ChameleonMini, so Classic should not be specified for any new secure deployment. MIFARE Plus (SE / S / X / EV1 / EV2) is the migration path: AES-128 security level 3, backward-compatible with Classic 1K memory layout so legacy readers continue to work. MIFARE DESFire (EV1 / EV2 / EV3) is a different architecture. A full file-system card with AES-128, 3DES, ISO/IEC 7816-4 APDU command set, up to 28 applications and 32 files per application. DESFire EV3 is the current generation, adds SUN message authentication (similar to NTAG424 DNA) and is the 2026 default for transit and enterprise access.
- Q: Are MIFARE Classic cards still secure?
  A: No. The CRYPTO-1 stream cipher in MIFARE Classic was fully broken in 2008 by researchers at Radboud University and Ruhr-Universität Bochum. The known attacks (dark-side attack, nested authentication, MFCUK / MFOC) recover any Classic sector key in seconds to minutes using commonly available tools (Proxmark 3, ChameleonMini, PN532 with libnfc). Classic should only be used for low-value applications where the cost of a clone is less than the cost of the card itself (e.g. supermarket loyalty). All new access control, transit and enterprise ID deployments should use MIFARE Plus SE (backward-compatible AES) or DESFire EV3 (full AES-128 file system).
- Q: Can an RFID card be cloned?
  A: It depends on the chip. EM4100, EM4200 and MIFARE Classic 1K cards can be cloned in seconds with a Proxmark, ChameleonMini or even a consumer tool like Flipper Zero. The ID is either unprotected (EM4100) or protected by a cipher (CRYPTO-1) that has been publicly broken since 2008. MIFARE Plus, DESFire EV2/EV3, NTAG424 DNA and ICODE DNA cards use AES-128 with diversified keys and are not practically clonable without key material. HID iCLASS SE / Seos and LEGIC advant use proprietary AES implementations that raise the bar further. If card cloning is a risk, specify DESFire EV3 or NTAG424 DNA and implement key diversification per NXP AN10922.
- Q: What is the read range of an RFID card?
  A: HF proximity cards (ISO/IEC 14443 MIFARE, DESFire, iCLASS) read 3-10 cm from a standard proximity reader. HF vicinity cards (ISO/IEC 15693 ICODE SLIX) read 0-50 cm. LF proximity cards (125 kHz EM / HID Prox) read 5-15 cm. UHF cards (ISO/IEC 18000-63) read 1-6 m free-space from a reader at +33 to +36 dBm EIRP. The card form factor physically constrains the antenna size to 40 × 75 mm, which is the primary range limitation compared to larger tags.
- Q: Can a metal card still read as an RFID card?
  A: Yes, if it is designed as an RFID-enabled metal card. A solid metal card body completely blocks the 13.56 MHz HF field, so metal NFC cards are built with a slot or dovetail antenna pattern: the metal is split by a milled slot that opens a dielectric window around the antenna, keeping the visual 'metal' aesthetic while allowing the RF field to penetrate. Typical read range on a well-designed metal NFC card is 1-3 cm versus 3-5 cm for a plain PVC card. Metal cards do not support UHF unless they are two-layer sandwich constructions with a non-metal dielectric core.
- Q: What is the difference between an NFC business card and a regular business card?
  A: A regular business card is a printed piece of paper or PVC. An NFC business card adds a 13.56 MHz NTAG213, NTAG215 or NTAG424 DNA inlay laminated between card body layers, so that tapping the card to any NFC-enabled smartphone (iPhone 7+ or any modern Android) opens a URL. Typically a vCard download, LinkedIn profile, portfolio site, Calendly booking page or Google review link. The card is CR80 size, fits any wallet, prints with any offset or digital card printer, and can be encoded in-factory so it works out of the box.
- Q: How many RFID cards can I order? Is there a minimum?
  A: Standard plain-white cards from stock: 100 pieces minimum for any chip family. 4-colour offset printed cards: typical minimum 500-1,000 for digital print, 5,000-10,000 for offset (so the print plates can be amortised). Custom die-cut, embossed, metal or hologram cards: 1,000-5,000 minimum depending on the feature. Pre-encoding (UID lock, sector-key programming, AES-128 diversified keys, DESFire application layout, NDEF URLs) adds no MOQ surcharge for runs above 500 pieces.
- Q: Can RFID cards carry both RFID and a magnetic stripe?
  A: Yes. A combi or hybrid card laminates a 13.56 MHz or 125 kHz RFID inlay into the card body and applies a HiCo 2750 Oe or LoCo 300 Oe magnetic stripe per ISO/IEC 7811-2 to the back. This is the standard form-factor for hotel-room keys, transit passes in older fleets and employee badges in sites that still run magstripe-only door-access on some doors. The RFID and magstripe work entirely independently (the RFID antenna is around the card perimeter, the magstripe sits on the back face) so there is no electromagnetic interference between them.

## Related Pages
- Hotel Key Cards: https://proudtek.com/product/hotel-key-cards/
- MIFARE Classic Cards: https://proudtek.com/product/mifare-classic-card/
- Blank RFID Cards: https://proudtek.com/product/blank-rfid-card/
- Dual Interface Smart Cards: https://proudtek.com/product/dual-interface-card/
- Custom NFC Cards: https://proudtek.com/product/nfc-cards/

## Machine Routes
- JSON: https://proudtek.com/machine/products/rfid-cards.json
- Text: https://proudtek.com/machine/products/rfid-cards.txt