See what is on any NFC card, and why it stopped working

Hold a card against your phone and this page shows exactly what is on its chip: the address it opens, any text, and whether it is blank. Most cards that stop working have a healthy chip pointing at an address that died.

Open this page in Chrome on an Android phone

Reading a card from a web page only works in Chrome on Android, with NFC switched on. This browser cannot do it, so there is no button to press here.

On an iPhone

No website can read NFC on an iPhone, but the phone can. Unlock it and hold the top edge, near the camera, against the card. A notification shows the address the card opens: tap it to see whether it still works.

It reads the card, not the service behind it. If the address on the card shows an error, that service has stopped, and only whoever runs it can bring it back.

How to make it

  1. 01

    Open this page in Chrome on Android

    Turn NFC on first. On most phones it is under Settings, Connected devices, or in the quick settings panel you pull down from the top of the screen.

  2. 02

    Tap Start reading

    Chrome asks to use NFC once. Allow it, then hold the card flat against the back of the phone, near the camera, for a second.

  3. 03

    Read what it found

    You see the address the card opens, any text on it, or that it is blank. Open the address to see whether the page behind it still works.

Why an NFC card stops working

The chip itself rarely fails. What usually happens is that the card holds the address of a service, and the service stops: a free trial ends, a subscription lapses, or the company that sold the card closes. The chip still answers every tap, with an address that now opens an error.

The other causes are simpler. NFC is switched off on the phone, a thick or metal phone case is in the way, the card was bent until the antenna inside cracked, or it is being held against the wrong part of the phone. This page tells you which: if the card answers, the chip is fine.

Checking a card on an iPhone

No website can read NFC on an iPhone, so this tool does not work there. The phone can do it by itself, though: on an iPhone XS or newer, unlock it and hold the top edge, near the camera, against the card. A notification shows the address the card opens. Tap it, and you see whether the page behind it still works.

Cards that keep working

A card is only as permanent as the address it holds. A Cardless card opens its page through cardless.club, and it works on every plan, the free one included, so it does not stop the day a payment does. If your card points at a service that has stopped, the chip can usually be written again with a new address, but only the company that locked it can unlock it.

Questions

Does this work on an iPhone?

No website can read NFC on an iPhone. The phone reads cards by itself, though: hold the top edge against the card and a notification shows the address it opens.

Which phones and browsers does it work in?

Chrome on Android phones that have NFC, which is most phones sold in India in the last few years. Other browsers, and Chrome on a computer, cannot read NFC from a web page.

Can it write to my card or fix it?

No. It only reads. Writing to a card needs it to be unlocked, and a card sold by a service is usually locked so only that service can change it.

The card shows nothing at all. Is it broken?

If the phone found it, the chip works but nothing is written on it, or what is written is locked. If the phone found nothing, try without the phone case, and hold it near the camera.

Is what is on my card sent to you?

No. The card is read by your phone, and what it holds stays there. We count how often the tool is used, and that is all.

A card that keeps opening your page

Cardless cards and keychains open your page with a tap, and keep working on every plan, the free one included. In India they are sold on the Mold and Matter store.

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