How NFC Google review cards work, and what they cannot do
A tap-to-review card is a simple object: a chip, a link and a stand. Here is what happens when a customer taps it, which phones it works with, and the part of Google's review policy that businesses most often get wrong.
An NFC Google review card looks like a small sign on a stand. A customer holds their phone to it and your Google review page opens. That is the whole product, and it is worth understanding exactly what is happening, because it explains both why the cards work and where their limits are.
What is inside the card
NFC stands for near-field communication. It is the same short-range technology behind contactless card payments. Inside the review card is a thin chip and antenna with no battery. When a phone comes within a few centimetres, the phone's own signal powers the chip for a moment, and the chip sends back one piece of information: a web link.
On a review card, that link is your business's Google review link. The phone shows a notification, the customer taps it, and Google opens with the review box for your business. Nothing is installed and nothing is stored on the card about the customer.
Which phones can tap it
- iPhone XS, XR and every later model read NFC cards automatically while the screen is on.
- iPhone 7 to iPhone X can read NFC, but only through the NFC reader in Control Centre.
- Most Android phones read NFC cards when NFC is switched on in settings.
- A phone with no NFC chip cannot tap the card at all.
Where your Google review link comes from
Reviews belong to a Google Business Profile, so you need one before a card is any use. Once you have a profile, Google gives you a short link that opens the review box directly.
- 01Sign in to the Google account that manages your Business Profile.
- 02Search for your business name on Google, or open it in the Google Maps app.
- 03Choose "Ask for reviews" (shown as "Get more reviews" on some screens).
- 04Copy the link Google shows you. That is the link the card is programmed with.
What Google allows, and what it does not
Asking customers for reviews is allowed, and Google says so in its own guidance. Two things are not allowed, and both are common.
- Offering something in exchange for a review: a discount, a free item, entry into a draw.
- Review gating: asking only the customers you expect to be positive, or steering unhappy customers away from the review page.
A card on the counter is on the right side of both rules, because it is the same invitation to everyone who walks past it. What it cannot do is make a review good. It only removes the effort of finding the page.
Where to put the card
Put it where the customer is standing still with their phone already in their hand: the cashier, the reception desk, the table where the bill arrives, the waiting area. A card on a shelf behind the counter does nothing. The most effective prompt is still a person: "If you were happy today, you can tap this to leave us a review."
Prime Digital supplies an NFC Google review card with a stand for AED 50, programmed with your review link and delivered across the UAE.