They're not the same product, even though they look similar
A QR pet tag, an AirTag attached to a collar, and an NFC pet tag all sit on the same collar in roughly the same shape. They solve very different problems. Mixing them up is the easiest way to end up with the wrong tool for what you actually need.
QR pet tags — for when a stranger finds your pet
A QR tag is a small disc or pendant printed (or engraved) with a QR code. The code points to a unique URL on a service the owner controls. When someone — anyone, with any modern phone — points their camera at the code, they land on a page with whatever info the owner wants public: pet's name, your phone, your vet, care notes, medications, allergies.
What it's good at: the moment a stranger picks up your dog from outside their fence. They get out their phone, scan, call you. Done. No app to install. No account to sign up for. Universal across iPhone, Android, basic camera apps, even some smart fridge displays.
What it can't do: find your pet for you. It's passive. It only works once a stranger has the pet in hand. If your pet is lost in bushland with no human nearby, the QR tag does nothing.
When it fails: if the disc gets scratched badly enough that the QR code can't be read. Or if the printed tag fades. Metal-engraved QRs solve this; printed plastic ones don't.
Apple AirTag — for when you want to find your pet
An AirTag is a Bluetooth tracker that piggybacks on the iPhone "Find My" network. Any iPhone within ~10m of the AirTag, anywhere in the world, anonymously reports its location to Apple, which forwards that to you.
What it's good at: showing you, on your phone, the last known location of the AirTag. If your dog has wandered off and is sitting in a park or at a stranger's house, and there's an iPhone walking past every few minutes, the AirTag updates frequently enough to find them.
What it can't do: tell a stranger who you are. The AirTag has no public info on it. If a stranger finds your pet and notices the AirTag, they can't use it to call you — they'd need to bring the AirTag close enough to their iPhone to trigger the "this AirTag is travelling with you" notification, which is a security feature meant to prevent stalking, not a finder-of-owner feature.
When it fails:
- Rural areas with no iPhones around — no updates.
- Dense forest or steel-clad buildings — Bluetooth doesn't get out.
- Battery dies (~1 year, replaceable).
- Apple's network is iPhone-only. Android-only households nearby see nothing.
NFC pet tags — closer to QR than AirTag
NFC tags work like a QR tag, except instead of pointing a camera at it the finder taps their phone to it. The phone reads a small data block (a URL, usually) and opens it.
What it's good at: same finder-flow as a QR tag, with no need to position a camera carefully. On modern iPhones and most Androids, an NFC tap "just works."
What it can't do: be read at a distance. The phone has to physically touch (or come within 1–2cm of) the tag. That's fine for a tag in someone's hand; it's useless if the pet is 10m away.
When it fails: older Android phones with disabled NFC, iPhones older than the iPhone XS (the first to read NFC tags from the lock screen), and any case where the finder's phone has NFC turned off.
The real decision matrix
| Scenario | Best tool |
|---|---|
| Your pet is lost in a park and a stranger picks them up | QR or NFC — they call you in seconds |
| Your pet is wandering somewhere and you want to track them yourself | AirTag |
| Your pet has medication, allergies, or care needs the finder needs to know | QR or NFC — info is on the tag, no contact needed first |
| You live somewhere remote with few iPhones around | QR or NFC (AirTag won't update) |
| You want to know if your pet has left the property when you're not home | AirTag |
| You want to give the finder your vet's name and number too | QR or NFC (AirTag is one-way only) |
The honest truth: most people benefit from BOTH. A QR or NFC tag for the stranger-flow, plus an AirTag clipped to the same collar for the find-your-own-pet flow. They cost different amounts and solve different parts of the same problem.
Why we built PawAWhere as QR (with metal engraving)
We picked QR for a few reasons:
- Universal. Every modern phone has a camera that reads QR codes. You don't need iOS, you don't need NFC enabled, you don't need an app.
- Cheap to ship. Metal-engraved QRs survive the wet, the heat, and being dragged through every Australian backyard for years.
- Updateable. The link on the tag goes to a page the owner controls, so the contact info on file stays fresh even when the owner moves house.
See how PawAWhere works — it's $2/month per QR, or $45 once for an engraved metal tag with 12 months included.