Industrial RFID: tags, frequencies and when to choose RFID, BLE or GPS

Updated October 23, 2026

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) reads, remotely and without contact or line of sight, the identifier stored in a chip attached to an object. A reader sends a radio wave, the RFID tag answers with its unique number, and software records which object passed where and when. In industry, it is used to inventory, trace and check parts, tooling, containers and equipment.

We design tracking systems that combine UHF RFID with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and GPS. This page explains how an RFID tag works, the frequencies and their uses, and above all how to tell whether RFID is the right technology for your need, or whether BLE or GPS is a better fit.

Three passive frequency bands: LF (125 kHz), HF (13.56 MHz) and UHF (865-868 MHz in Europe, 902-928 MHz in the US).
A passive tag has no battery: it costs from a few cents to a few euros and lasts as long as the object it is attached to.
RFID says "the object passed here"; BLE says "the object is in this zone"; GPS says "the object is at these coordinates".

How does an RFID tag work?

An RFID system has three components:

The RFID label or tag: an electronic chip connected to an antenna, in the form of an adhesive label, token, wristband or rugged housing. The chip holds a unique identifier and sometimes a little data.
The reader and its antennas: fixed (gate, dock, door) or handheld. They emit a radio field and pick up the tags' responses.
The software: it links each identifier to an object and records each read (place, date, time) to produce inventories, histories and alerts.

A passive tag has no battery: it wakes up using the energy of the reader's field and sends back its identifier. An active tag carries a battery and transmits on its own, which extends the range but raises the price and limits its life to that of the battery.

RFID frequencies: LF, HF, UHF, passive and active

Typical read range by RFID type. Logarithmic scale: each gridline multiplies the distance by 10.

Type	Frequency	Typical read range	Simultaneous reads	Sensitivity to metal and liquids	Industrial uses
Passive LF	125 to 134 kHz	A few centimeters to about 10 cm	One tag at a time	Low	Access control, tool and mold identification, animals
Passive HF (incl. NFC)	13.56 MHz	A few centimeters to about 1 m	A few dozen	Medium	Badges, documents, parts read at a workstation, smartphone reading (NFC)
Passive UHF	865-868 MHz (Europe), 902-928 MHz (US)	Up to 10 m and more depending on tag and reader	Hundreds per second	High, except on-metal tags	Inventory, gates, containers, logistics, tooling
Active	433 MHz or 2.4 GHz	Up to about 100 m	High	Medium	Shipping containers, vehicles, large equipment

In industry, passive UHF RFID has become the standard: it reads hundreds of tags several meters away in one second, at a very low tag cost. On metal parts you need on-metal tags, designed to work when placed on metal. For objects exposed to shocks, washing or high temperatures, rugged tags are used.

Which RFID tag for an industrial object?

Object to identify	Tag type	Indicative unit price (2026, excl. VAT)
Box, document, plastic bin, textile	Standard adhesive UHF label	€0.05 to €0.28
Tooling, rack, cabinet, metal part	On-metal UHF label	€0.43 to €2.40
Washed container, object exposed to shocks or heat	Rugged UHF tag	€0.75 to €3.20

Indicative 2026 prices for encoded and printed tags: the low end corresponds to very large volumes, the high end to small quantities. The full cost of a project is detailed on our page how much does an asset tracking system cost.

RFID, BLE or GPS: which one to choose?

The question is not "which technology is best" but "what question do you want to answer about your objects". Each technology answers a different question.

Criterion	Passive UHF RFID	BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy)	GPS
Question it answers	Did the object pass this point?	Which zone or room is the object in right now?	Where is the object, outdoors, on the map?
Where it works	At read points (gates, docks, workstations)	In buildings covered by anchors	Outdoors, anywhere with cellular coverage
Tag	No battery, €0.05 to €3.20	5-year battery or battery-free (light), around €15 to €30	Multi-year battery, around €55 to €140
Infrastructure	Readers and antennas at pass points	Mains or battery anchors, one per zone	None (satellites and cellular network)
Stationary object	Invisible until it passes a reader	Seen continuously in its zone	Position at each report
Best for	Large volumes of low-cost objects, pass control, inventory	Equipment to find on a site: tooling, carts, medical devices	Assets moving between sites: containers, skips, trailers

Three simple rules:

Thousands of inexpensive objects passing through fixed points (store door, dock, checkpoint) → RFID.
Valuable equipment you search for inside a building, even when it does not move → BLE. See our page on industrial BLE beacons.
Assets that leave the site → GPS, possibly combined with BLE indoors. See our page on the professional GPS tracker.

For a detailed comparison of the two short-range technologies, also read BLE vs RFID tags: which one to choose?

Combining RFID and BLE on the same site

Most industrial sites have both needs: thousands of parts or containers to count, and a few hundred pieces of equipment to find. Rather than two infrastructures, some hardware reads both:

Hybrid reader: a fixed UHF RFID and BLE reader in one housing, powered and connected by a single Ethernet cable (PoE). It reads up to 900 RFID tags and 250 BLE beacons per second, with up to 6 antennas.
Hybrid tag (available early 2027): a 4 g tag combining BLE 6.0, 868 MHz UHF RFID and NFC. The same object is read at the gate by RFID and located continuously by BLE.

All reads, RFID and BLE, arrive in the same platform: one inventory, one history per object, and an API to your ERP or CMMS.

Example: tooling in a maintenance workshop

Take a maintenance workshop that manages 3,000 hand tools and 150 calibrated test instruments. Tools leave and return through the tool store; calibrated instruments move between workstations and must be found when calibration is due.

The 3,000 tools get an on-metal RFID tag. A hybrid reader at the tool store counter records every check-out and return, without scanning tools one by one.
The 150 calibrated instruments get a BLE beacon. The workshop anchors show at all times which zone they are in, and the platform sends an alert a few days before each calibration deadline.

This split avoids two common mistakes: putting €20 BLE beacons on €30 tools, or hoping to find with RFID a piece of equipment that never passes a reader again.

Frequently asked questions about RFID

What are the 3 frequencies of passive RFID?

Low frequency (LF, 125 to 134 kHz), high frequency (HF, 13.56 MHz, which includes NFC) and ultra-high frequency (UHF, 865 to 868 MHz in Europe and 902 to 928 MHz in the US). The higher the frequency, the longer the range and the faster the reading.

How long does an RFID tag last?

A passive tag has no battery: its life depends on the object it is attached to and its environment (shocks, washing, heat, UV), and is often counted in years, even decades for a rugged tag. An active tag lasts as long as its battery, usually a few years.

How can you tell if an object has an RFID chip?

The simplest way is to bring it close to a reader matching its frequency. An NFC-enabled smartphone reads HF tags but not UHF tags, which need a handheld or fixed UHF reader. Visually, an RFID label can often be recognized by its antenna, visible through the label.

What is the difference between RFID and NFC?

NFC is a form of HF RFID at 13.56 MHz, limited to a few centimeters and readable by smartphones. The UHF RFID used in logistics reads several meters away and hundreds of tags at once, but needs a dedicated reader.

Can RFID locate an object in real time?

Passive RFID shows that an object passed within range of a reader. It does not give its position when it is elsewhere. For continuous location inside a building, a real-time location system (RTLS) based on Bluetooth Low Energy is used, possibly combined with RFID.

How much does an RFID tag cost?

From €0.05 for a standard UHF label in very large volumes to about €3 for a rugged tag in small quantities (indicative 2026 prices, excl. VAT). The cost of a project depends mostly on readers, installation and software.

Let's talk about your project

Tell us which objects you want to track and how they move: we will tell you whether you need RFID, BLE, GPS or a combination. Contact us.

For an overview of real-time location technologies (BLE, UWB, RFID, GPS), see our guide to RTLS and indoor positioning systems.