RFID vs barcodes is a choice between speed and cost. An RFID reader picks up many tagged items at once, even inside closed boxes, while a barcode is scanned one at a time. Barcodes cost almost nothing per label and work with a phone camera, so most small businesses should start with them.
This page compares the two, works out in Uganda shillings when RFID pays, and shows how to run barcodes in ArmPOS.
What is RFID?
RFID, radio frequency identification, stores a code on a small tag that a reader picks up by radio. The reader needs no line of sight, so it can count goods in a sealed carton or on a high shelf.
Most stock tags are passive: they have no battery and take their power from the reader's signal. Active tags carry a battery, reach further and cost more, so they go on containers and vehicles rather than on products.
RFID comes in three main families, and only one of them counts stock from a distance:
- Low frequency (LF): reads only up close. Door access cards and animal ear tags use it.
- High frequency (HF): reads at close range, and it is what phones use for NFC. Library books and contactless bank cards use it.
- Ultra-high frequency (UHF): the family used for stock. GS1, the standards body that issues barcode numbers, says passive UHF tags read "at distances well in excess of 10 metres".
GS1 adds that a single pass of a reader can identify thousands at once. That speed is RFID's whole case: a rail of tagged shirts is counted in the time it takes to walk past it.
What is a barcode?
A barcode is a pattern of bars or squares that a scanner or a phone camera reads as a number. The number points to a product record, so one scan tells your system what the item is and what it costs.
Two things are easy to confuse: the symbol and the number inside it.
- The symbol is the picture. Linear barcodes such as EAN-13 and Code 128 are rows of bars. Two-dimensional (2D) codes, such as QR codes and DataMatrix, are grids of small squares that hold far more data.
- The number is either your own code or a GS1 number. Your own code, such as SHIRT-BLU-M, works inside your business; see how to build clean SKU codes. A GS1 number, the GTIN, is unique worldwide and is what supermarkets ask suppliers for.
GS1 numbers start with the prefix of the GS1 office that issued them. A tralac factsheet on barcodes in Africa lists Uganda's as 605, Kenya's as 616, Tanzania's as 620, Nigeria's as 615 and Ghana's as 603. The number itself is explained in what a UPC code is.
Barcodes are moving to 2D. GS1 US calls Sunrise 2027 "a global transition from 1D UPC barcodes to 2D barcodes, like QR codes". It asks retailers to fit till scanners that read them, and brands to add 2D codes to their existing packs.
RFID vs barcodes side by side
The two differ most in how they are read and in what each item costs you. The table sets out the differences that matter for stock.
| Feature | RFID | Barcode |
|---|---|---|
| How it is read | By radio, without line of sight | By light: the code must face the scanner |
| Items per read | Many at once | One at a time |
| Range | Can exceed 10 metres with passive UHF tags | Up close, within arm's reach |
| What reads it | A UHF reader; most phones read only NFC tags | A USB scanner or any phone camera |
| Cost per item | A tag on every item | A printed label, or the maker's barcode at no cost |
| One code per unit | Usually: each tag carries its own number | Only if you add serial numbers |
| Wear | A paper tag label tears like any label | Labels fade, tear or smudge |
| Near metal and liquids | Reads can fail without special tags | No radio, so no interference |
| Best for | High volumes, reusable assets, valuable items | Shops, small warehouses, most small factories |
Pros and cons of RFID
RFID saves counting time and notices what walks out, at a price paid on every tag. Its advantages only matter if you count often or lose valuable items.
Pros of RFID
- Counts many items at once. A reader counts a rail, a shelf or a sealed carton without anyone unpacking it.
- Tracks each unit. Each tag carries its own number, so two identical drills or dresses can be told apart. That suits hire equipment, tools and valuable stock.
- Notices movement. A reader at a door records what passes through it. GS1 notes that shops use the same tags for anti-theft gates on the shop floor.
Cons of RFID
- Costs more, and keeps costing. In most shops the RFID label leaves with the item sold, so you buy a new tag for every item you restock. Readers and setup come on top.
- Harder to set up and connect. Your inventory system must accept the reads, so check before you buy tags. ArmPOS, for one, reads barcodes only.
- Struggles near metal and liquids. Metal shelves, tins and bottled drinks can block a tag or weaken it. Ask the supplier to test tags on your own goods before you buy.
- Doesn't replace the barcode. GS1 is plain about it: "a barcode still needs to be on the label". You print both, every time.
Pros and cons of barcodes
Barcodes win on cost and simplicity, and lose on speed when you count a lot of stock. For most small shops, that speed loss is a few hours a month.
Pros of barcodes
- Cheap to start. Many goods arrive with their maker's barcode already printed. For the rest, an ordinary label printer prints your own.
- Read by devices you own. A USB scanner or a phone camera reads them, so you buy no special reader.
- Easy to customise. Your own code follows your own naming, and the label can show the name and the price for the shelf.
- Quick to learn. A cashier learns to scan in minutes. RFID needs someone who understands readers, antennas and where to place each tag.
- 2D codes add detail. A QR or DataMatrix code can carry a batch number and an expiry date. For food and medicines, that closes much of the gap with RFID.
Cons of barcodes
- One scan at a time. Every item must be found, turned to the scanner and read. A full count of 3,000 items can keep two people busy for five hours.
- Same code for identical items. Ten identical phones share one product barcode, unless you also scan each unit's serial number or IMEI.
- Labels wear out. Paper labels fade in sun and heat, tear and smudge. A code that won't scan gets typed by hand, which is where errors start, as barcodes and QR codes reduce human error explains.
What RFID costs against barcodes: a worked example
RFID pays only when the time and losses it saves in a year are worth more than its tags and reader in that year. Most comparisons price the tag once. In a shop it usually leaves with the sale; on hire equipment it comes back.
Yearly RFID cost = tags bought in the year × tag price + reader price ÷ years of use
Yearly saving = staff hours saved × hourly wage + losses avoided
For example, take a boutique in Kampala and an event-hire store that rents out chairs, tents and sound equipment. Both print a barcode label anyway, so only the tags and the reader are extra. The prices are examples: get quotes from local suppliers.
| Line | Boutique | Event-hire store |
|---|---|---|
| Items | 3,000 in stock, 9,000 sold a year | 1,500 items, hired out again and again |
| Tags needed a year | 9,000: each sale takes its tag | 375: 1,500 tags that last 4 years |
| Tags at UGX 400 each | 3,600,000 | 150,000 |
| Reader at UGX 9,000,000, over 4 years | 2,250,000 | 2,250,000 |
| RFID cost a year | 5,850,000 | 2,400,000 |
| Staff hours saved a year | 108: a monthly count falls from 10 hours to 1 | 400: 20 minutes saved on each of 1,200 check-outs and returns |
| Hours saved at UGX 2,500 an hour | 270,000 | 1,000,000 |
| Losses avoided | None counted | 1,600,000: 20 items worth UGX 80,000 no longer lost |
| Saving a year | 270,000 | 2,600,000 |
| Verdict | Costs over 20 times what it saves | Pays, just: UGX 200,000 ahead |
The boutique's problem is the tag on every item sold. Its 9,000 tags a year cost 13 times the staff time RFID saves, and the reader alone costs 8 times the saving.
The hire store pays because its tags come back with the goods. A reader at the gate also notices a missing chair before the truck leaves, which a barcode count finds only weeks later.
Run the same sum with your own counts and quotes. If staff time is the only saving, count faster instead. Count one section a day with a scanner, rather than the whole shop once a month.
Which is better: RFID or barcodes?
Barcodes are better for most small businesses, and RFID is better only where the yearly sum above comes out ahead. The table turns that into a choice.
| If you | Choose | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Run a shop, a pharmacy or a mini-market | Barcodes | Tags would leave with every sale |
| Sell phones, laptops or appliances | Barcodes with serial numbers | Each unit is traced by its IMEI or serial |
| Sell food or medicines with expiry dates | Barcodes, moving to 2D codes | A 2D code can carry the batch and the expiry |
| Supply supermarkets | Barcodes with GS1 numbers | Retailers scan the GTIN at the till |
| Hire out equipment, or reuse crates and tools | Consider RFID | The tags come back, so you buy them once |
| Count over 20,000 cartons a week | Consider RFID | Counting time becomes the largest cost |
RFID and barcodes also work together, since GS1 keeps the barcode on every RFID label. A warehouse can read pallets by RFID while the shops it supplies scan barcodes at the till.
RFID is one device among several that record stock without a person; sensors and GPS trackers are compared in IoT inventory management.
How to run barcodes in ArmPOS
ArmPOS reads barcodes, not RFID, from a USB scanner or the camera of the device it runs on. These steps take a shop from no labels to scanning every sale.
- Give each product its code. In Code Product on the product form, scan the maker's barcode or click the barcode button to make a number. Barcode Symbology starts on Code 128 (Add your first products).
- Print labels for goods without one. Products › Print Labels prints sheets of 10 to 40 labels, or stickers. Each label shows the name and the code as a barcode, and the price if you leave Display Price on (Print barcode labels).
- Scan at the till. A USB scanner types into the POS search box, and Scan reads a barcode with the device's camera (The POS screen).
- Scan when stock moves. Purchases, adjustments and damages each have a product search you can scan into. Receiving goods and correcting stock then need no typing (Record a purchase).
- Trace each unit where it matters. Switch on Track Serial Number / IMEI for phones and appliances. Each unit's number is scanned on the purchase and again at the sale (Serial numbers and warranties).
- Count with the sheet. Count Stock makes a counting sheet for one warehouse and, if you choose, one category. Count a section, then correct the difference with an adjustment (Count and adjust stock).
Scan the maker's EAN-13 barcode wherever goods carry one, and print your own labels only for loose and own-brand items. Factories have more to label, as barcodes in manufacturing shows.
Frequently asked questions
Is RFID better than barcodes?
RFID is faster at counting, but barcodes are better value for most small businesses. RFID pays where tags come back, such as hire equipment and crates, or where counting time is the largest cost.
Can RFID replace barcodes?
Not in practice. GS1 keeps a barcode on every RFID label, so a till or a trading partner without a reader can still scan the item.
Can a phone read RFID tags?
Most phones read only NFC tags, a kind of HF tag, held close to the phone. Stock counts use UHF tags, which need a dedicated reader.
Is a QR code a kind of RFID?
No. A QR code is a 2D barcode that a camera reads by light; RFID is read by radio. QR and DataMatrix codes can carry a batch number and an expiry date, which a plain barcode can't.
Do RFID tags work on metal and liquids?
Ordinary tags often read poorly on metal or near liquids. Tags made for metal exist, so have the tags tested on your own goods before you buy.
Start with the barcodes already on your goods and the camera in your pocket. To scan sales, purchases and counts in one place, create a free ArmPOS account. The Starter plan is free and needs no card.
