What are they used for?

Access and entry

Offices, buildings, industrial sites and gated developments where the credential belongs on a keyring rather than in a wallet. Encoded to the system already on the door, so the fobs arrive ready to issue rather than ready to programme. Where a site needs photo ID as well, the same chip goes into a card and both run on the same reader.

Access control and security →

Gyms, clubs and member venues

Turnstiles and member entry, where a fob survives a gym bag rather better than a card does. Membership numbers can be laser engraved instead of printed, so the number is still readable after a year of use. Reorders keep the same chip and change only the numbering.

Clubs and associations →

Hotel groups and resorts

Staff and back of house credentials, and guest keys on properties where a keyring is more practical than a wallet card, such as villas and resort developments. The lock decides the chip, so we start from the lock and work back, and we ask you to test a sample in your own door before a full run.

Hospitality →

Specifications

Which frequency do you need?

It depends on the reader already on your door, never on the fob itself. Fobs run at 125 kHz and 13.56 MHz. They are not available in UHF, so if your system reads at 860 to 960 MHz the credential has to be a card or a wristband, and we make both.

Low frequency

125 kHz

Older proximity readers, door intercoms and the legacy access systems still in service.

Chip families

EM4200EM4305T5577TK4100Hitag

High frequency

13.56 MHz and NFC

Most current access control, gym turnstiles, campus systems and phone taps over NFC.

Chip families

MIFARE Classic 1KMIFARE PlusMIFARE Ultralight CMIFARE DESFireNTAGICODE

What arrives, and when?

Fobs are moulded, marked and encoded in the same plant that makes our cards, so the box you open is ready to issue.

Body

Moulded ABS

Sizes

31 to 56 mm, across twelve shapes

Thickness

4.3 to 8.16 mm

Colours

Vary by model

Encoding

In house before shipping, individually per fob where needed

What can go on a fob?

Less surface than a card, so the mark has to do more work with less room. Three ways to put it on.

Laser engraving

Logos, text and serial numbers, cut into the body rather than laid on it

Full colour print

CMYK on the flat face, for artwork with more than one colour

Silkscreen

One solid colour, including Pantone

Numbering

Sequential or non sequential, individually per fob

QR codes

Laser engraved, one per fob where needed

A fob or a card?

The chip and the encoding are the same, so the reader cannot tell them apart. Everything that differs is physical, and it is set out below rather than left to a sales conversation.

	Key fob	Card
Where it lives	On a keyring	In a wallet or a holder
Frequencies	125 kHz and 13.56 MHz	125 kHz, 13.56 MHz and UHF
Printable area	One small face	Both faces, edge to edge
Full colour artwork	Yes	Yes
Laser engraving	Yes	On wood only
Magnetic stripe	No	On PVC only
Photo ID	No	Yes
Best for	Staff and members who carry keys anyway	Anything that has to be seen, shown or printed on

What we can put on it

On the fob

Chip encoding

Sequential numbering

Barcodes and QR

Custom shape

See how each one is made →

Will it work with your system?

Send us the reader or lock model you use. We confirm what we can supply before you order, rather than guess.

What can we confirm?

Frequency and chip family, from the reader or lock model or from the fob you use now. You can also post us a fob and we verify it here.

Where are the limits?

No UHF in a fob, at 860 to 960 MHz the credential has to be a card or a wristband. On encrypted systems we can supply the correct chip, but credentials controlled by the system owner may need to be written by them.

What do we recommend?

A free sample in the model and chip you need, so you can test it on your own reader before a full production run.

Standards the fobs are built to

ISO/IEC 14443 Type AISO/IEC 15693

Compatible with

Assa AbloyVingCardSALTODormakabaOnityOrbitaHotekVision LineSaflok

All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. No affiliation or endorsement is implied.

Not sure?

Send us your reader or lock model

The factory

10M

Cards a month

1,300m²

Plant floor in Dongguan

People in the plant

15+

Years making cards at this plant

What do we need from you?

Your artwork

A vector file for anything engraved, and a print-ready file for anything printed. The face of a fob is small, so send the simplest version of your mark rather than the fullest.

Your reader or lock model

Send the model name or system and version. A clear photo of the reader is often enough to identify it, and it tells us the frequency before anything else is decided.

The quantity

An approximate quantity is enough to start. It helps us recommend the right production setup.

The delivery date

An approximate delivery date is enough. It helps us plan production and confirm the best option for your order.

Questions we hear the most

Will a fob work with the card readers we already have?

If the reader runs at 125 kHz or 13.56 MHz, yes, and it reads the fob exactly as it reads a card. Send the reader or lock model and we confirm the chip against it before you order.

Can you supply fobs in UHF?

No. Fobs are 125 kHz and 13.56 MHz only. If your system reads at 860 to 960 MHz, the credential has to be a card or a wristband. We make both, so the answer is a different product rather than a different supplier.

Can fobs and cards run on the same system?

Yes, and plenty of sites do exactly that. Cards for the people who need a photograph on the credential, fobs for the people who do not. The same chip goes in both, encoded the same way, so the reader does not know the difference.

Can each fob carry a different number?

Yes. Serial numbers and QR codes are laser engraved individually, and the chip can be encoded individually as well. Send the data as a spreadsheet, one row per fob.

What are they made of?

Moulded ABS. It is the material that survives a keyring, which is the whole job of a fob.

How big are they?

From 31 to 56 mm across twelve shapes, and from 4.3 to 8.16 mm thick. Tell us where it has to fit, or send a photo of the keyring it will live on, and we will suggest the model.

Can we print in full colour on a fob?

Yes, CMYK on the flat face, and silkscreen where you need a solid Pantone. Laser engraving is the third option and it is the one that does not wear off, which matters more on a keyring than it does in a wallet.

Can we test one before ordering?

Yes, and we recommend it. We send a free sample in the model and chip you asked for, so you can try it on your own reader before committing a run.

Can you match the fob we already use?

Usually. Send the fob itself if you can, along with the reader model and any specification you were given at installation. Photographs help, but the fob in our hand settles it.

Complete your order

Blank cards in white PVC, recycled PVC, bamboo, cherry and black walnut

RFID and NFC cards

Most sites need both. Cards for the people whose credential has to carry a photograph, fobs for the people whose does not, on one system and one order.

RFID and NFC cards →

Blank door hangers in wood and navy PVC, two navy card sleeves and a wooden coaster

Lanyards and carriers

For the part of the site that carries a badge rather than a keyring, and for the packaging the fobs arrive in. Printed from the same artwork.

Accessories →

Wristbands

Where the credential has to stay on a person rather than on a keyring, for pools, leisure and anywhere pockets are not an option on the day.

Wristbands →

RFID and NFC key fobs