Digital business card apps compared
What digital business card apps like Blinq, Popl, HiHello and the LinkedIn QR code do well, where they stop, and what to look for if you also need to remember the people you meet.
A digital business card does one thing well: it gets your details to someone else without paper. You show a QR code or send a link, they open it in the browser, and they can save your contact. No reprints, no running out, and your details stay current.
That is a real improvement. It is also only half of what happens when two people meet.
What to look for in a digital card
- No install on their side. The person receiving your card should not need the same app. A link or QR code that opens in any browser is the baseline.
- Easy to update. Changing your role or number should update the card everywhere, without sending a new one.
- Quick to share. A QR code on your Lock Screen or a widget beats opening an app and hunting for a button.
- Looks like you. Clean layout, your photo, and the links that matter, without clutter.
The common options
Blinq started in Australia and is widely used by teams, with QR, link, and NFC sharing plus team management.
Popl is known for its NFC accessories and lead capture features aimed at sales and event teams.
HiHello focuses on multiple cards for different contexts, along with email signatures and virtual backgrounds.
LinkedIn QR is already on most people's phones. It connects profiles quickly, but it shares your LinkedIn, not a card with your chosen details.
All of these do the outgoing job well. The choice mostly comes down to design, team features, and price.
The gap: cards coming in
Digital cards are built around sending. The harder problem is receiving. After an event you still end up with paper cards from people who do not use an app, badge scans, LinkedIn requests, and a handful of conversations that live only in your head.
If the tool stops at swapping details, Monday still starts with a pile of names and no context. What you said, what they needed, and what you offered are what make a follow-up land.
Where Orbit fits
Orbit includes a digital card with a link and QR code that opens in the browser, so nobody needs to install anything. It is not only a card app, though. Orbit is a networking assistant for iPhone, built for the people coming in as well as your details going out.
- Scan a paper card, badge, or QR, or record a short voice note after the conversation.
- Keep the conversation on that person's timeline, with the event attached.
- Get a follow-up draft from what you captured, then review and send it yourself.
Orbit has not launched yet. Join the waitlist for early access on iOS. For a wider view of the category, see the best networking apps for in-person events.
