Most ID scanners are either an expensive box on your counter or a phone app locked to one platform. Here is how Carded stacks up against the real names, on the things that actually matter: price, what it runs on, fraud detection, and where your customers' data goes.
Patronscan, IDScan.net (VeriScan), Minor Decliner. Powerful forensic checks, but $400–900 devices, quote-based pricing, and a sales process.
Check ID App and a long tail of App Store scanners. Cheap and simple, but usually iPhone-only and thinner on support.
| Carded | Patronscan | IDScan.net VeriScan | Check ID App | Minor Decliner | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runs on | Any phone or tabletiOS, Android & browser, no download | Their hardware only | Their scanners, or iOS/Android app | iPhone / iPad only | Their hardware only |
| Hardware to buy | $0 | $400–900+ per device | $659–899 per scanner | $0 | ~$669+ per device |
| If a device breaks or dies | Switch to any phone in seconds | Repair or replace | Repair or replace hardware | Reinstall on another iPhone | Repair or replace |
| Price | $15–59/moshown on the site | Quote only | Quote (tiered) | Free + one-time unlock | Device purchase |
| App store download | Noneopens in the browser | N/A | Required | Required | N/A |
| Free trial | 14 days | Not offered | 30 days | Free tier | Not offered |
| Free updates | Free, for life | Varies | With subscription | Varies | Varies |
| Fake-ID detection | IntegrityEngine 360barcode + front cross-check, free | Forensic UV / IR | Forensic + AI (with hardware) | Barcode | Intellicheck |
| Customer data | Identities stay on the deviceonly anonymous outcomes sync | Shared flag network | Cloud + on-device | On-device | On-device |
| Delivery driver mode | YesDeliveryPro add-on | Not offered | Not offered | Not offered | Not offered |
| Event / festival mode | YesFestival Mode, free beta | With hardware | Enterprise | Not offered | Not offered |
If you run a large venue with a hardware budget and a serious fraud problem, the big forensic scanners earn their price. For almost everyone else, a bar, a liquor store, a vape shop, a dispensary, a delivery driver, an event gate, Carded gives you the fast green-or-red check, free fake-ID detection, an exportable compliance log, and free updates for life, with no hardware to buy, on the phone you already carry, at a price you can see. And when you need them, DeliveryPro and Festival Mode are built right in.