How to Unlock Your Tesla Using NFC on Android Phones (Tap to Unlock)

We recently discussed a bunch of features that the Tesla Android App is missing in comparison to the Tesla iOS App, but we didn’t look at the other side.

If you’ve got an NFC-capable Android phone and a Tesla, you actually have a feature that’s not available on iPhones. You can tap your phone on Tesla’s NFC card reader to unlock or lock your car, just like you can with your keycard. Tap to Unlock is enabled by default on Android and cannot be turned off on NFC-capable phones unless you disable NFC in your system settings.

Tap to Unlock

Android provides Tesla with access to the API necessary for Tap to Unlock to function over Near-Field Communications (NFC). This means that the Tesla app can serve as a backup keycard if, for some reason, your Phone-as-a-Key (PAAK) doesn’t immediately unlock the car upon waking it.

You’ll need to be a bit precise with this, as most phones have a small NFC location near the center on the back of the phone. You’ll also want to place it slightly under the B-pillar camera, where the car’s NFC reader is.

When you’re successful, the car will honk twice and unlock. Of note, this will not load your pre-set profiles as if you’re unlocking using your phone key, as the car treats this as a unique key. You will not be able to set up Tap to Unlock to load a particular profile – it seems to load a “default” profile every time. This also means that if you’ve got your mirrors set to unfold or your seats to move back, this will also not happen.

However, once you hop in, you can select your profile and everything will adjust to you. Your phone will continue to work as a phone key to keep you authenticated so that you can start your car.

Unlock Car Even If Phone Battery is Drained

This feature serves as a convenient way to get your car open and unlocked if your phone won’t power on or if the car doesn’t recognize your phone key, which can sometimes happen. On newer Android phones, NFC remains on even if your phone battery has run out since NFC uses so little power.

If you disable Bluetooth on your phone or your phone battery is on empty, your phone key won’t work, so you’ll need to authenticate again inside the vehicle to start the car. You can place your phone on either the Wireless Charger (for newer vehicles) or in the NFC slot between the cup holders and the center armrest to authenticate.

Other NFC Devices

For those more adventurous, you can also use other NFC-capable devices as Tesla keycards. Personally, the author uses an NFC-capable ring, as well as a third-party app on an Android Watch as backups. They serve solely as backups in the case of a lost phone rather than my primary keys.