TAC intelligence

Use our TAC database to map Type Allocation Codes to device properties, including model and release date. We support cloud and on-premise integration for mobile network operators, service providers, and phone recyclers. Some TACs map to more than one device, so check the duplicate-code information below.

Create a Resource Key

An example TAC, 35124436

{
  "hardwarevendor": "Google",
  "hardwaremodel": "GLBW0",
  "devicetype": "SmartPhone",
  "releasemonth": "August",
  "releaseyear": 2025,
  "soc": "Google Tensor G5",
  "socmodel": "Google Tensor G5",
  "screeninchesdiagonal": 6.3,
  "priceband": "800.00 - 899.99"
}

https://cloud.51degrees.com/api/v4/json?resource=YOUR_KEY&tac=35124436

Others

Psst. Pre-production specs say what the manufacturer intended. Do you know what actually went on sale? 🤔

Misses real-world duplicate TACs.

51Degrees

99.37% of active TACs covered, with the 2.05% shared by more than one device identified.

Plans and prices are on the pricing page, and every property is in the Property Dictionary.

What you need to know

What a TAC is

🔗

A Type Allocation Code is the first eight digits of a mobile device's 15-digit International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number. In the made-up IMEI below, the TAC belongs to the Samsung Galaxy S23, the next six digits are the handset's serial number, and the last digit checks the others.

Use the TAC to look up device model information, with the duplicate-code limits described below. TACs only apply to GSM wireless devices with a SIM card. Desktop computers, Wi-Fi-only tablets, and CDMA-only devices didn't get an invite to this party!

Read about TAC lookup

Map, analyze, improve

🔗

The TACs observed on devices using your network are mapped against our device database.
You get useful insights into network traffic based on more than 200 verified data points.
These insights help you get better business results across your organization.

Try a TAC in the TAC tester

CSV, cloud, or on-premise

🔗

Most customers take our TAC data as a CSV file, which imports straight into a database, a spreadsheet, or business intelligence tools. The data is indexed for TAC, web, and apps, for use over both Wi-Fi and cellular networks. Contact us for the CSV file.

To look TACs up from your own code, use our cloud service or host the data on-premise. For cloud use, read about the Resource Key, then create a Resource Key with the properties you need.

Cloud TAC lookup, C#

using (var pipeline = new FiftyOnePipelineBuilder(
        loggerFactory, serviceProvider)
    .BuildFromConfiguration(pipelineOptions))
{
    AnalyseTac(_tac1, pipeline, output);
    AnalyseTac(_tac2, pipeline, output);
}

static void AnalyseTac(
    string tac, IPipeline pipeline, TextWriter output)
{
    using (var data = pipeline.CreateFlowData())
    {
        data.AddEvidence(
            Shared.Constants.EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, tac);
        data.Process();
        var result = data.Get<MultiDeviceDataCloud>();
        foreach (var device in result.Profiles)
        {
            var vendor =
                device.HardwareVendor.GetHumanReadable();
            var name = device.HardwareName.GetHumanReadable();
            var model = device.HardwareModel.GetHumanReadable();
        }
    }
}

The full C# cloud example

Cloud TAC lookup, Java

PipelineOptions pipelineOptions =
    PipelineOptionsFactory.getOptionsFromFile(optionsFile);
try (Pipeline pipeline = new FiftyOnePipelineBuilder()
        .buildFromConfiguration(pipelineOptions)) {
    analyseTac(TAC_1, pipeline, writer);
    analyseTac(TAC_2, pipeline, writer);
}

static void analyseTac(String tac, Pipeline pipeline,
        PrintWriter output) throws Exception {
    try (FlowData data = pipeline.createFlowData()) {
        data.addEvidence(Constants.EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, tac);
        data.process();
        MultiDeviceDataCloud result =
            data.get(MultiDeviceDataCloud.class);
        for (DeviceData device : result.getProfiles()) {
            AspectPropertyValue<String> vendor =
                device.getHardwareVendor();
            AspectPropertyValue<List<String>> name =
                device.getHardwareName();
            AspectPropertyValue<String> model =
                device.getHardwareModel();
        }
    }
}

The full Java cloud example

Cloud TAC lookup, Node.js

const analyseTac = async function (tac, pipeline, output) {
  const flowData = pipeline.createFlowData();
  flowData.evidence.add(constants.EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, tac);
  await flowData.process();
  const profiles = DataExtension.getProfilesHelper(
      flowData.hardware);
  profiles.forEach(profile => {
    const hardwareVendor = DataExtension.getValueHelper(
        profile, 'hardwarevendor');
    const hardwareName = DataExtension.getValueHelper(
        profile, 'hardwarename');
    const hardwareModel = DataExtension.getValueHelper(
        profile, 'hardwaremodel');
  });
};

const pipeline = new PipelineBuilder()
    .buildFromConfiguration(options);
await analyseTac(tac1, pipeline, output);
await analyseTac(tac2, pipeline, output);

The full Node.js cloud example

Cloud TAC lookup, Python

pipeline = PipelineBuilder().add_logger(
    logger).build_from_configuration(config)
self.analyseTac(self._tac1, pipeline, output)
self.analyseTac(self._tac2, pipeline, output)

def analyseTac(self, tac, pipeline, output):
    data = pipeline.create_flowdata()
    data.evidence.add(Constants.EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, tac)
    data.process()
    result = data.hardware
    profiles = ExampleUtils.get_profiles(result)
    for device in profiles:
        vendor = ExampleUtils.get_human_readable(
            device, "hardwarevendor")
        name = ExampleUtils.get_human_readable(
            device, "hardwarename")
        model = ExampleUtils.get_human_readable(
            device, "hardwaremodel")

The full Python cloud example

Cloud TAC lookup, PHP

$pipeline = (new PipelineBuilder())
    ->addLogger($logger)
    ->buildFromConfig($config);
$this->analyseTac($this->tac1, $pipeline, $output);
$this->analyseTac($this->tac2, $pipeline, $output);

private function analyseTac($tac, $pipeline, callable $output)
{
    $data = $pipeline->createFlowData();
    $data->evidence->set(
        Constants::EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, $tac);
    $data->process();
    $result = $data->hardware;
    $profiles = ExampleUtils::getProfiles($result);
    foreach ($profiles as $profile) {
        $vendor = ExampleUtils::getHumanReadable(
            $profile, 'hardwarevendor');
        $name = ExampleUtils::getHumanReadable(
            $profile, 'hardwarename');
        $model = ExampleUtils::getHumanReadable(
            $profile, 'hardwaremodel');
    }
}

The full PHP cloud example

Cloud TAC lookup, Rust

let mut builder =
    DeviceDetectionPipelineBuilder::cloud(options.resource_key)
        .hardware_profile();
if let Some(endpoint) = options.endpoint {
    builder = builder.endpoint(endpoint);
}
let pipeline = builder
    .share_usage(false)
    .build()
    .context(
        "failed to build the cloud hardware-profile pipeline")?;
for tac in &options.tacs {
    let mut data = pipeline.create_flow_data_with(
        Evidence::builder()
            .add(EVIDENCE_QUERY_TAC_KEY, tac.clone())
            .build(),
    );
    data.process().context("cloud pipeline processing failed")?;
    let hardware = data.get(HARDWARE_DATA_KEY).context(
        "no hardware-profile data was produced; the cloud request engine did not run",
    )?;
    for profile in hardware.profiles() {
        println!("\t{}", profile_line(profile));
    }
}

The full Rust cloud example

For on-premise hosting, get in touch with us to arrange a License Key. Once you have set up the code from our GitHub, the Key lets you download the on-premise TAC data, and the TAC lookup examples show the code.

Download the TAC product guide

Coverage and duplicates

🔗

Our database covers 99.37% of active devices (all that are currently significant and verifiable in the real world).

Know every device registered against a TAC, including the 2.05% of TAC data that's duplicated across multiple devices.

Look up a TAC

Checked sources

🔗

Every day, we manually research and map TAC data to cover new device profiles and properties. We carefully index by User-Agents and native application keys to give you a single, unified TAC database you can bet your business on.

We verify device data against multiple authoritative sources, and we check whether pre-release device specifications change on release.

See how we measure data quality

Pick one to find out more

Each heading opens a short answer, with code or a figure, and a link to the documentation for more.

Read about TAC lookup

What is TAC intelligence from 51Degrees?

Why use TAC intelligence?

Use the TACs observed on your network to look up properties such as price, release date, video support, radio spectrum, and standards.

What you can use it for

Explore uses for mobile networks, data and analytics, advertising, and bot detection.

Try a TAC

Pick a device to open the TAC tester, which shows its TAC and every device registered against it. Most TACs belong to one device, but some are shared by several, sometimes years apart.