A static QR code, like the ones generated for free, encodes the link or text directly and never expires on its own. It will stop working only if the destination page itself is taken down.

Do customers need an app to scan a QR code?

No — every modern smartphone camera can scan a QR code directly without any extra app, which is a big part of why they've become so widely used again.

What size should a printed QR code be?

As a rough rule, a QR code should be at least 2x2 cm (about 1x1 inch) for close-up scanning like a business card, and considerably larger — 10cm or more — for anything meant to be scanned from a few feet away, like a poster.

QR Codes Explained: Practical Uses for Small Businesses

QR codes had an awkward decade where nobody used them, and then quietly became normal again — mostly because restaurant menus needed a contactless option and it stuck. For a small business, they're now one of the cheapest ways to bridge something physical (a poster, a receipt, a table) with something digital (a menu, a form, a profile).

Where small businesses actually get value from them

Menus and price lists

A single QR code on each table replaces printed menus entirely, and updating prices or items becomes a five-minute edit instead of a reprint.

WiFi access

A WiFi QR code lets customers join your network by scanning, without typing a long password — genuinely useful in cafes, waiting rooms, and co-working spaces.

Contact cards and vCards

A QR code on a business card that saves your contact info directly into someone's phone gets used far more often than a card that just sits in a wallet.

Reviews and feedback

A code at checkout linking straight to your Google Business or review page removes a step that otherwise causes most people to simply not bother.

Make one in under a minute

Link, WiFi, contact card, and more — with optional logo and frame styles.

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What actually makes a QR code get scanned

A reason to scan it. "Scan for our menu" works. A QR code with no label or context, sitting alone, mostly gets ignored.
Enough size and contrast. A tiny, low-contrast code printed on a busy background is genuinely hard for phone cameras to lock onto.
A fast destination. If the linked page is slow or clunky on mobile, the goodwill from scanning gets undone immediately.

A branding touch that's easy to overdo

Adding your logo to the center of a QR code, or choosing a frame with a "Scan Me" label, makes it look intentional rather than like a random black-and-white square — but keep the core pattern high-contrast, since heavy styling can occasionally make a code harder to scan in poor lighting.

Add a logo and frame

Customize colors, add your logo, and pick from 4 frame styles — free.

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The bottom line

QR codes work best when they remove a small piece of friction — typing a WiFi password, searching for a menu online, saving a contact by hand. Anywhere your business asks a customer to do one of those things manually today is a reasonable place to try one.