QR Code Landing Pages: What the Scan Should Open

Most QR codes do not need a new landing page. If the page you already have matches the print and loads fast on a phone, point the code at it. Build a separate page only when the print promises something your site doesn't have in one place, or when you have no website.

You may not need a new page

Point the code at an existing page when:

• The page already does what the print promises. A menu code goes to the menu, not the homepage.
• It loads fast on a phone and reads without zooming.
• You'd keep it up to date anyway.

Build a separate page when the print promises something your site doesn't have in one place: an event's details, a contact card, the links behind a sticker on a product box. Or when you don't have a website at all.

The person on the other end

Picture who scans a QR code. They're standing up, often outside, phone in one hand, something else in the other. They saw a poster, a box or a business card, and one line on it made them curious. Assume they'll give the page a few seconds.

That picture sets the rules for a good landing page:

1. The first screen confirms they're in the right place. Repeat the words or the picture from the print (the call to action next to the code sets them). A poster for a jazz night that opens on a generic venue homepage loses people.
2. One job per page. Book, call, save the contact, read the menu. With five buttons, choosing gets harder than acting.
3. Big enough to read and tap. No pinch-zoom, no tiny links next to each other.
4. Light. One or two images, not a slideshow. Mobile data on a station platform is not office Wi-Fi.
5. Nothing you add between the scan and the content. No pop-up asking for an email before they've seen anything. On QRZY's Free plan, scans show a 5-second countdown (or a QRZY bar) first. Paid plans skip it.
6. It still works next year. The print outlives the campaign. Plan where the code will point when the event is over. A dynamic QR code can change after printing.

A code on a flyer can be scanned long after the date printed on it. A page that's gone shows a 404. A page that's out of date is worse, because it looks current.

What a short page looks like

Our demo code opens a hosted page made with QRZY: go.qrzy.co/demopage. It's a business card for a made-up person. There's a name, a job title, an email, a phone number, a website link and a Save contact button that puts the details straight into the phone's contacts. Nothing else.

A real hosted page on QRZY: go.qrzy.co/p/demo-card.

Someone who scans a business card wants one thing: the contact saved before the conversation ends.

Build one in QRZY

Hosted pages are a Pro feature: Pro ($250 a year) includes 5 pages. Free and Starter don't have them.

1. In the dashboard, open Pages and select Create Page.
2. Pick a starting template: Link in Bio, Event Page, Business Card or WiFi & Menu. Or select Start with a blank page.
3. Give it a Title and a URL Slug (your page's address, go.qrzy.co/p/your-slug), choose a Theme, and select Create and Edit.
4. Write the page in the editor: headings, text, lists, links and images. Under Settings you can add a Contact card (vCard), which adds the Save contact button.
5. Select Publish.
6. Open your QR code's edit page. Under Smart rules, select Add Step, set Condition Type to Always Active (Default), and under What happens on scan choose Show hosted page and pick your page. Select Save.

The code now opens your page. Because it's a dynamic QR code, you can change it later: point it at a different page after the event, or add a rule to show one page on weekdays and another at weekends. Day rules follow the timezone on the step, which starts as your browser's, so check it matches where your visitors are.

What you won't get, so you can decide before paying:

• No uploads. Images are added by URL, so they have to be hosted somewhere else first. No PDFs either.
• No forms, buttons or embeds. No contact form, no video or map embed. Links, text, images and the contact button only.
• A small "Powered by QRZY" link at the bottom of each page on Pro.

If you need forms, a shop or a proper site, use a website builder for the page and point a QRZY code at it. You still get to change where the code goes.

For a contact card in practice, read the digital business card story. A page that changes after printing is the reason dynamic QR codes exist, and QR codes on direct mail shows the same thinking on a postcard. Business uses are collected on QR codes for business.

Common questions

What should a QR code landing page include? What the print promised, on the first screen, and one clear action. Usually that's all.

Do I need a landing page for every QR code? No. If an existing page already delivers what the print promises, and loads fast on a phone, use it.

Can I change the landing page after the code is printed? With a dynamic QR code, yes. With a static code, the link is printed into the pattern, so a new page means a new code.