QR Codes for Small Businesses

A QR code is simply a visual link. When a customer points their phone camera at it, it opens whatever you encoded — a review page, a payment link, a menu, your contact details. Because a static QR code stores that destination itself, it is free to create, never expires and keeps working for as long as the page behind it stays live. For a small business that is the whole appeal: no subscription, no expiry, no per-scan fee.

Nine practical uses across retail and services

You do not need all of these. Pick the two or three that match how customers already behave in your business, and put the code where that behaviour happens.

1. Collect reviews — a code at the counter or on the receipt that opens your Google review page is the single highest-value use. Catch people while they are happy and still in the shop.
2. Take payments — link to a payment or invoice page so customers pay from their phone without cash or a card terminal.
3. Show a menu or price list — for cafes and salons, a code replaces reprinting laminated menus; see our menu QR code guide.
4. Run loyalty and offers — a code that opens a discount, stamp card or sign-up form rewards repeat visits.
5. Share contact details — a code that saves your number, email and address straight to a phone's contacts.
6. Grow your socials — point a window or counter code at your Instagram or newsletter to turn footfall into followers.
7. Promote bookings — link a poster to your appointment system so people reserve on the spot.
8. Connect to Wi-Fi — a guest Wi-Fi code keeps customers in their seats and online; our Wi-Fi guide shows how.
9. Hand over information — link a flyer or packaging to instructions, a warranty page or an FAQ.

Why it is the cheapest marketing you have

A static QR code costs nothing, has no recurring fee, and works on every modern phone with the built-in camera — no app required. Unlike paid ads, the cost does not scale with use: one printed code can drive thousands of scans for free. The only spend is printing, and even that piggybacks on materials you already have, such as receipts, packaging, windows and business cards.

Getting started in five minutes

Sizing and format for print

Size follows distance. The reliable guide is the 10:1 rule: the printed code should be at least one tenth of the distance you expect people to scan from. A counter card read from arm's length needs only a few centimetres; a window code read from the pavement needs to be far larger. Never go below about 2 cm, and always leave a clear margin of empty space — the quiet zone — of at least four modules around the code. For the full method see our size guide, and use a vector file for large prints as our format guide explains.

Mistakes that waste the opportunity

• Sending every scan to the homepage instead of the page that matches the placement.
• No prompt beside the code, so customers do not know why they should scan.
• Codes printed too small, over a busy photo, or with no white margin around them.
• Using a code that quietly expires — see our explainer on whether QR codes expire before signing up to a paid tool you do not need.
• Never testing the link again after a website change.
• Heavy recolouring that kills contrast — read how colours affect scanning before branding a code.

For dozens more campaign ideas, see our roundup of QR code marketing ideas. If you want a branded code with your logo, our guide on adding a logo shows how to do it without breaking the scan, and tradespeople in particular should read our piece on QR codes for tradespeople.