Static vs Dynamic QR codes: which one do you need?
A static QR encodes your destination directly and can never change. A dynamic QR encodes a short redirect you can re-point anytime. Here is how to pick the right one before you print.
Short answer: if the thing your QR points to will never change, a static code is simplest and cheapest. If it might change — or you want to know how many people scanned it — you need a dynamic code. Everything below is just the detail behind that rule.
What a static QR actually is
A static QR encodes your destination directly inside the pattern. The link or phone number sits right in the printed squares, with nothing in between. That's why it keeps working forever with no account and no renewal. The catch: because the destination is baked into the printed pattern, it can never be changed. Reprint the code, or it stays as it is.
Static is the right pick when the target is permanent: your website's home page, a phone number, a Wi-Fi password on a café wall, a plain-text message.
What a dynamic QR actually is
A dynamic QR encodes a short redirect link on our domain. When someone scans it, that link instantly forwards them to wherever you've pointed it. Because the printed pattern only contains the redirect — not the final destination — you can change the destination any time from your dashboard and every code you already printed keeps working.
Two things fall out of that design:
- You can fix or repoint it later. Menu moved to a new URL? Campaign landing page changed? Update it once; the sticker on the table never needs reprinting.
- You get scan counts. Every scan passes through us, so your dashboard shows how many times each code was used — and you can pause or resume a code whenever you want.
Static and dynamic codes are both a one-time purchase. You pay once and the printed code keeps working. The only thing that runs on a yearly plan is a hosted page, because that is a page we build and keep online for you.
A simple way to decide
- Printing something permanent that will never move? Static.
- Printing something you might want to change later, like a menu or a promo link? Dynamic.
- Want to see whether people are actually scanning it? Dynamic (static codes can't be tracked, by design).
- Not sure? Choose dynamic. The freedom to repoint a printed code later is the thing people most often wish they'd bought.
One more myth worth killing: a QR code does not "expire" on its own or wear out. A static code lasts as long as its destination exists. A dynamic code lasts as long as its plan is active — and if a plan ever lapses, a scan shows a calm branded page instead of your destination, never a broken link.
Ready to choose? Compare the plans and current prices on our pricing page, or see a dynamic code in action on the restaurant menu QR and car dashboard QR pages.