QR code expired? What happened, and how to fix it

A QR code that opens a notice instead of your page is usually a dynamic code whose trial or subscription ended. The printed pattern has not worn out. The fix is in the account behind it, or in a new code.

Printing it?

That code can never be changed

The link is baked into the pattern. If the page moves or the offer behind it ends, every poster you printed points at a dead URL and the only fix is reprinting them.

A dynamic code points at us instead, so you can change where it goes whenever you like — and see how many people scanned it.

$5.90/month

or $49 a year — save 30%. 7-day free trial, no payment details needed.

Start the free trial

First, work out whose code it is

Scan the code and look at the address bar before you close the notice. The page belongs to the company that made the code. Its name is usually in the address, and often on the notice too.

You made it. Log in to that company with the email you used and find the code. Check when the trial or plan ended. Many people find they signed up for a free trial months ago and never noticed the code depended on it.

Someone else made it. Perhaps the previous owner of the shop, or an agency you no longer work with. You cannot reach the account, so ask them for the login. If that goes nowhere, treat the code as gone and replace it.

The notice is ours. Then the code is one of ours and the account has lapsed. Log in and subscribe, and the code opens the same page as before, straight away.

Then pick the fix that costs least

Pay to restore it. If the code is on thousands of labels, or on a sign you cannot easily replace, paying may be the cheapest way out. Ask first what it will cost each year from now on, because the code will depend on that payment for as long as it is printed.

Cover it. For a handful of pieces, such as a door, a counter display or a few table tents, a sticker with a new code over the old one takes an afternoon.

Reprint. For anything due a reprint soon, put the new code on the next run and let the old pieces run out.

What to put on the replacement

If the page it opens will stay where it is, use a static code from the generator above. No account, no trial, nothing for anyone to switch off. It opens your page for as long as that page is there.

If you may need to change the page later, a dynamic code still makes sense, as long as you choose it knowing the terms. Ours works while you subscribe, and for 7 days after your paid period ends. Then it shows a plain notice, much like the one you just met. We would rather you knew that before you print.

Static QR code Dynamic QR code
Change the link after printing No. The link is part of the pattern. Yes, as often as you like.
Scan tracking None. Scans never reach us. Count, country, device and browser.
Cost Free, for good. $49 a year or $5.90 a month, after a 7-day free trial.
Needs an account No. Yes. The trial needs no card.

How it works

  1. Create. Make the replacement code and point it at the page people should land on today.
  2. Print. If it goes on as a sticker, print it larger than the old code so it covers the pattern and its margin.
  3. Update anytime. With a dynamic code, change the link from your account when the page moves. Nothing printed changes.

What it costs

Static codes are free, with no account. Dynamic codes cost $49 a year, which saves 30% against paying monthly, or $5.90 a month. We recommend yearly. Tax is included. Every account starts with a 7-day free trial that needs no payment details, and a subscription covers 5 dynamic codes. Cancel anytime and keep access to the end of the period you paid for.

If you stop paying, your dynamic codes stop resolving once the paid period and a further 7 days of grace have passed. Nothing is deleted: the codes, their links and their scan history stay in your account, and every code starts working the moment you subscribe again. Static codes never depend on us. They keep working as long as the page they point to does. We never switch one off, but we cannot bring back a page that has gone.

See the full pricing

Questions

Can the old code be switched back on?

Usually, but only by the company the code runs through. The pattern holds a short link on their domain, so they decide whether scans are sent on. Most will turn it back on once the account is paid for. Before you pay, ask them to confirm that the same printed code will open your page again. No other generator can take it over.

Can I stick a new code over the old one?

Yes, and for a few printed pieces it is the quickest fix. Make the sticker larger than the old code, so it hides the whole pattern and the clear margin around it. If any of the old pattern shows, some phones will read that instead. Scan the finished piece with two phones before you leave it.

Do static QR codes expire?

Never. A static code keeps working with or without an account, whether or not you ever subscribe, and whether or not we are still here. Scanning one does not contact us, so there is nothing for us to switch off.

Is the free trial really free?

Yes. Every new account gets 7 days of the full paid service and we ask for no payment details to start it. Nothing is charged when it ends — there is no card on file to charge. If you decide against subscribing, your dynamic codes simply stop resolving and everything you made stays in your account.

Need to change the link later?

7 days free, no card needed. Make a dynamic code and edit it whenever you like.

Start the free trial

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