Do QR codes expire?
The pattern itself cannot. But the thing behind it sometimes can.
Last updated 15 November 2026
The short answer
A QR code is just a pattern that holds a short piece of text, usually a web address. A printed pattern does not wear out or run out, any more than a printed web address does. What can stop working is the page it points to, or a company sitting in the middle.
Two kinds of code
A static code has your address written directly into the pattern. Scanning it takes the phone straight to your page. Nobody is in the middle, so nobody can switch it off.
A dynamic code holds a short link that belongs to the company that made it. Scanning it goes to their server first, which then forwards the phone to your page. That is what lets you change the destination later and see scan counts, but it also means the code only works while that company keeps forwarding it. Many generators stop forwarding when a free trial ends, which is why printed codes sometimes die without warning.
How to tell which one you have
Scan it with your phone and read the address that appears before you open it. If it shows your own address, such as yourrestaurant.com/menu, it is static. If it shows a different company's short address, it is dynamic. Our scanner shows the full address before opening anything.
If a printed code has stopped working
- Static code: the code is fine. Check that the page it points to still exists and that your domain has not expired. If a file link was shared from a drive service, check it is still shared with "anyone with the link".
- Dynamic code: log in to the service that made it. If the account has lapsed, you may be able to reactivate it. If not, the code has to be replaced and reprinted.
How to avoid it
- For anything printed permanently, use a static code that points to a page you control. You can change what the page shows without ever changing the code.
- If you need a dynamic code, choose a service that says plainly what happens if you stop paying. On Plainly QR, codes keep working and stay editable even if you cancel.
- Keep your own domain renewed. A code that points to it depends on it.