To make a restaurant menu QR code, publish the menu as a fast mobile web page, create one dynamic QR code per table that points to it, print each code with its short link underneath, and test a printed sample on two phones in the room's real light before you print the full run.
What should a restaurant menu QR code open?
A restaurant menu QR code should open a mobile web page that loads in a couple of seconds on mobile data and shows the dishes without zooming. Skip anything that asks guests to log in, accept cookies first or download a file. If the menu exists only as a PDF, point the code at the PDF now and move to a proper page later; with a dynamic code that swap does not touch the printed tent.
Why make one QR code per table?
One QR code per table gives every table its own count, because each code is a separate link. If table 7 never scans while the others do, check whether its card is hidden behind the condiments. Zones work the same way: bar, terrace, window. Put the table number in the back-half, for example read-it.now/menu-t7.
Counts on CTAurl are requests, not people. They can include bots and security scanners, and reports show cities.
How many menu QR codes will I need?
You need one menu QR code per table, plus a few extras for the door, the till and takeaway bags. CTAurl plans count the new QR codes you create each month, and codes from earlier months keep working. A 50-table restaurant can create 30 codes this month on Growth ($12 a month) and the other 20 next month, or all 50 at once on Scale ($29 a month, 60 new codes a month). A café with 12 tables and a door sticker needs 13 codes: Starter allows 10 new codes a month, so make 10 this month and 3 next month, or use Growth (30 a month).
How should I print a menu QR code?
Print a menu QR code dark on light, at least 2 × 2 cm, on matte stock, with four modules of clear space around it. These choices decide whether a code that works on screen also works on a table in dim light, and each is cheap to get right before the run:
- Size: at least 2 × 2 cm for a table card read from 20 to 30 cm away; larger for wall or window codes.
- Quiet zone: four modules of clear space on every side. We rendered and decoded codes with and without that border.
- Contrast: a dark code on a light background. Avoid light-on-dark and low-contrast brand colours.
- Finish: matte stock. Glossy lamination under spotlights can cause glare that cameras struggle to read.
- Fallback: the short link printed under the code, large enough to read, so guests can type it if their camera does not read the code.
How do I test menu QR codes, before printing and after?
Test a menu QR code by printing one sample on the real material and scanning it from where guests actually sit, in the room's real lighting, with an older phone as well as a new one. Check the page that opens over mobile data as well as Wi-Fi. One test sheet costs far less than a reprint of 200 tent cards.
Keep checking the tables once the codes are out, because a code on a table is easy to cover with a sticker. The FBI advises people to look for stickers placed over an original code and to check the address after scanning (FBI IC3, January 2022). In October 2024, Korea's science ministry, the police and KISA jointly warned the public about fake QR stickers on shared e-scooters (Korea.kr, October 2024).
Guests elsewhere in Asia have heard similar warnings. Japan's anti-phishing council issued an emergency alert about phishing through QR codes in August 2024, according to a presentation by its secretariat (JPCERT/CC, November 2025). Hong Kong police warned in April 2026 about fake government letters whose QR codes led to sites built to steal bank details, as reported by World Journal, April 2026. The Thai government told people in August 2025 not to scan unfamiliar QR codes, according to Pattaya Mail, August 2025. Before each service, check that nothing has been stuck over a table's code, and scan a sample from every new print batch before it goes on the tables.
How do I update the menu without reprinting the codes?
Update the menu page itself and leave the codes alone. If every table's link points to the same menu address, a change to that page reaches every table at once and the printed tents stay as they are. Keep back-halves evergreen: /menu stays accurate for years, while /menu-autumn-2026 is out of date by winter.
If the menu moves to a new address, for example from a PDF to a web page, change the destination of each table's link. CTAurl applies a destination change to the very next scan. Each table has its own link, so that means one edit per table: make that move once, to a page you can keep updating.
Questions people ask
Should a restaurant menu QR code open a PDF?
A mobile web page is the better destination. PDFs load slowly on weak connections and make guests pinch and zoom. If a PDF is all you have, use it today and replace it with a page later; with a dynamic QR code, the printed tent card does not change when the destination does.
How big should a table QR code be?
A table QR code should be at least 2 cm square for close-up scanning, and larger is safer in dim light. Keep a clear border of four modules around it, and test the printed result on two phones at the real distance from a guest's seat.
Do guests need an app to scan a menu QR code?
No. The camera apps on current iPhones and Android phones read QR codes directly. Print the short link under the code so a guest whose camera does not read it can type the address instead.