The scan
Your aunt scans a code. That’s it. She’s in.
A QR code is the cheapest thing on your table and the only one that has to work first time. Here is how to make sure it does.
How do wedding QR codes work?
A wedding QR code is a printed square that opens a web page when a guest points their phone camera at it. iPhone and Android both read QR codes natively from the camera app, so no scanner app is needed. At a wedding the code usually sits on a table card and opens the couple’s wedding page, where guests find the schedule, their table, the photo album and anything else the couple has set up. Nothing is installed and, on a well built app, no account is required.
What a wedding QR code should open
Most couples use more codes than they need. Each additional code is another decision for a guest holding a drink, and participation drops with every one.
One code, on the table, that opens everything. That is the pattern that works. Behind it sit the schedule, the seating chart, the photo wall, the guestbook, song requests and the games. A guest scans once at the start of the evening and returns to the same page all night.
The versions that go wrong are the ones that split by function: a photo code on one card, a song request code on another, a guestbook code by the door. Guests scan the first one and never look for the others.
Where to put it
On the table, at each place setting or in the centre. This is the one that matters. Guests sitting down have both hands free, a flat surface, and a reason to look at the table. It is also where they are when the MC mentions it.
Not only at the entrance. People arriving are carrying things, looking for their name and talking. Entrance signage is worth having as a backup, never as the only placement.
On the back of the seating card, if you have one. It costs nothing and catches guests at exactly the moment they are looking at it.
On the bar and in the restrooms. Slightly ridiculous, extremely effective. These are the two places at a wedding where people are alone with their phone.
Making the code itself work
Most failed scans come down to four things, all avoidable at the printer.
| Get this wrong | What happens | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Too small | Phones cannot lock on | Print at 1.2 inches minimum, 1.5 to 2 inches on a table card |
| Low contrast | The camera never sees it | Dark code on a light background. Never light on dark, never a metallic ink |
| No quiet zone | Scanner cannot find the edges | Leave clear space around the code, roughly four times the width of one module |
| Printed on gloss | Candlelight reflects off it | Matte stock, always. Receptions are lit by candles at the exact wrong angle |
Test the actual printed card, not the file on your screen. Do it in a dim room, with an old phone, at arm’s length. That is the real condition.
What to write next to it
The instruction line does more work than the code. Write it as an offer, not a chore.
Better: "Scan to see tonight’s photos." "Scan for the schedule and your table." "Scan to request a song."
Worse: "Please upload your photos here." "Download our wedding app." "Scan to join." The first asks for a favour, the second is untrue if there is nothing to download, and the third does not say what happens next.
Add one line of reassurance if the code opens something that collects photos: "No app, no sign up." Guests who have been burned by a QR code before will look for exactly that.
The single highest-leverage thing
One line from the microphone during dinner is worth more than every card in the room.
Your DJ or MC saying "the cards on your table open tonight’s photo wall, and the couple would love your pictures on it" moves participation more than any amount of print. It works because it comes from a person, at a moment when everyone is seated, and it explains what the code is for rather than what it is.
If you do nothing else on this page, do that.
Codes in We Do
Every wedding in We Do gets its own code and a print-ready table card in your colours. The code carries a private join token, which is what lets guests in with no account and no password, and it works for any number of guests scanning any number of times.
The card design comes out of the couple portal ready to send to a printer or run off at home. Guests land on your wedding page, and what they find there depends on your plan, starting at $79.99 for Silver.
Common questions
Do guests need an app to scan a wedding QR code?
No. iPhone has read QR codes from the built in camera since iOS 11 and Android since version 9, so guests just open their camera and point. A separate scanner app has not been necessary on a modern phone for years.
How big should a wedding QR code be printed?
At least 1.2 inches square, and 1.5 to 2 inches on a table card. Leave clear space around it about four times the width of one of its small squares, and print on matte stock so candlelight does not reflect off it.
Should we use one QR code or several at a wedding?
One. Every extra code is another decision for a guest, and participation drops each time. A single code that opens the schedule, seating, photos, songs and games gets scanned far more than three specialised ones.
Where is the best place to put a wedding QR code?
On the table, at each place setting or in the centre. Guests sitting down have free hands and a reason to look. Entrance signage is a useful backup but a poor primary spot, because arriving guests are carrying things and talking.
What should the sign next to a wedding QR code say?
What the guest gets, not what you want them to do. "Scan to see tonight’s photos" outperforms "Please upload your photos." If nothing needs installing, say so, because that is the objection most guests have.
Do wedding QR codes expire?
They should not during the wedding, and with We Do the code can be scanned any number of times by any number of guests, before, during and after the day.