How to use QR codes at events, from invitations to feedback

QR codes help at every stage of an event. Use them on posters and invitations to open the event page or add the date to a calendar, at the venue for the agenda, WiFi and directions, and at the end for a feedback form. Tickets are different: each attendee needs a unique code issued by a ticketing system. For anything that may change after printing, such as the schedule, use a dynamic code so you can update the link without reprinting.

What is the difference between ticket and information QR codes?

A ticket code is unique to each attendee and checked at the door, while an information code is the same for everyone. Event organisers use both, and they work in very different ways.

• Ticket codes are unique to each attendee. A ticketing or registration system issues them, and staff scan them at the door against a guest list, so each one can only be used once. They belong on personal tickets and confirmation emails, never on a public poster.
• Information codes are the same for everyone. They point to the event page, the agenda, a venue map or a form. You make them once and print them anywhere.

A general QR code generator makes information codes. It cannot check entry or stop a screenshot being shared, so use proper ticketing software for admission. The rest of this guide is about information codes.

Before the event: posters, invitations and calendars

Promotional material has one job: get people from a printed page to a decision. Point the main code at the event page, where people can read the details and book.

• Posters and flyers. Link to the event page. Size the code for the distance people walk past, at least one tenth of that distance in width.
• Invitations. Add an add-to-calendar code. The event QR code generator creates a calendar event in the standard VEVENT format, with a title, start and end times, location and description. Scanning it lets a phone add the event straight to its calendar.
• Save-the-date cards. A calendar code works well here too, as long as the date, time and place are settled.

Test calendar codes on both iPhone and Android. Most recent phones recognise them, but on Android it depends on the camera or scanner app. Check the start time shows correctly, including on a phone set to a different time zone if guests are travelling. Print the date and time in text beside the code as well.

At the venue: directions, agenda and WiFi

Directions to the venue

A location QR code stores map coordinates and opens the phone's map app at that spot. Use it on tickets, joining instructions and car park signs. Drop the pin on the entrance people should use, not the middle of the building. Large venues, campuses and parks often have several gates, and the right pin saves a lot of walking.

The agenda

Link one code to an agenda page that works well on a phone: session times, rooms, speakers and a simple map. Put it on entrance signs, badges, seat cards and the screen between sessions. A web page beats a PDF here, because it reads better on a small screen and you can update it without changing the address.

Venue WiFi

A WiFi code lets attendees join without typing a password. The network name and password are stored in the code, so it is always static, and a new password means a new code. Use a separate guest network for the event, never the venue's main one. Our WiFi QR code guide covers the format and security settings.

Codes on projected slides follow the same rules as print. Size them for the back row, not the front, and leave the slide up long enough for people to get their phones out.

Should you put QR codes on name badges?

Yes, if attendees agree to share their details: badges are a natural home for networking codes. A code on an attendee's badge can open their contact card or professional profile, so a quick scan replaces swapping business cards.

• Use a vCard or a profile link. A vCard code saves contact details straight to the phone. A LinkedIn profile link keeps the code simpler and lets attendees control what they share.
• Print on both sides. Badges on lanyards flip round. A code on each side means one always faces out.
• Keep it big enough. Around 3 cm wide works for a badge scanned at arm's length. Keep the attendee's name the largest thing on the badge.
• Ask first. Only print personal contact details on a badge if the attendee has agreed to share them.
• Separate entry codes. If the badge also carries a ticket code for the doors, label each code clearly so people scan the right one.

Feedback forms

Feedback is easiest to collect while people are still in the room. Put a code linking to a short form on the final slide, on seat cards, at the exit and in the follow-up email.

• Keep the form short. A few questions answered on a phone beat a long survey nobody finishes.
• Make it work without signing in, unless you need to know who answered.
• Use a form per session if you want feedback on each speaker, with its own code on each room's signs.
• Give people time. Show the code before the final questions, not as the lights come up.

What if the event schedule changes after printing?

Use a dynamic code, so you can point it at the new schedule without reprinting. Event plans change after the print deadline. Speakers drop out, rooms swap and sessions move. A static code that points at a specific PDF breaks the moment you upload a new file with a new name, and signs and badges printed weeks earlier then lead to the wrong agenda.

A dynamic code solves this. The printed code holds a short link, and you change where it points from your account. Before the event, it can open the booking page. On the day, the live agenda. Afterwards, the feedback form or session recordings. The same printed sign does all three jobs.

EndureQR's paid plans include dynamic codes you can edit after printing, with scan analytics by device, city and time of day that show which signs people actually used. Codes keep redirecting even if you cancel. See pricing, or read more about QR codes for events.

A simple code plan for your event

List every code before anything goes to print. A plan like this one keeps types, placements and update needs in one place: