Can You Track Who Scans Your QR Code? The Reality of Analytics

The Tracking Question

You've printed a QR code on your flyer, business card, or product packaging. Now you want to know: did anyone actually scan it? How many times? Where were they?

The answer depends entirely on what kind of QR code you're using and what infrastructure sits behind the link. Let's clear up the confusion.

Static QR Codes: No Built-In Tracking

Here's the straight truth about static QR codes (the kind you create for free with tools like Snapkit): the code itself doesn't track anything.

A static code simply contains data—usually a URL. When someone scans it, their phone reads that data and opens the link. The QR code has no idea it was scanned. There's no "phone home" mechanism, no scan counter embedded in the pattern.

This is actually a privacy feature, not a limitation. The person scanning can trust that the code isn't secretly reporting their location or behavior. What you see (the destination) is what you get.

But here's the thing: you can still track visits if you control the destination.

Tracking Through Your Website

If your QR code points to a website you own, your standard web analytics tool (Google Analytics, Plausible, Fathom, etc.) records every visit—regardless of how people got there.

What you can see:

• Total page visits
• Traffic source (though QR scans often show up as "direct" traffic)
• Geographic location (approximate, based on IP)
• Device type and browser
• Time and date of visits

The limitation: your analytics can't tell the difference between someone who typed your URL, clicked a link in an email, or scanned a QR code. They all look like regular website visits.

The workaround: use a unique URL for your QR code.

Instead of linking to yoursite.com, create a dedicated landing page at yoursite.com/qr-flyer or add UTM parameters like yoursite.com/?utm_source=qr&utm_medium=flyer&utm_campaign=spring2026.

Now you can filter your analytics to see only the traffic that came through that specific code. Still not perfect (someone could share the link), but much better than guessing.

Dynamic QR Codes: Built-In Analytics

Dynamic QR codes work differently. Instead of encoding your final URL directly, they encode a redirect URL—a short link controlled by the QR service provider.

When someone scans a dynamic code:

1. They hit the redirect URL first
2. The redirect service logs the scan
3. The service forwards them to your final destination

Because every scan passes through the redirect server, the service can capture detailed analytics:

• Scan count – exact number of scans
• Time stamps – when each scan occurred
• Location data – city/country level (based on IP)
• Device info – phone model, operating system
• Unique vs. repeat scans – whether the same device scanned multiple times

This sounds appealing, but remember: dynamic codes typically require a subscription, and your codes only work as long as you keep paying. The analytics come with strings attached.

What Tracking Can't Tell You

Even with the best analytics, there are limits:

You can't identify individuals. A scan from "San Francisco, iPhone, 2:30 PM" doesn't tell you who scanned. You get aggregate data, not personal information. This is by design—QR codes aren't surveillance tools.

You can't track offline conversions directly. If someone scans your code, browses your site, then walks into your store to buy something, the analytics only capture the website visit. Connecting that to an in-store purchase requires additional systems.

Location is approximate. IP-based geolocation gives you city or region, not exact address. Someone's phone IP might even show a different city than their physical location.

Scan ≠ engagement. A scan that leads to a three-second bounce is very different from a scan that leads to a purchase. Raw scan counts don't tell you much about quality.

Do You Actually Need Scan Analytics?

For many use cases, detailed QR scan tracking is overkill.

When basic tracking is enough:

• Personal projects – business cards, personal website links
• Single-purpose codes – restaurant menus, Wi-Fi sharing, event info
• Small-scale prints – a few hundred flyers, local promotion
• Anything where action matters more than attribution – if you care whether the code works, not how many times it was scanned

For these situations, a free static code with UTM parameters gives you enough signal. If traffic to your /qr-menu page goes up, your code is working.

When dynamic tracking makes sense:

• Multi-channel marketing campaigns – different codes on different materials, need to compare performance
• Large-scale enterprise deployment – thousands of codes across many products/locations
• Codes you need to update frequently – changing destinations without reprinting
• Compliance requirements – regulated industries needing audit trails

If your marketing budget includes dedicated analytics tools and your team actively optimizes based on scan data, dynamic codes might justify their cost. If you're a small business owner who checks their stats once a month, probably not worth it.

Privacy Considerations

If you're collecting scan data—especially using dynamic codes with location tracking—consider your users' expectations.

Most people don't think about a QR code reporting their location when they scan. While city-level geolocation isn't particularly invasive, it's worth asking whether you really need that data.

For sensitive applications (healthcare, legal services, anything involving children), leaning toward less tracking is usually the right call. Static codes with basic website analytics respect user privacy while still giving you useful information.

The Practical Approach

Here's what I recommend for most people:

1. Start with static codes. They're free, permanent, and respect user privacy.

2. Use unique URLs or UTM parameters. This gives you basic traffic attribution without additional cost.

3. Check your website analytics. Look at traffic to your QR-specific landing pages.

4. Upgrade to dynamic codes only if you have a specific need for detailed scan analytics, frequent destination changes, or enterprise-scale deployment.

Don't pay for tracking you won't use. Most QR codes exist to get someone from point A (your flyer) to point B (your website). If B is getting traffic, the code is doing its job.

Create a static QR code for free, point it to a trackable URL, and see what happens.