Do QR codes expire?
No. A QR code is a static, printed encoding of whatever text was put into it. If you encode https://example.com, that pattern will decode to https://example.com forever — in ten years, offline, on any scanner. There is no expiry date stored in the symbol and no server involved in reading it.
What people experience as an "expired QR code" is almost always one of three things:
- The destination died. The URL you encoded now 404s or the domain lapsed. The code still works perfectly — it just points somewhere that no longer exists.
- You used a generator that encoded their redirect, not your link. Many "free" tools quietly encode something like
theirdomain.com/abc123so every scan passes through them. When the free trial ends, or they shut down, or they put the redirect behind a paywall, your printed code breaks. This is the real cause of nearly every "my QR code stopped working" story. - A trial ran out. Some tools give you a "free" dynamic code for 14 days and then disable it, holding your printed material hostage.
How to check whether your existing QR code will expire
You can test this in about ten seconds, and you should do it before you print anything:
- Scan your own QR code with any phone camera.
- Look carefully at the URL it opens — the very first domain that appears, before any redirect.
- If it is your own domain, you are safe. The code has no third-party dependency and cannot be switched off by anyone.
- If it is somebody else's short domain you do not control, that code is only as permanent as that company's free plan.
If it turns out you are dependent on a third party, regenerate the code with the destination encoded directly, and reprint before the old one breaks.
How QR Code Harbor handles this
Static codes made here encode your destination directly. Nothing routes through this site, there is no account requirement, no watermark, and no trial timer. If this website disappeared tomorrow, every static code you have ever generated here would carry on working exactly as before — because it never depended on us in the first place.
That is the honest version of "never expires": not a promise to stay online forever, but a code that does not need us to be online at all.
Dynamic codes are different by design — they point at a short link so you can change the destination later — and that link does depend on this service. You get 2 dynamic codes free, permanently, and they are not trial-limited.
When you should still choose a dynamic code
"Never expires" and "editable" pull in opposite directions, and it is worth being clear about the trade:
- Static — permanent and dependency-free, but the destination is locked in at print time. Best for Wi-Fi passwords, vCards, plain text, and anything you will never need to change.
- Dynamic — the destination can be edited after printing, and scans can be counted, but it depends on a redirect service. Best for menus, packaging, posters and campaigns, where the target genuinely changes.
See dynamic QR codes for the full comparison.
Frequently asked questions
Do QR codes have an expiration date?
No. The QR symbol encodes text and has no expiry mechanism. Only the service or URL behind it can stop working.
Why did my QR code stop working then?
Almost always because the generator encoded their own redirect domain rather than your link, and that redirect was disabled or moved behind a paid plan — or because your destination URL itself went offline.
Are the QR codes here really free with no expiry?
Yes for static codes: they encode your destination directly, require no account, and have no dependency on this site once generated. Dynamic codes rely on our redirect and are free for 2 codes, permanently.
Do I need to sign up to make a permanent QR code?
No. Static QR code generation requires no account at all.
Will my printed QR code still scan in five years?
A static one will, as long as the page it points to still exists. That is why encoding your own domain matters — you control whether the destination survives.