How to put a QR code on your wedding invitation
Updated by Scan & Snap
To add a QR code to a wedding invitation, make a code for the page you want guests to open, such as your wedding website, RSVP form or photo album. Print it at least 2.5cm wide on the back or on an insert card, add a line saying what it does, and test it before you print them all.
What should the code open?
Choose one job for each code. Invitations can usually have just one link: your wedding website, with RSVP, directions, accommodation and photo album all on one page. If you'd prefer separate codes, keep them apart on the card, label them clearly, and remember some guests will still want a paper RSVP or a phone number.
Size and placement
Print it at least 2.5cm wide, and leave some clear space around it. An invitation is usually scanned from very close, so it doesn't need to be large. See the full QR code size guide. The back of the card or a separate details card keeps it out of your main design. Avoid foil, embossing and busy backgrounds across the code, which can stop it scanning. Ask your printer for a proof, and scan that.
Wording you can copy
- Website: "Scan for our wedding website: directions, where to stay and the day's timings."
- RSVP: "Scan to RSVP by 1 May, or call Aoife on 000 000 0000."
- Photos: "Scan this on the day, or afterwards, to add your photos to our album. No app needed."
A warning for photo albums on invitations
Invitations usually go out months ahead, so the link has to last until after the wedding. A free Scan & Snap album is deleted 7 days after you create it, so don't print a free album's code on an invitation. A paid album lasts a year from the day you upgrade: upgrade before you print. If a year from then ends too soon after the wedding, make the album later and link to it from your wedding website instead.
Check how long any service will keep your link working. Some free QR generators use redirect links that can expire or be withdrawn, which is a good reason to test the code again before the day.
Mistakes to avoid
- Linking to a page that isn't ready, or doesn't work on a phone.
- A long link that makes a dense, hard-to-scan code. Short ones are easier.
- No fallback for guests who don't use QR codes. Add a short web address too.
- Not testing the final printed proof.