An SMS QR code opens the phone’s messaging app with your number in the To field and your wording already in the message box. It is the fastest way to get a specific, consistent message from a stranger — a keyword, a table number, a unit number — without asking them to remember or retype anything.
What the code actually contains
A short plain-text string, encoded directly into the pattern. Nothing is looked up, and nothing is sent at the moment of scanning:
SMSTO:+15551234567:Send me the menu
The number comes first, then a colon, then the message body. Leave the body off —
SMSTO:+15551234567: — and it opens an empty message addressed to you.
Two details that decide whether it works
Use SMSTO:, not sms:?body=. Both formats exist, and the
sms: URI is the one you’ll find in web documentation — but its handling of
the body parameter varies by platform, and some scanners don’t recognise the scheme at all.
SMSTO: is the older QR convention and has noticeably broader scanner support, so that
is what these codes use.
Write the number in international format. +15551234567, not
(555) 123-4567. Some dialers and messaging apps reject a number with spaces,
parentheses, or dashes, or drop the leading digits, and you find out only after the flyers are
printed. The + and country code cost you nothing and remove the failure mode
entirely — they also make the code work for someone scanning it while roaming.
Keep the message short. A long prefilled message makes the code denser without making it more useful; a handful of words is enough to identify what the sender wants.
Static codes versus dynamic codes
This is a static code: the number and message are inside the image. It works forever, with no account and no service in the middle that can expire or be paywalled. It also cannot be edited or tracked — change the number and every printed copy points at the old one, and because nothing ever contacts a server there is no scan count.
If the number might change, or you want to see how many people scanned it, use a dynamic QR code instead. The free generator makes both.
Where people use them
- Table service and takeaway — a code on the table that texts your order line with the table number already in the message.
- Property signage — “Text for details on this unit,” with the address prefilled so you know which sign it came from.
- Events and check-ins — a keyword text that adds someone to a list or triggers an automated reply.
- Service vehicles and site boards — a quote request from someone standing on the pavement, without them saving your number first.
Frequently asked questions
Does the text send automatically when someone scans?
No. The code only opens the messaging app with the fields filled in. The person scanning reads it, edits it if they want, and sends it themselves — no phone will send a message on a scan alone.
Does the message go through your server?
No. The code is generated in your browser and the text travels as an ordinary SMS from their phone to yours. We are not in the middle of it and never see it.
Can I change the number later without reprinting?
Not with a static code — the number is encoded in the image. A dynamic code pointing at a page you control is the version you can edit after printing.
Does an SMS QR code expire?
No. There is no account, no trial, and nothing that can be switched off. It keeps working for as long as the number does.
Make your SMS code
Enter the number and the message, see it render instantly, and download it.
Create an SMS QR code Free, no account, generated in your browser.Last updated September 18, 2026.