Website URL QR Code for Print Ads, With UTM Tracking

Build the tagged website URL first

Decide what you want to compare before you write a single tag. A dental practice testing a mailer against a window decal needs two codes that differ only in the source value; a brand running one poster in twelve cities needs utm_content to separate the locations.

• utm_source names the specific placement: bus_shelter_5th_ave, spring_mailer, booth_banner.
• utm_medium names the channel, and should stay the same across all printed items, for example print or qr.
• utm_campaign groups everything in one push, such as spring_sale_2026, so the whole campaign reports together.
• Use lowercase with underscores. GA4 treats Print and print as two different values, which quietly splits your numbers.
• Keep a small spreadsheet of every tagged link and where it was printed. Six months later nobody remembers what flyer_b meant.

Google's free Campaign URL Builder assembles the string for you if you prefer not to type question marks and ampersands by hand. Paste the result into a browser and confirm the page loads before it goes anywhere near a printer.

Tags are easier to manage with a naming scheme, so read this guide to UTM parameters and build links with the UTM Builder.

Keep a long tracked link easy to scan

Every character you add makes the pattern denser. A bare address like https://example.com/p/bus fits in a version 2 symbol, 25 modules across, at the default Medium error correction. A full tagged link of about 95 characters needs version 6, 41 modules across. Both scan, but the denser one needs to be printed larger to read at the same distance.

• Point the square at a short path on your own domain, such as example.com/go/bus, and set that path to redirect to the fully tagged landing page.
• Use a temporary 302 redirect. Browsers can cache a permanent 301, so a phone that scanned last month may skip your updated destination.
• A redirect you control also fixes the biggest weakness of static codes: if the landing page moves, you change the redirect, not 5,000 printed postcards.
• If you use a third-party shortener, check its terms. Some free plans expire links or add interstitial ads, and a dead short link kills every printed code at once.

How the GrabCast QR Code tool builds the file

GrabCast draws the code in your browser from the text you type, so the link is not sent anywhere to generate it. The URL / Text tab is selected by default; paste the address and the preview appears straight away.

• The Size slider sets pixels per module, from 4 to 18. The PNG width is the module count plus an 8-module quiet zone, times that number, so a 41-module code at 8 comes out at 392 by 392 pixels.
• Error correction runs from Low (7 percent) to High (30 percent). Medium is the default and is right for most clean print.
• Dots and Background take any color, and the tool warns you if contrast drops below 3 to 1 or if you pick light dots on a dark background, which some phones refuse to read.
• Add logo places your image in the center on a padded patch and locks error correction to High while the logo is on.
• Download PNG for screens and slides, or SVG (vector) for print. An added logo is embedded in both files; an SVG logo stays vector inside the SVG, while photo and PNG logos are embedded at up to 1024 pixels.

One honest limit: GrabCast makes static codes. It does not count scans, host redirects or let you edit a printed code later. The tagged link and your own analytics do that work.

Print the website QR code at a size that scans

Most scanning failures are about print size and placement, not the generator. A common rule of thumb is that a code scans comfortably from roughly ten times its width, so a 1 inch square works at a counter and a 10 inch square on a window reads from a few yards back.

• Never print a campaign square smaller than about 0.8 inch (2 cm), and go bigger for dense, tagged links.
• Keep the white quiet zone around the edge. Designers love to crop it tight, and scanners hate it.
• Put it at chest height where a phone is already in hand, not above a doorway or at ankle level on a sandwich board.
• Add one line of text that says what the scan delivers, like 20 percent off your first cleaning, plus the short address for people who prefer to type.
• Scan the actual printer proof with an iPhone and an Android phone, in the lighting where it will hang, before approving the run.

Step-by-step

Common mistakes to avoid

Pro tips

Frequently asked questions