QR Codes for Restaurants: Reviews, WiFi, Menus and Payments

Most restaurants print one QR code, for the menu, and stop there. The same free tools cover the receipt, the wall by the door, the takeout bag and the staff-wanted sign. This guide gives the steps and the right generator for each. The menu itself has its own article: hosting a menu, keeping the code stable and printing table tents.

Every code below is static: it stores a link permanently and cannot be edited later, so use a link you control. The rest of that story is at /qr-codes-that-never-expire.

Google review code on receipts and the check presenter

A review request works best in the two minutes after a good meal, which is exactly when the guest is holding the check.

1. Open your Google Business Profile, choose Ask for reviews, and copy the short link. It opens the review form directly, with the star picker on screen.
2. Paste the link into the Google review QR code generator and download PNG at 600 pixels or more.
3. Add the code to the bottom of your receipt template, at least 2 cm square with a white margin, under the line "How did we do? Scan to leave a review."
4. Print a second copy for the check presenter and the takeout bag sticker.

Thermal receipt printers are low resolution, so keep the code at 2 to 2.5 cm and scan a printed receipt before rolling it out to every register.

Guest WiFi on the wall

A WiFi code saves every server the "what's the password" conversation and gets the password off the chalkboard.

1. Set up a guest network on your router, separate from the one your point-of-sale system uses, with its own password.
2. Enter the network name, the password and the security type (almost always WPA) in the WiFi QR code generator. The code stores the text WIFI:T:WPA;S:NetworkName;P:Password;;, which iPhones running iOS 11 or later and Android phones running Android 10 or later read with the plain camera app.
3. Print it at 5 cm or larger, with "Free WiFi, scan to connect" above it and the network name typed out below for anyone whose phone does not offer the prompt.
4. Post one near the door and one at the bar, where people wait.

Reprint the code whenever you change the password.

Reservation or ordering page

If you take bookings through OpenTable, Resy, Tock or your own site, the booking page has a stable address you can print on the window and on takeout menus.

1. Copy the address of your booking page or online ordering page. Prefer a page on your own domain (yourrestaurant.com/book) that forwards to the platform, so you can switch platforms without reprinting.
2. Make the code with the URL QR code generator.
3. Print it on the window sign at 10 cm or larger for reading from the pavement, with "Book a table" or "Order pickup" as the label.

Mount a window code on the inside of the glass, facing out, at chest height. The size calculator gives the minimum size for any scanning distance.

Instagram on the takeout bag and the bathroom mirror

1. Copy your profile address, instagram.com/yourrestaurant, and paste it into the Instagram QR code generator.
2. Add your logo in the design studio if you like, keeping it under a quarter of the code area and error correction at Q or H.
3. Print it on bag stickers, the drinks menu and the wall guests already photograph.

Link to the profile, not to a single post.

Catering menu or wine list as a PDF

A catering sheet or a long wine list is a document that changes a few times a year, which makes it a good fit for a PDF at a fixed link.

1. Export the PDF at a phone-friendly page size, keep it under a couple of megabytes, and upload it to Google Drive or Dropbox with sharing set to anyone with the link.
2. Make the code with the PDF QR code generator.
3. When the list changes, replace the file at the same link (Google Drive's Manage versions) rather than uploading a new file, so printed codes keep working.
4. Put the code on cards at the host stand and in a corner of the printed menu.

Staff hiring form

A "We're hiring" sign with a code gets applications from people who would never email.

1. Build a short Google Form: name, phone, position, availability, and an optional line for experience.
2. Open the form's Send menu, copy the link, and paste it into the Google Forms QR code generator.
3. Print it on the window and by the register at 5 cm or larger, labeled with the roles you are hiring for.

Responses land in the form's spreadsheet, where a manager can review them once a day.

A payment or tip link

A code on the counter or check presenter can open your PayPal or Venmo page for tips or deposits.

1. Copy your PayPal.Me address or your Venmo profile link.
2. Make the code with the PayPal QR code generator or the Venmo QR code generator.
3. Print it with the account name typed out beneath it so guests can confirm they are paying the right business.

The code opens your payment page; it cannot charge anyone or set an amount, and the guest still types the sum and confirms it in the app. For card payment at the table you need your point-of-sale provider, not a QR code.

Before anything goes to print

Upload each exported file to the QR code tester to confirm it decodes to the exact address, print one proof at final size, and scan it where it will live with both an iPhone and an Android phone. Keep the address short, the quiet zone clear, and the modules dark on a light background.

Make the first one now with the URL QR code generator, and work through the rest as you reprint each item.