QR Code Business Cards: What Should the Code Open?

Business cards still change hands every day in North Cyprus: on a barber's counter, an estate agent's desk, a hotel reception, the dashboard of an air-conditioning engineer's van. But a small card can't hold a phone number, WhatsApp, Instagram, an address and a website, and even when it does, nobody wants to type a long handle into their phone letter by letter.

A QR code on the card makes that easy: whoever gets your card scans the code and your details open on their phone. This guide covers what can go in a business card QR code, which option suits which business, what size to print it, and what to do when your details change.

What goes in the code? Three options

A QR code stores a short piece of text. On a business card, that text is either your contact details themselves or the address of a page.

Contact card (vCard)

vCard is a common format for contact details that phones and email programs understand. The details can be written straight into the QR code, and when it's scanned most phones offer to add the contact; exactly how that looks depends on the phone. No internet is needed, which is the contact card's strength.

The downside: the more you write into a QR code, the more squares it needs. According to Denso Wave, the company that developed the QR code, the smallest code is 21 × 21 squares and the largest 177 × 177, and more data means more squares. A contact card with a name, two phone numbers, an email, an address and a website turns into a dense code that's hard to read at business card size. And when your number changes, every card you printed is out of date.

Fixed link

Putting just your website address in the code is the simplest option, and it's enough if your site has had the same address for years and always will. But people who take your card usually want to call you, message you on WhatsApp or get directions rather than browse your site, and a single address can't do all of that.

A page you can update: link card or dynamic QR code

The third option is to put a permanent address in the code and update the page it opens later. A link card opens a single page of buttons: call, WhatsApp, Instagram, location, website, bookings. A dynamic QR code goes straight to one address, which you can change at any time. On a business card, a link card is usually the better fit, because people tap whatever they need. See our guides to the link card and dynamic QR codes for more.

Which option for which business? Examples from North Cyprus

Where to put the code, and how big

• Size: a business card is held in the hand and scanned from about 20–30 cm. A common rule of thumb is that each side of the code should be about a tenth of the scanning distance, which means at least 2–3 cm on a business card. A 3 cm code fits comfortably on the back of a standard 85 × 55 mm card.
• Short address: the shorter the address inside the code, the simpler the code and the better it reads when printed small. A long address or a detailed contact card means a denser code at the same size.
• Quiet zone: leave an empty margin around the code at least four times the width of its smallest square, and don't push it against the edge of the card or your text.
• Colour: a dark code on a light background. You can use your brand colour if it's a dark shade.
• Finish: gloss lamination can reflect light and make scanning harder; a matt finish is safer.
• Say what it opens: a short line under the code, such as "Bookings and all our links".
• Back of the card: your name and phone on the front, the code and its line on the back, so neither side gets crowded.

Before you send the file to the printer, print the card at actual size on an ordinary printer and scan it with at least two different phones. A mistake found after the cards are printed can't be undone. Our QR code printing guide (in Turkish) covers size, contrast and materials in more detail.

The code doesn't replace printed details

Not everyone scans: someone with an old phone, no signal at that moment, or your card found in a drawer years later will still read it. Print your name, your business name and your phone number on the card. Let the code carry everything else: Instagram, location, bookings, Google reviews.

When your details change

With a contact card or a fixed link, a change means new cards. With a link card, you just fix the button: a new WhatsApp number, a new Instagram account or a new booking page opens from the same code for everyone who has your card. There's no need to throw your cards away; only the details printed on them stay as they were.

A page you can update depends on the service behind it, so before you print, ask what the code will open once your plan ends. On Hani Menü, a link card's address never changes, so you never need to reprint the code to update your links.

Business cards with the Hani Menü link card

The Hani Menü link card works well on business cards, and businesses without a restaurant can use it too. We open your account and apply your logo and brand colours; you write the buttons in your panel. You download the card's QR code in colour, in black, or as an SVG that stays sharp at any size, and give it to your printer with your card design. No personal data is collected from the people who open the card; the details are in our privacy policy (in Turkish).

Current monthly and yearly prices (VAT not included) are on our link card page (in Turkish), where you can also request a quote. If you'd rather the code on your card went straight to one page that you can change later, see our QR code page (in Turkish).