You made a QR code, printed it on a hundred flyers, and only later noticed the link points to the wrong page. Now what? With one type of QR code you reprint everything. With the other you fix the link in a few seconds and every flyer already in the wild starts working again. That single difference is what separates static and dynamic QR codes, and it decides which one you should actually use.
The short answer
A static QR code stores the destination inside the pattern itself. Once it is printed, it is fixed forever. A dynamic QR code stores a short link instead, and that short link can be repointed to a new destination whenever you want. The printed code never changes, but where it sends people can.
If you are putting a QR code anywhere you cannot easily reprint, like packaging, signage, business cards, or a magazine ad, you want a dynamic one. For a one-off code that will never need to change, static is fine.
How a static QR code works
When you generate a static QR code, the URL is encoded directly into the black and white squares. Scan it and your phone reads that exact address straight off the pattern. Nothing sits in between.
That has real upsides. Static codes never expire, they do not depend on any service staying online, and they work offline the instant they are printed. For something simple and permanent, like a link to your homepage that is never going to move, a static code does the job.
The catch is everything you give up:
- You cannot change the destination. The URL is baked into the squares. If the page moves or the link breaks, the code breaks with it.
- You cannot see who scanned it. There is no checkpoint between the scan and the destination, so there is no way to count scans or learn anything about them.
- Long URLs make a denser code. The more characters you encode, the busier the pattern gets, which makes it harder to scan from a distance or at small sizes.
For a printed campaign, those three limits are exactly the ones that hurt.
How a dynamic QR code works
A dynamic QR code does not encode your real destination. It encodes a short link, and that short link does the redirecting. Someone scans the code, lands on the short link, and gets forwarded to wherever you have pointed it today.
Because the destination lives in the short link and not in the printed squares, you can change it anytime. Same poster, same packaging, new landing page. You edit one field in your dashboard and every code already out there follows along.
That redirect step is also what makes tracking possible. Every scan passes through the short link first, so it can be counted and broken down before the person reaches the destination. You see how many people scanned, roughly where they were, and what device they used, without anything personal about them.
The differences that actually matter
Here is where the two part ways in practice.
Editing after printing
This is the big one. A static code is final the moment it leaves the printer. A dynamic code can be repointed for as long as you keep using it. Fix a typo in a URL, swap a holiday menu for the regular one, send last season's poster to this season's offer, all without reprinting a thing. This is the main reason businesses use dynamic codes for anything that goes to print.
Tracking and analytics
A static code tells you nothing once it is out there. A dynamic code reports back on every scan. With Linxly, each scan is tracked separately from regular link clicks, so you can tell how much of your traffic came from the printed code versus people clicking the same link online. You get scan counts over time, country, and device breakdowns, which is the difference between "we printed some flyers" and "the flyers brought in 1,200 scans, mostly on mobile."
Scan reliability
Because a dynamic code only encodes a short link, the pattern stays simple no matter how long or messy your real destination is. A simpler pattern scans faster and stays readable when it is printed small or viewed from across a room. Static codes carrying a long URL get dense and fussier to scan.
Cost and permanence
Static codes have one honest advantage: they are about as permanent as it gets, with no service in the loop. A dynamic code relies on the redirect staying live, which means it relies on your account staying active. For most real-world uses that tradeoff is worth it, because the ability to edit and track is worth far more than not depending on a service. But it is a fair point to know going in.
When to use each one
Use a static QR code when:
- The destination will genuinely never change.
- You do not care who scanned it or how many did.
- You want something that works with no service behind it, forever.
Use a dynamic QR code when:
- It is going on anything printed, where reprinting is a pain or a cost.
- You want to know how it performed.
- The link behind it might ever need to change, even once.
In practice, almost anything that goes into the physical world is better off dynamic, which is where the market has already moved: dynamic codes made up the majority of QR code use in 2024 (Grand View Research). The one time you wish you had used a dynamic code is the day you find a mistake on something already printed, and by then it is too late to switch.
A simple rule: if reprinting the code would cost you time or money, make it dynamic. The freedom to fix the link later is worth far more than it seems on the day you create it.
How to make a dynamic QR code with Linxly
You do not generate the QR code as a separate step. It comes with the link.
- Create a short link for whatever you are promoting, using the URL shortener.
- Its dynamic QR code is generated automatically, no extra tool needed.
- Add your brand color and drop your logo in the middle so it looks like yours, not a generic black square. (Customization is part of the paid plans.)
- Download it as a PNG or SVG and send it to print.
- Later, if anything changes, repoint the short link in your dashboard. Every printed code updates with it, instantly.
The codes use the highest of the four error-correction levels defined by QR's inventor, Denso Wave, a level that can rebuild a code even when close to a third of it is obscured or damaged (Denso Wave). That redundancy is what lets you drop a logo in the center without breaking the scan: a small obstruction in the middle still reads fine.
Every short link, deep link, and bio link you create in Linxly gets its own dynamic QR code automatically. You are never managing QR codes in a separate place from the links they point to.
The bottom line
Static and dynamic QR codes look identical to the person scanning them. The difference is entirely on your side. A static code is a one-time stamp you can never take back. A dynamic code is a link you can keep editing and measuring long after it is printed. For anything that matters, and especially anything that goes to print, that flexibility is the whole point.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I change a QR code after it is printed?
Only if it is a dynamic QR code. A static code has the destination baked into the pattern, so it cannot be changed. A dynamic code points to a short link you can repoint anytime, which updates every printed copy at once.
Do dynamic QR codes expire?
Your codes keep working as long as your account is active and the short link behind them is live. There is no built-in expiry date on the code itself.
Can I see how many people scanned my QR code?
Yes, with a dynamic code. Each scan passes through the short link, so Linxly counts it and breaks it down by country and device, tracked separately from regular clicks on the same link.
Are dynamic QR codes free?
You can try Linxly free for 7 days with full access, including dynamic QR codes with your logo and colors. After the trial, plans start at $0.99 a month, billed monthly, cancel anytime.
Will adding a logo stop the QR code from scanning?
No. The codes are generated with a high error-correction level, which leaves enough redundancy for a logo in the center while keeping the code fully scannable.