Do Bitly QR codes expire?

Everything here is from Bitly's own help pages and pricing page, read on 19 October 2026. Bitly changes its plans, so check the linked pages for the current details.

First, which Bitly made your code?

Bitly sells two QR products, and they answer this question in opposite ways. Bitly's help page on Bitly and QRCG by Bitly says Bitly bought QR Code Generator in 2021 and renamed it QRCG by Bitly, and that the two are separate products with separate accounts. A code made in one cannot move to the other.

• Bitly (bitly.com) is a link platform that also makes QR codes. Its codes use bit.ly, or a custom domain you set up.
• QRCG by Bitly (qr-code-generator.com) is a QR code generator. Its help pages show its dynamic codes using short links such as qrco.de and l.ead.me.

Not sure which one you used? Paste the code into the QR code URL checker and read the domain, or check which of the two sites you sign in to.

Codes made on bitly.com

Bitly Support's page "Do Bitly Codes ever expire?" is direct: "Like Bitly Links, the QR Codes you create in Bitly never expire." Its other help pages say when a code does stop:

• You delete it. Deleting a code, or the short link behind it, stops it working for good.
• Someone set an expiry date. Some paid plans can set a date when a link or code stops. After that date, scans go to an error page. It is a setting someone chose, not a default.
• A custom domain lapses. A code on your own domain works while that domain's DNS points to Bitly and the domain is attached to a Bitly account.

Stopping payment is not on that list for bit.ly codes. Bitly's page on downgrading says bit.ly links keep working after a downgrade, and that QR codes behave the same way. A custom domain is where a downgrade can bite: Bitly stops renewing that domain's security certificate, so people who scan may see a "not secure" warning, and a free domain Bitly gave you stops working when its registration runs out. Even a deleted account leaves bit.ly codes working, by Bitly's page on deleted accounts.

What a free Bitly code cannot do: change

The reason to make a dynamic code is to change where it points after printing. Bitly calls that a redirect. Its page "How do I redirect a Bitly Code?" says you can redirect a code on all paid plans, and Bitly's pricing page does not include redirects on the free plan. So a code made on Bitly's free plan keeps its first link. On paid plans, each redirect counts against a monthly redirect limit set by the plan, and, when the code has a short link attached, against the monthly link limit too.

Codes made on QRCG by Bitly

QRCG by Bitly starts you on a free trial. Its help center, read the same day, says:

• When the free trial ends, dynamic codes made during it are deactivated, and scans go to a service page instead of your page. Static codes keep working.
• To turn them back on, you upgrade that same account. A new account cannot bring an old code back.
• When you cancel a paid plan, dynamic codes keep redirecting through the period you paid for and for a limited time after it. Then the account locks and scans go to a service page.

So if a code you made "on Bitly" now opens a service page instead of yours, check whether it was made on qr-code-generator.com. You can upgrade that account, or make a new code and reprint. My QR code stopped working walks through both.

How TangoQR compares

Every TangoQR code is dynamic, and none expires, on any plan. There is no trial to run out. You can change a code's link free for its first 50 scans, and on Pro ($10 a month or $100 a year) there is no monthly limit on changes. A free code past 50 scans keeps redirecting to its last link, and changing it needs Pro. Cancel Pro and every code keeps working. Both plans have unlimited codes. The full comparison is on our Bitly alternative page, and do QR codes expire? covers every other kind of code.