Do QR codes expire?

The image can't expire; it's math, not a subscription. For a static code, the only thing that can die is the page it points to. For a dynamic code, there's a redirect service in the middle, and that's where expiry sneaks in. When someone says "my QR code expired", they almost always mean their QR provider stopped answering: a trial ended, a plan was cancelled, or a monthly scan cap was hit.

So the honest checklist: know which kind of code you have (paste it into the URL checker if unsure), keep the destination page alive, and if it's dynamic, pick a provider whose codes outlive the plan. That last one is a deliberate TangoQR promise: codes never stop redirecting, on any plan.

How long do QR codes last?

As long as the thing behind them. A static code lasts exactly as long as its destination page: keep the page, and a code printed today will scan the same way in ten years. A dynamic code lasts as long as its provider keeps answering for it, which is a question about the provider's terms, not the technology. The printed pattern itself doesn't degrade in any way that matters, as long as the print is still clean and undamaged enough for a camera to read.

What happens to printed codes if you cancel?

It depends entirely on who made them, and the answer is written on the provider's pricing page, usually in a sentence nobody reads before printing. Some are blunt about it. Uniqode's pricing page says: "If you decide to cancel your subscription, your QR Codes will become inactive." Others keep codes alive after cancelling. Bitly's help center says its codes never expire and keep working unless you delete them.

On TangoQR, cancelling Pro puts your account back on the free plan, and every code keeps redirecting to the last destination you set and keeps counting scans. What changes is the dashboard: on a code past its first 50 scans, editing and the detailed analytics lock until you upgrade again. The redirect never depends on payment, and there is no expiry date to set, on any plan.

Is there a free QR code that doesn't expire?

Yes, two kinds. Any static QR code is free and never expires, but it can never be changed or tracked either, so a dead link means a reprint. A free TangoQR code is dynamic and also never expires: you get unlimited codes, each one fully editable with detailed analytics for its first 50 scans, and it keeps redirecting forever after that, whether or not you ever pay.

Can a TangoQR code ever stop working?

Three things can stop one, and none of them is time or money. You can switch a code off yourself through the API, on any plan, and back on again. We switch off codes that break our terms, such as phishing links. And a dynamic code depends on its provider existing, which no provider can honestly promise you forever. What a provider can promise is that it won't switch your code off to make you pay, and that is the promise we make. Even deleting your TangoQR account leaves your printed codes redirecting to their last destination.

Do codes from Canva, Bitly and other tools expire?

We've answered the two most common, from each vendor's own help pages: do Canva QR codes expire and do Bitly QR codes expire. For a code that has already stopped, what happens when the free plan ends walks through the three ways a free code dies and how to check yours.