# How to Make a QR Code for Google Reviews (and See How Many People Scan It)

Source: https://lots.link/blog/make-qr-code-for-google-reviews-count-scans
Published: 2026-11-01T00:30:34.559753+00:00

To make a Google review QR code you can count, don't print the code Google gives you. Make a short link to your Google review link in LotsLink, make a QR code from that short link, and give each place you'll print it its own link. Every scan is recorded as a click on that placement's link, so you can see which spot gets scanned and which one doesn't.

The step-by-step build, with Google's review rules and print tips, is in [how to make a QR code for Google reviews](https://lots.link/blog/qr-code-for-google-reviews). This page starts where that one stops: what to count, how to read the numbers next to your new reviews, and what to change when they disappoint.

## Why Google's own QR code can't give you a scan count

In your Business Profile you select **Read reviews**, then **Get more reviews**, and copy the link or download the code. That is the whole flow on Google's [help page for review links and QR codes](https://support.google.com/business/answer/16816815) (opened on 31 October 2026). It lists receipts, thank-you emails, chats and a printed code in your store as places to use it, and it doesn't describe a scan count.

If you want a number, put your own short link between the code and Google. The code opens your short link, the short link records the visit, and then it sends the visitor on to your Google review page. That is also why a code printed straight from Google's page can't be counted by LotsLink: it never passes through a LotsLink link.

## Set it up so each spot counts separately

One link for everything tells you the total. One link per placement tells you what to do next.

| Where it goes | Example slug | What its count tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Table card | `review-sample-cafe-table` | Whether people scan while they're still sitting there |
| Receipt | `review-sample-cafe-receipt` | Whether the end of the visit works |
| Counter sign | `review-sample-cafe-counter` | Whether the busiest spot earns its space |
| Thank-you email | `review-sample-cafe-email` | Whether people who left already follow up |

A few rules for the links:

- **Same destination, different slug.** Every link points to your one Google review link.
- **Slugs are 7 to 40 letters, numbers, hyphens or underscores,** and a slug that contains a brand name, "google" included, is refused. A slug is unique on the domain it's used on, so put your business name in it.
- **Leave the UTM fields empty.** The destination is Google's page, not your website, so there's no analytics of yours to read the tags.
- **Don't edit a slug after printing.** It changes the short URL, and a printed code with the old one stops working. Editing the destination is safe (more on that below).
- **Group the links in a project** called something like "Google reviews", so they sit together in your list. Owners and admins create projects.

In the dashboard, create each link on **Create Link** with a **Custom Slug** and a **Project**, then open **QR Codes**, choose **Select Link**, click **Generate QR Code** and **Download**. Or ask your AI agent: connect it once from [lots.link/mcp](https://lots.link/mcp) and it can do the same. A prompt for it:

> In my LotsLink workspace, create a project called "Google reviews". Then create four short links in it to https://example.com/my-google-review-link with the slugs review-sample-cafe-table, review-sample-cafe-receipt, review-sample-cafe-counter and review-sample-cafe-email, and make a 1024 pixel QR code for the first three.

The agent works through the tools for creating a project, creating links and making QR codes (`lotslink_create_project`, `lotslink_create_link`, `lotslink_create_qr_code`). Replace the example address with your real review link, and keep a note of which slug sits where. The email link needs no code, just the short link in the message.

Before you print, scan each code once with your own phone. That scan counts as a click, so look at the **Clicks** number afterwards and treat it as your starting point.

## Where to read the numbers

**In the dashboard**

- **All Links** lists each link with its **Clicks** (all time). Click the column header to sort, and the **Project** column keeps your review links together. This is the quickest way to rank placements against each other.
- A link's actions menu has **View Analytics**. That page shows **Total Clicks**, **Clicks** for the period you pick (**7 Days**, **30 Days**, **90 Days** or **1 Year**), **Today** and **Daily Average**, plus a daily chart, countries, devices and referrers.
- **Export** downloads the numbers for your own spreadsheet.

**From your agent**

> Which of my Google reviews links were opened most in the last 30 days? Rank them and show the daily numbers for the best one.

For a period, the agent reads each link's analytics (`lotslink_get_link_analytics`, with a `days` value from 1 to 365). `lotslink_list_links` gives the all-time click count for every link, and `lotslink_export_analytics` returns a workspace or a single link as CSV or JSON, with an optional date range. Individual click records (time, approximate location, device, referrer) come from `lotslink_get_click_details`.

## What a scan number means

Read it as "recorded scans", not "people".

- **Bots, link previews, prefetches and HEAD requests aren't counted,** so a chat app fetching a preview doesn't inflate a code.
- **A repeat visit by the same visitor to the same link within 10 seconds counts once.** A later visit counts again.
- **There's no unique-visitor count.** LotsLink doesn't store visitor IP addresses, so one person who scans on three different days is three scans.
- **Country and city are approximate and can be missing.** Treat them as a rough picture.
- **Only codes that open a LotsLink short link are counted.**

For a sanity check, a code on a table card should mostly show mobile devices. If a placement shows mostly desktop, the link may have been shared as text somewhere.

## Compare scans with reviews, over weeks

Reviews are the number you care about, and they live in Google, not in LotsLink. Open your Business Profile, select **Read reviews**, and note how many new reviews arrived. Do it on the same day each week, and write it next to the scans.

Don't judge on a single day. Google says reviews are checked against its policies and that this can take a few days, so a review can appear after the scan that led to it ([About missing or delayed reviews](https://support.google.com/business/answer/10313341), opened on 31 October 2026). Customers also have to be signed in to a Google Account to leave one, per [Google's tips for getting reviews](https://support.google.com/business/answer/3474122).

Here is what four weeks can look like. These numbers are made up to show how to read the table; they are not from a real business.

| Placement | Scans in 4 weeks |
|---|---|
| Table card | 46 |
| Receipt | 21 |
| Thank-you email | 14 |
| Counter sign | 9 |
| **All placements** | **90** |

In the same four weeks, 12 new reviews appeared in the Business Profile. That's roughly one new review for every 7 or 8 scans, a rough ratio rather than a rate, because some reviewers never scanned a code and some scanners never review. What matters is the direction over several months, and the gap between placements. Here the table card is doing the work and the counter sign isn't.

| What you see | What I'd try |
|---|---|
| Few scans at every placement | Make the code bigger, add a line beside it ("Scan to review us on Google"), and move it to where the visit ends. |
| One placement far ahead of the others | Put more codes where it works. Leave the weak one for another month first, then reword it or move it. |
| Plenty of scans, reviews don't follow | Test the full path on your own phone, signed out of Google, and give it a few days before you judge. The sign-in step and Google's checks both sit after the scan. |
| Scans that arrive in bursts | Look at the daily chart to see which day it came from, and what happened that day. |

There's no benchmark number here, because a good scan count depends on your footfall.

## Keep the counts honest with Google's rules

Per-placement numbers are for improving the sign and the spot, and Google's rules still apply. The [Maps user generated content policy](https://support.google.com/contributionpolicy/answer/7400114) (opened on 31 October 2026) says merchants shouldn't:

- offer payment, discounts or free goods or services for a review,
- discourage negative reviews or selectively ask only customers who are likely to be positive,
- require or pressure people to review while they're on the premises, or ask staff to solicit a certain number of reviews.

In practice: give the same code to everyone, never put a reward on the sign, and don't turn scan counts into targets for your staff. Use them to decide where a card sits, not who has to collect more.

## Change where the code goes without losing the count

If Google gives you a new review link, or you open a second location, change the link's destination. In the dashboard that's Edit Link, then Destination URL; from your agent it's `lotslink_update_link` with a new `original_url`. The slug, short URL and QR code stay the same, so printed codes keep working and keep counting, and the click history stays on the link. The change reaches visitors at once, and `destination_changes` on the link records when it happened. The full walk-through is in [how to change a QR code's link after printing](https://lots.link/blog/change-qr-code-link-after-printing), and [dynamic vs static QR codes](https://lots.link/blog/dynamic-vs-static-qr-codes) explains why this works.

If you've already printed Google's own code, it still works, but nothing in LotsLink can count it. Use the short-link code in your next print run.

## What it costs

Short links, QR codes and clicks on lots.link are free and unlimited (up to 1,000 new links per person in any 24 hours), per the [pricing page](https://lots.link/pricing) and the live price list, checked on 31 October 2026. You pay only if you want your own domain in the link, such as `go.yourcafe.com/table`. Starter is $9 a month for 3 custom domains, and pay as you go is $4 a month per domain from credits. New accounts get free credits when they sign up, no card, enough to run one custom domain for about a month. Pick the domain before you print, because the code carries whichever address the link had. The [free QR code generator](https://lots.link/free-qr-code-generator) is the quickest way to start.

## If you set this up for other businesses

Make one workspace per business (workspaces are free and unlimited) and keep that business's review links in one project. Invite the owner as a viewer so they can read their own scan numbers. Every member of a workspace, viewers included, can read all of its links, projects and analytics, which is why a client shouldn't share a workspace with other clients. More in [link management for agencies](https://lots.link/blog/link-management-for-agencies).

## FAQ

### Does Google show how many people scanned my review QR code?
Google's help page for review links and QR codes explains how to copy the link and download the code, and it doesn't describe a scan count (checked on 31 October 2026). To get a number, make the QR code from your own short link in LotsLink, and read the clicks there.

### How do I count scans of a Google review QR code?
Make a short link to your Google review link, make the QR code from that short link, and print it. Each scan opens the short link and is recorded as a click with the time, device, approximate location and referrer. Read them under All Links, View Analytics, or ask your AI agent.

### Does a scan mean a review?
No. A scan is a recorded visit to the link. The visitor has to be signed in to a Google Account, and Google checks reviews before they show, which can take a few days. Compare scans with new reviews in your Business Profile over several weeks.

### Why doesn't my scan count match my customer count?
Scans aren't customers. A repeat visit within 10 seconds counts once, bots and link previews aren't counted, your own test scans are, and LotsLink doesn't store visitor IP addresses, so there is no unique-visitor count. Read the trend, not the exact figure.

### Can I use a different QR code for each table or counter?
Yes. Make one short link and one code per placement and compare them in All Links. Counting per member of staff to set review targets is a different matter: Google's policy lists asking staff to solicit a certain number of reviews as something merchants shouldn't do.

### Is counting QR code scans free?
Yes. Links, QR codes and clicks on lots.link are free and unlimited, with up to 1,000 new links per person in any 24 hours. A paid plan or credits only matter if you want your own domain in the link.