How to redirect a QR code by time, device or country

A trackable code can send different people to different places. With smart redirects you add rules such as "on weekday evenings, open the dinner menu", "iPhones go to the App Store page" or "split visitors 50/50 between two landing pages". You can change the rules any time, and printed codes follow.

How to add a smart redirect

1. Open a trackable link code. Create a trackable code of a type that opens a link (URL, Facebook, X / Twitter, YouTube, App store or Location), or open an existing one and go to Edit & design.
2. Find the Smart redirects block. Open the Options section. The Smart redirects block is under Automatic UTM tags. In the new guided editor it's in the Finish step for new codes and the Settings tab for existing ones.
3. Add a rule. Click + Add rule and pick a type: Time of day, Device, Country or A/B split.
4. Fill it in. Give it a Rule name (you'll see it in your stats), choose when it applies, and paste the link in Send them to. An A/B split takes 2 to 4 links with a share for each.
5. Put the rules in order. Drag rules, or use the ↑ and ↓ buttons. The first rule that matches a visitor wins.
6. Save. Click Save changes (or Create QR code for a new code). Printed copies follow the new rules straight away.

On Free and Premium the block is shown locked with a link to upgrade to Pro. It doesn't appear for static codes or for types that open a hosted page.

The four rule types

Time of day

Pick the days (or the Every day, Weekdays and Weekends shortcuts) and a time window with From and Until. The window starts at the "From" time and ends just before the "Until" time. A window can run past midnight: 10:00 PM to 2:00 AM on Friday covers Friday night into early Saturday morning.

Times are checked in the code's time zone, set in Time zone for time rules (it appears once you add a time rule). New codes start with your browser's time zone. The visitor's own time zone doesn't matter, so set the zone where your business is.

Device

Choose iPhone/iPad, Android, Computer, or several. This is handy when you want each phone to land on its own app page, or computers on a different site. Devices that are none of these don't match and get the next rule or the normal link.

Country

Search the list and add one or more countries. The country comes from the visitor's network connection, the same approximate location used in your stats, so someone using a VPN counts as being where the VPN is.

A/B split

Add 2 to 4 links and give each a share. Shares are whole percentages that must add up to 100 (for example 50/50 or 70/30). Each visitor is sent to one of them at random, according to the shares, and gets the same link again if they scan more than once that day.

An A/B split always matches, so any rule below it never runs. The editor warns you about this; keep the split at the bottom.

Which rule wins

When someone scans, QR Crab checks the rules from top to bottom and uses the first one that matches. If none match, the visitor gets the code's normal link. A few things still apply on top of the rules:

• If How to add UTM tags to a QR code for Google Analytics are on, the tags are added to whichever link the visitor is sent to.
• A password or expiry date on the code is checked first, before any rule.
• App store and Location codes normally pick the store or the maps app for each phone. A rule replaces that with the single link you enter, so use a full https:// link.

See which rule each scan used

Open the code's Stats tab. The Scans by rule / variant card lists each rule with its scans, the scans that went to the Normal destination, and, for an A/B split, each link's share of that split's scans. Rules you deleted are grouped together. With only a few dozen scans, an A/B split can look uneven; give it time before you pick a winner.

Common questions

Can one rule check two things, like iPhone users in Mexico?

No. Each rule checks one thing. Rules are checked from the top, so put the most specific ones first. For example, an iPhone rule above a Mexico rule sends every iPhone to the first link, wherever it is.

What if no rule matches?

The visitor goes to the code's normal link, the one in the content section. In your stats these scans appear as Normal destination.

Will the same person always get the same A/B link?

For the rest of the day, yes: someone who scans again that day gets the same link. On another day they may get a different one, because visitors are only recognized within a day.

What happens to my rules if I leave Pro?

They stay saved but aren't used: every scan goes to the code's normal link. The editor shows "Your saved rules are kept but not used on this plan." If you go back to Pro, they work again.

Do smart redirects work on static codes or menus?

No. They work only on trackable codes that open a link. Static codes can't change after they're made, and types that open a hosted page (menu, PDF, coupon and so on) always show that page.