SMS QR Code Generator

The scan opens the messaging app with the number and the message already typed. One tap sends it. That is about the shortest path there is between a printed poster and a reply you can actually act on.

QR Code Name

Content

Colors

Eye & Dot

Rounded · Rounded

Frames

None

Preview

Logo (optional)

Size: 300px

200px600px

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The prewritten message is a keyword

Because you control the body text, you control what arrives. Set it to a single unambiguous keyword — JOIN, VOTE-B, TABLE12, STOCK-4471 — and every inbound text is machine-sortable without asking the sender to type anything correctly. A poster in each room with a different keyword tells you which room the message came from, using nothing but the message itself.

Keep it to one word or short phrase. People do read the draft before sending, and a long paragraph written in their voice, in their outbox, reads as strange enough that some will delete it rather than send.

Consent and cost, briefly

If the text starts a marketing relationship, the send is the opt-in, and you should say so next to the code rather than in a policy nobody scans. "Text JOIN for offers, message rates apply, STOP to leave" under the code sets the expectation and covers the basics people actually care about.

Standard message rates apply to the sender, and international recipients may pay more than they expect. If your audience is likely to be roaming, a URL code to a web form is kinder than an SMS to a number in another country.

What gets encoded

smsto:+441234567890:TABLE12

The SMSTO form — number and message body separated by a colon. It is the variant handled most consistently across iOS and Android; some older scanners expect SMS: instead and will still open the app with the number.

Make the prewritten body a single keyword you can sort on.
Print the number in readable text too, for anyone whose camera will not cooperate.
Say what the text does before they send it — "Text JOIN for offers" beats an unlabelled code.

Questions

Does scanning send the text automatically?

No. It opens the messaging app with the number and body filled in, and the person taps send themselves. No QR code can send a message on someone else's behalf.

Can I use a short code instead of a full number?

Yes, if your short code accepts inbound messages — put it in the number field as you would any other. Check with the provider whether keyword routing on that short code expects a specific format for the body.

Why does the message body come through empty sometimes?

A few older scanners and third-party messaging apps drop the body and keep only the number. If the keyword matters to your workflow, print it beside the code as well so the sender can type it if it did not carry.

Read next

Where to Put a QR Code So People Actually Scan It

Need a different kind of code? All nine types are on the CQRG generator.

SMS QR Code Generator — Open a Text Message Ready to Send | CQRG