Smart QR Code: Redirect by Device, Country, and Time

A smart QR code is one printed code that sends each scanner to the page that fits them: iPhones to the App Store, Android phones to Google Play, each country to its own site, or half your traffic to a new landing page for an A/B test. In QRelix this is called Smart Routing. You build a route once, test it with a pretend scan, and pick it on any link QR code, and when you change the route later, every code that uses it follows with no reprints. Smart Routing is included with QRelix Pro and Team.

What a smart QR code actually does

A normal dynamic QR code has one destination. You can edit it after printing, but everyone who scans gets the same link. A smart QR code has a route instead: a short list of rules plus a fallback.

• Each rule says when (one or more conditions, all of which must match) and where (one link, or a split between links).
• Rules are checked from top to bottom. The first rule that matches decides where the scan goes.
• A scan that matches no rule goes to the fallback, labeled "Everyone else".

QRelix decides the destination on its own servers when the scan arrives. The scanner only ever receives the one link chosen for them, never your rules or your other links. Routing adds no extra page or delay, and a reloaded scan page keeps the same destination.

QR code redirect by device, country, language, and time

Every rule is built from conditions. You can combine several in one rule, for example iPhone and in Canada.

• Device: iPhone and iPad, Android, computer, or other. This is how you make one QR code for iPhone and Android.
• Country: scanned in one of a list of countries, or anywhere except them. Country comes from the scanner's network location.
• Language: the phone's main language, such as Spanish or French.
• Day and time: days of the week and a time window in the route's time zone. A window that ends before it starts, such as 10:00 PM to 2:00 AM, runs past midnight.
• Date range: from a date, until a date, or between two dates (both days included).
• Scan number: the first N scans of each code, or every scan after them.

Start from a recipe

You do not have to build rules from a blank screen. When you create a route, you pick a recipe and QRelix fills in a ready-to-edit setup:

• Round robin: takes turns between links, one scan at a time, to spread visitors across locations or booking pages.
• A/B split test: sends a share of scans to each version, such as 50/50 or 70/30.
• By device: iPhone and iPad to one link, Android to another, computers to a third.
• By country: each country (or everyone outside a list) to its own page.
• By language: opens the page in the phone's main language.
• Business hours: one page during opening hours, another after hours.
• Limited-time campaign: a different page between two dates.
• First scans win: the first N scans of each code get one page, later scans another, for early bird coupons.

You can also choose Start from scratch.

QR code A/B tests and rotations

Any rule, and the fallback, can send scans to more than one link. There are two kinds of split:

• By share (A/B): each scan is assigned at random by the percentages you set. Over many scans, traffic matches the shares.
• Take turns: scans go to each link in order (first link, second link, and so on), so traffic is perfectly even.

How to set up a smart QR code

1. Open Smart Routing in the dashboard.
2. Pick a recipe, or Start from scratch.
3. Name the route, paste your links, and adjust the rules. Reorder rules with the up and down arrows, since the first match wins.
4. Use Test a scan on the right. Pick a device, country, language, date, time, and scan number, and QRelix shows exactly where that scanner lands and why each rule did or did not match.
5. Click Create route.
6. Attach it to a code. For a new code, open the smart route wizard (or choose a URL code), switch the destination from One link to Smart route, and pick your route. For an existing code, open its Configure page, set Destination to Smart route, pick the route, and save.

The full reference is in the Smart Routing docs.

One route on many codes

A route is not tied to one QR code. One route can power any number of codes, and the route's page lists every code that uses it.

On the Team plan you can attach routes in bulk too: add a route column with the route's name to a bulk CSV import, or pass a route ID when you create or update a URL code with the developer API.

Send scans to a hosted page

In any link field of a route, click the page icon to pick one of your hosted pages, such as a menu, PDF, or link-in-bio page you built in QRelix. If you change a page's link later, the route follows it.

Worked example: a cafe with two languages and a happy hour

A neighborhood cafe prints one smart QR code on every table. The owner wants three things: Spanish-speaking guests should see the Spanish menu, everyone should see the happy hour specials from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM on weekdays, and the owner wants to test whether a photo-heavy menu sells more than a text menu.

The route looks like this, top to bottom:

1. Rule 1, happy hour: Monday to Friday, 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM in the cafe's time zone. Goes to the happy hour page.
2. Rule 2, Spanish: phone language is Spanish. Goes to the Spanish menu, a hosted page picked with the page icon.
3. Everyone else: a 50/50 split between the photo menu and the text menu.

Before saving, the owner runs Test a scan with an Android phone, Spanish, Wednesday at 5:00 PM. The tester shows Rule 1 matched, so the guest gets the happy hour page. That is a useful lesson: order matters. If the owner wants Spanish speakers to get a Spanish happy hour page, they add a rule above Rule 1 that combines both conditions.

Analytics per rule and variant

Each route's page shows the last 30 days of routed scans: a daily chart, scans per rule, and scans per link in each split, so you can read an A/B test without extra tools. Every scan also keeps the full analytics you already have (time, device, location) on the QR code's own report. See how QR code tracking works for what that report includes.

To follow visitors past the landing page, add a different UTM tag to each link (for example utm_content=a and utm_content=b), or use the {route_rule} and {variant} placeholders in a UTM template so every visit in Google Analytics says which rule or version sent it.

Limits and when not to use it

• You only need one destination. If every scanner should land on the same page, a regular dynamic code is simpler, and you can still edit it after printing.
• App download only. If all you want is iPhone to the App Store and Android to Google Play, read our guide to a QR code for app download first. The By device recipe handles it, but the guide covers the simpler setup.
• Country is network based. Country comes from the scanner's network location, so a traveler on a roaming connection or a VPN may be placed somewhere unexpected. Always give the fallback a sensible page.
• Splits are random by share. A 50/50 split evens out over many scans, not over the first ten. Give an A/B test time before you call a winner, or use take turns when you need exact balance.

What smart routing costs

Smart Routing is a paid feature. Plans are on the pricing page.

• Free plan (no credit card): unlimited dynamic QR codes, full scan analytics with CSV export, editable destinations, the whole security suite, UTM tags, and 1 hosted page. Each free code works for its first 50 scans, then pauses until you upgrade, and free scans show a brief QRelix screen before forwarding. Smart Routing is not included.
• Pro, $5.99 a month or $59.99 a year: Smart Routing, unlimited scans, no QRelix screen, a Brand Kit, conversion pixels, unlimited hosted pages, faster redirects, and priority support.
• Team, $19 a month with 3 seats: everything in Pro plus a shared workspace with roles, custom domains, bulk creation from CSV, and the developer API. In a Team workspace, owners, admins, and editors can manage routes, and viewers can see them.

If your workspace moves back to the Free plan, or you delete a route, codes that used it go to the fallback link and keep working.

Smart QR code FAQ

Can one QR code work for both iPhone and Android?

Yes. Use the By device recipe: iPhone and iPad go to one link, Android to another, and computers to a third. Everyone scans the same printed code.

Can I redirect a QR code by country or language?

Yes. A country condition matches scans from a list of countries, or anywhere except them. A language condition matches the phone's main language. You can combine both in one rule.

How do I run a QR code A/B test?

Use the A/B split test recipe and set the shares, such as 50/50 or 70/30. The route's page shows scans per link, and UTM tags let you compare conversions in Google Analytics.

What happens if no rule matches?

The scan goes to the fallback, "Everyone else". The fallback can be one link or a split.

Can I check where a scan will go before printing?

Yes. Test a scan lets you pick a device, country, language, date, time, and scan number, then shows the destination and why each rule did or did not match.

Do I need to reprint if I change the rules?

No. Edit the route and every code that uses it follows right away.

Make your first smart QR code

Pick a recipe, test a scan, and attach the route to a code in a few minutes. Create a smart route QR code, or read the Smart Routing docs for every option.