From scan to scale: How to drive app growth with QR codes

QR codes are becoming more and more common as part of digital and mobile marketing strategies, helping convert real-world or desktop web-to-app interest into measurable app outcomes—such as driving installs, linking to in-app content, re-engaging users, and measuring performance across channels. These offline-to-app and desktop-to-app flows reflect what users now expect: mobile interactions that are seamless, personalized, and immediate. 

In 2025, 9 in 10 users engage with QR codes at least once a week. According to a recent survey, 93% of marketers increased their QR code usage in the past year, and 86% plan to scale further. What’s driving this growth is performance. Because QR scans are initiated voluntarily, often in response to contextual prompts, campaigns see strong engagement. On average, QR code campaigns achieve a 37% click-through rate (CTR), up to four times higher than standard digital ads.

This article explores how mobile app marketers are using QR codes to acquire, engage, and retain users. It covers use cases, challenges, and practical strategies for building QR-driven growth in 2025 and beyond.

In mobile app marketing, QR code marketing refers to the use of scannable codes to initiate, route, and measure user actions from physical or digital media. Unlike traditional URLs or untrackable impressions, QR codes create a measurable link between a real-world touchpoint and a specific mobile app destination.

There are two main types of QR codes. Static QR codes point to a fixed destination and cannot be edited after deployment. They do not support tracking or personalization and are best suited for simple, one-time use cases like signage.

Dynamic QR codes use a redirectable short URL that can be updated after launch. This gives marketers the flexibility to test landing experiences, refine conversion paths, and personalize destinations, such as directing users to different content based on time of day, location, or campaign ID, without reprinting physical assets.

When integrated with measurement platforms like Adjust, dynamic QR codes also enable full-funnel attribution. Marketers can measure scan data by device, timestamp, or geography, and link installs, sessions, or revenue to specific offline placements.

Let’s break down how QR codes support acquisition, engagement, and re-engagement across the app lifecycle:

User acquisition

QR codes offer a quick, low-friction way to drive app installs—especially when placed in high-exposure touchpoints like product packaging, out-of-home (OOH)  ads, connected TV (CTV), or event signage. Simple prompts like “Scan to download” or “Scan to claim your reward” help guide user behavior and remove barriers between real-world interest and app onboarding.

AutoZone, a U.S. automotive parts retailer, used this approach in-store by adding QR codes to signage, printed guides, and promotional handouts. These are linked directly to product details, review submission pages, and app download flows. This led to a clear lift in installs and helped users get more value at the point of purchase.

Coinbase took a creative route during the 2022 Super Bowl. It was a one-minute spot featuring nothing but a bouncing QR code on a black screen, mimicking the nostalgic DVD screensaver. The minimalist approach led to more than 20 million people scanning it, and 445,000 signing up in the first minute. Brand interest spiked by over 300%, and the campaign won top honors at Cannes and The One Show.

While scanning is the common entry point, QR codes’ role and placement vary by app category based on user behavior and campaign goals. The examples below illustrate how brands can use QR codes strategically across verticals to drive installs, engagement, and conversions.

E-commerce & retail

In e-commerce and retail, QR codes are often printed on product packaging, receipts, or promotional materials to encourage actions such as reordering, submitting reviews, or accessing loyalty programs. Some brands also use them to display product sustainability details or sourcing information.

Flipkart revamped its Big Billion Days marketing to retain consumer attention during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup by deploying high-resolution QR codes across print and television. It ran 10-second TV ads with codes scannable within two seconds, even from 30 feet away. It also launched a gamified front-page newspaper ad offering exclusive deals and a chance to win a free iPhone. The campaign exceeded expectations, driving over two million scans and reaching 536,000 unique users in days.

Gaming

In gaming, QR codes support in-game incentives and cross-platform campaigns. They are commonly used to unlock rewards, invite friends, or activate special content during livestreams or events.

KitKat partnered with Candy Crush Saga to launch a limited-time campaign featuring QR codes on KitKat wrappers. Scanning these codes unlocked exclusive in-game rewards such as power-ups in the Candy Crush app. The initiative transformed a physical product into a gamified digital interaction, encouraging repeat scans and boosting app usage.

What began as a simple scan-to-link feature has evolved into a performance-driven growth channel. The trends below show how marketers are using QR codes in 2025:

• AR-enabled QR codes: These launch interactive app-linked experiences, including virtual try-ons, gamified content, and 3D product demos. These are especially effective in retail, fashion, and entertainment, driving deeper engagement and longer session durations.
• AI-personalized QR codes: These route users to different destinations based on time, location, or device. A single code can now serve multiple audiences, delivering tailored content and offers without requiring additional campaign assets.
• Wallet-integrated QR codes: These QR codes allow users to redeem app-linked offers, like loyalty rewards, early access, or event entry, directly from Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. 
• API-connected QR workflows: This enables marketers to connect scans to real-time backend systems. From CRM tagging to campaign segmentation, these codes function as automated triggers within a larger marketing stack, helping brands personalize follow-up at scale.

As QR code adoption grows, so do the challenges in execution. Here are four of the most common barriers, and how marketers can address them:

Security and trust issues

Phishing via spoofed QR codes (“quishing”) is a growing risk, especially in sensitive verticals like finance, healthcare, and ticketing. To build trust, use branded short domains, expiring or verified codes, and secure QR platforms. Adding visible cues, like logos or “Scan with confidence” messages, helps reassure users that the code is safe.

User hesitation or unclear value

Most users know how to scan QR codes, but won’t do it unless the benefit is clear. Generic prompts like “Scan here” are ineffective. Instead, use explicit value-driven CTAs, like “Scan to get 15% off” or “Scan to unlock early access,” to boost engagement.

Internal friction or tech hurdles

QR campaigns often stall when marketers depend on developers to generate or manage codes. Delays also stem from missing infrastructure for redirects, segmentation, or tracking. Teams can reduce friction by creating standardized workflows with clear naming rules and templated campaign URLs, enabling marketing to execute campaigns without engineering delays.

Lack of integrated analytics

To optimize performance, QR campaigns must link to key performance metrics. This requires setting up destinations that pass attribution parameters into your mobile analytics or MMP. With the proper structure, marketers can track scans by placement, run creative tests, and improve downstream performance based on real user behavior.

To maximize impact, QR code marketing must be measured across the whole funnel. Each stage of the journey provides unique opportunities to optimize performance and refine user experience.

1. Pre-scan: The journey starts before a scan occurs. QR code performance is heavily influenced by placement, size, contrast, and CTA clarity. Run A/B tests on design, messaging, and placement to identify the combinations that yield the highest scan-through rates.
2. Scan: When a user scans a QR code, most systems automatically collect metadata such as device type, operating system, location, and time. This information helps marketers analyze behavioral trends and adjust campaign timing, distribution, or targeting by region or device.
3. Post-scan: To track conversions like installs, in-app events, or revenue, QR destination URLs must include properly configured parameters that your MMP can read. This step typically requires manual setup. Once configured, these parameters enable full-funnel attribution, allowing you to test and optimize different landing flows—including an app install prompt, content unlock, or limited-time promotion. See TrueLink for more.

To turn scans into tangible results, make sure QR codes lead to the right place, respect user privacy, and match the user’s context.

Adjust makes it easy for app marketers to turn QR code scans into actionable, measurable outcomes. Every scan is measurable as a campaign click, giving teams complete visibility into what happens next—from app installs and in-app events to revenue and retention. Whether you're running QR campaigns on OOH media, CTV, desktop web, or product packaging, Adjust captures the impact and ties it directly to your app growth goals.

With TrueLink, Adjust’s deep linking solution, marketers can generate smart QR codes that automatically route users to the right app store or in-app destination based on their device, location, or engagement history. This improves user experience and increases conversion—all without additional dev work. You can also customize fallback paths, use branded domains, and run A/B tests to optimize QR performance over time.

Because QR scans behave like clicks within Adjust’s platform, all data flows into the same attribution pipeline. This means you can compare QR with other channels, test creatives, and measure real results, without switching tools or losing accuracy. For marketers, this brings QR campaigns into the core of app performance strategy, enabling smarter investment decisions and more scalable growth.

Request a demo now and learn how Adjust can help you track QR codes across the entire user journey.