How to make QR code tickets for your event (free and easy options)

The easiest way to make QR code tickets is with a ticketing system: everyone who buys gets a ticket with their own QR code by email, and you scan it at the door with your phone. You can also make them yourself with Canva and a free QR generator, but then the code is just a picture. It can't tell you whether someone already came in, or whether a ticket was copied.

Here are the three ways, with the good and the bad of each, so you can choose what fits your event.

First: what makes a good QR code ticket?

A QR code on its own is just a link or some text in a little square. What makes a QR ticket useful is what happens when you scan it:

• Every ticket has its own code. If everyone has the same QR, one screenshot in a group chat lets half the neighborhood in.
• The scanner knows if it's been used. So nobody gets in twice on one ticket.
• It arrives on its own. The buyer gets it by email the moment they pay, without you sending it by hand.
• It works without signal. Plenty of halls, parks and warehouses have bad reception right at the entrance.

With that in mind, here are your options.

Option 1: DIY tickets with Canva and a free QR generator

How it works:

1. Design your ticket in Canva (or Word) with the event name, date, time and place.
2. Use a free QR code generator to make a code. It can link to your event page or hold a ticket number.
3. Put the QR on your design and save the ticket as an image or PDF.
4. Take payment by bank transfer, a payment app or cash, and send each person their ticket by text or email.

The good: it's free and you control the design.

The bad: if every ticket has the same QR, anyone can share it. If you make a different QR for each person, you have to create, send and track each one by hand. At the door you need a printed list to tick off, and no easy way to know whether someone already came in.

Good for: a small party of 20 or 30 people you know.

Option 2: A form plus a spreadsheet

How it works:

1. Make a sign-up form (Google Forms, for example).
2. Responses land in a spreadsheet.
3. Use an add-on or a formula to generate a QR per row and email it out.

The good: everyone has their own code and you have a tidy list.

The bad: it takes a while to set up and breaks easily. Payment happens separately, so you have to check that every person actually paid. And to scan, you need another app that reads your spreadsheet.

Good for: free events with registration, if you enjoy spreadsheets.

Option 3: A ticketing system (the easiest)

How it works:

1. Create your event with the date, venue and ticket types.
2. Share the link.
3. Each person pays online and instantly gets a ticket with a unique QR code by email.
4. At the door, open the scanner on your phone and scan.

The good: every code is unique, the scanner tells you right away whether a ticket is valid or already used, payment is built in, and nobody sends tickets by hand. If someone forgets their ticket, you find them by name.

The bad: the platform charges a fee. Check who pays it (you or your buyers) and whether there's a monthly plan.

Good for: almost any event open to the public, from a 15-person workshop to a multi-day festival. Free events too: free tickets still get a QR code and give you a list of who's coming.

How to scan QR code tickets at the door

Whatever method you choose, on the day (the full version is in our event check-in guide):

1. Arrive early and test the scanner with the venue's real signal, not your home wifi.
2. Put a second person on the door if you expect more than 100 people. Two phones scanning is twice as fast.
3. Turn up the brightness on the guest's screen, or ask them to. Dark screens scan slowly.
4. Have a plan for forgotten tickets: look people up by name or email, without a fuss.
5. Check the numbers at the end: tickets sold versus people checked in.

Make your tickets look good

Even digital tickets get shared and screenshotted. A few details help:

• Use your event's colors and logo on the page and in the emails.
• Pick a photo that makes people want to come. Even better with people enjoying themselves.
• Make the key details clear: date, time, address and what to bring.
• Speak your audience's language. If your community speaks Spanish, the ticket, page and emails should be in Spanish too.

How to do this in Eventasaurus

In Eventasaurus every ticket gets its own QR code, emailed the moment someone buys.

1. Go to Events and click Create Event. Add your tickets, prices and how many of each. Leave the price empty for free tickets.
2. Click Publish and share your link with Copy ticket link.
3. Each buyer gets their QR code ticket by email, and can find it any time in My Tickets.
4. Ticket for two? Set Admits to 2 on the ticket type. Each person gets their own QR code.
5. On the day, open Check-In and tap Open Scanner. You'll see right away whether a ticket is checked in, already used, for a different event, or invalid.
6. Someone without their ticket? Use Manual Search, or open the Door List.
7. Need help at the door? Under Manage Staff, invite volunteers by email. They go straight to the scanner with no password, and can't see your sales or settings.

Works offline: the scanner downloads your guest list ahead of time. If the signal drops, it keeps checking tickets and saves each check-in, and everything syncs when you're back online.

Your buyers pay the ticket price, with nothing added. Free tickets carry no fee. For paid tickets you pay 1% per order ($1 minimum), plus Stripe's card processing. No monthly plan.

See the demo or start free.

FAQ

How do I make QR code tickets for free?

You can design them in Canva with a free QR generator, but you'll have to send and track them by hand. On Eventasaurus, tickets for free events are free for you too, and each one gets its own QR code.

Can a QR code ticket be copied?

A photo of a ticket can be copied, but with a scanner that records each check-in, the second attempt shows up as "already checked in". That's why every ticket needs its own code.

What app do I use to scan tickets?

Your ticketing platform's scanner. A regular QR app only reads the code; it can't tell whether the ticket is valid or already used. On Eventasaurus the scanner opens in your phone's browser, nothing to install.

What if someone doesn't have their ticket?

Look them up by name or email in the scanner or the door list, and check them in from there.