A QR code for a Google Form
People open your form on their phone in one scan, and the answers land in your sheet as they come.
To make a QR code for a Google Form, open the form, click Send, choose the link tab and copy the short forms.gle link. Paste it above and download the code. Before printing, open the link in a private window to check that people outside your organisation can answer.
A form in one scan
A parent scans the letter and the permission form opens with the trip date ready.
How to share a Google Form by scan
Copy the share link
In the form editor, click Send, choose the link icon and tick "Shorten URL". Copy the forms.gle link.
Check who can answer
In Settings, turn off "Restrict to users in your organisation" if the public should fill it in.
Make the code
Paste the link above. A frame line such as "Scan to fill in the form" says what happens.
Test on a phone
Scan with a phone that is not signed in to your account and submit one test answer.
Worked example: a school trip permission form
- The form
- Child's name, class, consent tick box and an emergency contact field.
- The print
- The code goes on the letter home and on the classroom door, with "Reply by Friday".
- The result
- Answers fill the linked sheet; the teacher filters it for the missing names on Thursday.
Fixed or editable for a Google Form?
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Fixed QR code (static)
A fixed code holds the form link. Google keeps that link while you edit questions, so fixed is a sound free choice for one form.
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Editable QR code (dynamic)
Choose editable to reuse the same posters for next term's form, switch to another form tool or count scans per poster. From $9 a month after the 14-day trial.
More answers, fewer chases
Put the deadline by the code
"Reply by Friday" next to the code brings answers sooner.
Keep it short
Five questions on a phone feel quick; fifteen feel like homework.
Collect e-mails only when needed
Ask for an e-mail only when you will reply, so the form stays short.
Questions and answers
Before you print
- Is it free?
- Fixed codes are free: make as many as you like, download a PNG with no sign-up, and get every other format and print files with a free account. Editable codes come with a plan, a pass, Keep-alive or the 14-day trial.
- Can I change the link after printing?
- Yes, with an editable code. It holds a short link you control, so you can point the printed code somewhere new any time, and the next scan opens the new page. A fixed code keeps the link it was made with.
- Can I use my own domain?
- Yes. A custom domain is included on passes, from Starter, and during the trial. Starter covers one subdomain, for example go.yourbrand.com, and apex domains start on Pro.
- What happens if I stop paying?
- Editable codes work to the end of your paid period, and after a failed payment every code keeps working for 14 days. Turn codes back on within 12 months. Fixed codes keep working as long as their links do.
Does editing the Google Form change the QR code?
No. The form link stays the same while you add, change or remove questions, so a printed code keeps working.
Why does my form ask people to sign in?
The form is limited to your organisation or collects verified e-mails. Change that in the form settings if the public should answer.
Can I see who scanned but did not submit?
Google Forms counts answers only. An editable code adds scan counts, so you can compare scans with submitted answers.
Can I use one code for several forms?
An editable code can point at one form now and the next form later. For several forms at once, link a short page listing them.
How big should the code be on a letter?
About 2.5 to 3 cm on an A4 letter read at reading distance. Make it 5 cm or larger for posters seen from a step back.
Is the forms.gle short link safe to print?
It is Google's own short address for your form and keeps working while the form exists. Delete the form and the link stops opening it.
Answers from every print
Paste your forms.gle link and download the code for your letter or poster.