QR codes for memorials and headstones

Updated 5 October 2026

A QR code on a headstone, bench or plaque can let visitors read about a life, see photographs or hear a favourite piece of music. It's a lovely idea. Because a memorial is meant to last for generations, it's worth taking a little care over how the code is made.

If you're arranging a memorial soon after a loss, there's no need to decide everything now. A plaque with a QR code can usually be added to a headstone later.

Permanence matters most

Stone lasts for centuries. Websites and companies often don't. The most important choice is a code that doesn't depend on someone remembering to pay a bill.

Many QR code services sell editable codes by subscription and switch them off when payments stop. That might be fine for a poster. On a headstone, it can mean a code that quietly stops working years from now, when nobody remembers which account it was on.

For a memorial, we recommend a static code. It contains the link or words directly. No company sits in between, so there's nothing to expire and nobody who can switch it off. That includes us.

What the code should contain

A static code is only as lasting as what it holds. You have three choices, from most to least permanent.

1. Words, held in the code itself

A QR code can hold plain text: a name, dates, a few lines of tribute or a favourite verse. When it's scanned, the phone shows the words. There's no website and no internet connection needed, so it will work for as long as the code can be read. Keep it to a few hundred characters so the code stays a sensible size.

2. A page the family controls

A page on a website address owned by the family can hold far more: photographs, a full life story, music and messages from friends. It lasts as long as someone renews the web address and hosting. Many registrars let you pay for up to ten years at a time. Write down who looks after it, and keep copies of everything on the page.

3. A page on a memorial website

Memorial websites are easy to set up and look after. Before you choose one, ask how long the page is hosted for, whether you pay once or every year, and what happens to pages if the company closes. Keep your own copies of the photographs and words, so you can move them if you need to.

If you choose a page that might move, an editable code lets the family point the same plaque to a new address later. It costs £4.99 once and is never deactivated for non-payment. But for something meant to last generations, a static code is the most dependable choice, because it doesn't rely on KeepQR either.

Check the rules first

Churchyards and cemeteries usually have rules about what can be added to a memorial, and some need permission before any change. Ask the cemetery office, the parish or the diocese, or your memorial mason, before ordering a plaque. Masons are often familiar with local rules and can help with the application.

Materials that last outdoors

• Stainless steel or anodised aluminium plaques, laser-engraved or etched, are the most common choice. For outdoor use, ask for marine-grade (316) stainless steel.
• Ceramic or porcelain plaques have the image fired into the glaze, so it resists fading for many years.
• Engraving directly into granite is possible, but on dark stone the code appears light on dark. Some phones read light-on-dark codes and some don't. If you want the code on the stone itself, ask your mason to fill the engraving so the code is dark on a light panel, and test a sample.
• Avoid paper, ordinary stickers and inkjet prints outdoors. They fade and peel within a year or two.

Size and design

• At least 4 to 5 cm wide for a plaque scanned from arm's length. Make it larger, 6 to 8 cm, if it sits low on a headstone and people will scan standing up.
• Choose the highest error correction (H). It lets the code still be read when part of it is weathered, scratched or covered by lichen.
• Keep it plain. Dark code on a light background, no centre logo, no decorative shapes. Simplicity lasts.
• Leave a clear border around the code, at least four of its small squares wide, with no lettering or carving in it.
• Send the mason the SVG or PDF file, so the code is engraved perfectly sharp at any size.

Placement

• Place it where visitors can scan without stepping onto the grave or kneeling, such as the side or upper part of the stone.
• Avoid spots where water collects or where moss and lichen tend to grow.
• A short line such as "Scan to read more about her life" helps visitors who don't know what the code is for.

Test before it's fixed in place

• Scan the mason's proof or a sample on the real material, not just a paper printout.
• Try at least two different phones, including an older one, in outdoor daylight.
• Check what appears: the words read correctly, or the page loads quickly on mobile data.

Think about privacy

Anyone who visits can scan the code and see what it holds or links to. Many families leave out details such as a full date of birth or a mother's maiden name, which are sometimes used as security questions. It can help to agree the content with close family before anything is made.

Keep a record

Save the code files, the link or words it contains, and the details of any website account, with the rest of the family's important papers. Whoever looks after the memorial in years to come will be glad of it.