QR codes are making their way down wedding aisles

Guests at Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s July 3 wedding were granted entry to the wedding venue, Madison Square Garden, by presenting a QR code — a security measure designed to keep partygoers out of range. But long before the Swift-Kelce wedding, if you can remember that long, the technology that became so common during the pandemic had already started making its way into weddings.

Data from wedding planning site The Knot shows that 59 percent of couples will use QR (quick response) codes for their weddings in 2026, according to the company’s 2026 Newlywed Study, an online survey of 2,800 couples. That’s a significant jump from the seven percent of couples surveyed who used them in 2021.

Wedding platform Zola reported a 42.5 percent increase in QR codes included in notes and invitations between 2024 and 2026. Companies dealing with wedding QR codes are also experiencing increased demand. Wedibox, a company that enables photo sharing via QR codes, has powered QR codes for 15,000 weddings in 2023 and 42,000 in 2025. Cristian Soria, the company’s founder, said he expects that number to reach around 45,000 this year.

Couples provide codes on invitations that allow guests to visit their wedding website and RSVP online. On the day of the party, codes can be used to find seat assignments and then upload photos and videos to a virtual album.

“Couples are starting to think about how to make it easier to attend a wedding,” said Esther Lee, Knot’s editorial director. “They want to eliminate the problem of RSVP-ing by sending a card.” (Still, Lee noted that a fair number of couples are “nostalgic” and prefer the tradition of sending RSVP cards.)

QR codes also appeal to couples who care about sustainability, said Briana Severson, Zola’s chief marketing officer. “You need a lot less physical paper, which reduces waste,” she said.

Price is another factor. QR codes are a free feature on sites like Knot and Zola. Wedibox charges between $49 and $79 depending on the service. Prices for Please Find Your Seat, an event planning platform that offers codes, are free for 50 or fewer guests and up to $137 for more. (A standard printed set of invitations and other cards costs couples an average of $400 to $600, according to Zola.)

Jenna Riess, founder of Butterfly Effect Weddings, a wedding planning company in Plainfield, New Jersey, sees a QR code on an appointment or invitation as a kind of “digital concierge” that directs guests to everything they might need to know.

Christina Flowers, 42, and Alexander Fatone, 45, were married in May in Mystic, Conn. Their invitations contained a code that linked to their wedding venue in Zola. “We wanted guests to have everything they needed without adding a lot of extras to the invitation,” Flowers said. She also liked that guests started uploading candid photos “almost immediately.”

Stephen Ingber, founder of Denver-based catering company MileHighCook, recommends couples use the technology at reception tables to provide detailed meal descriptions, share sourcing information and suggest wine pairings without cluttering the table with printed cards. The ingredient list also helps guests with allergies, he said, “which reduces daily confusion for guests and my team.”

For multi-day wedding celebrations, codes can connect guests to a long schedule of events. Dr. Shivani Majmudar and Dr. Raj Patel, both 27, were married in June at the Fairmont Chicago. They used a QR code from Please Find Your Seat to help their 500 guests find their seats in about 10 minutes — something that might otherwise be “impractical,” Majmudar said.

But the most meaningful use of technology wasn’t convenience, she said. It was a cultural participation they facilitated. During the ceremony, her paternal grandparents recited a blessing and “wished us a long and successful life together,” Majmudar said in their native Gujarati. “We wanted to share them with our guests.”

Thanks to a QR code in the program that provided guests with an English translation, they could.