Is QR Now a free app?
QR Now is a freemium QR code tool that offers a limited free tier and paid plans for advanced features. If you're a restaurant owner specifically looking to create a free QR code menu, Dishtup is a more purpose-built alternative — it's entirely web-based, requires no app download, and the restaurant menu feature is completely free with no feature restrictions.
- Open dishtup.com in your browser — works on phone, tablet, or computer without installing anything
- Register for a free account with just your email address
- Build your restaurant menu: add categories, dish names, descriptions, and prices
- Upload photos of your dishes to make the menu more visual and appetizing
- Publish your menu — a QR code is generated instantly and linked to your live menu
- Download the QR code and print it on table cards, a chalkboard, or your restaurant window
Unlike app-based QR tools that may require customers to download something, Dishtup menus open directly in any smartphone browser — no installation required on either end. Your customers just point their camera at the code and the menu appears immediately. Dishtup is free with no scan caps, no watermarks, and no feature locks.
QR Now vs Dishtup: what's the difference for restaurants?
QR Now is a general-purpose QR code generator aimed at marketers, businesses, and individuals who need QR codes for a wide variety of purposes — website URLs, social media links, vCards, and more. Its free tier typically includes a limited number of dynamic codes, may display platform branding on generated codes, and can cap the number of monthly scans. Upgrading to a paid plan removes these limits.
Dishtup is built exclusively for restaurants. Rather than being a generic QR generator, it's a full menu management system where the QR code is one output among many. The focus is on making your menu easy to create, easy to update, and easy for hungry customers to navigate on their phones. Every feature relevant to a restaurant menu — unlimited items, photos, multi-language support, real-time updates — is free.
Do restaurants need a dedicated app for QR menus?
No. The best QR code menu systems for restaurants are web-based, not app-based. Here's why:
- No friction for customers — customers don't need to download anything. They scan and the menu opens in their existing browser.
- Works on all phones — a web page works on every smartphone regardless of operating system, screen size, or browser version.
- Faster to set up — as the restaurant owner, you manage everything through a website, not a mobile app, which is easier on a larger screen.
- No app store approval delays — web-based updates happen immediately.
What should you look for in a free QR menu tool?
When evaluating any QR menu platform, ask these questions: Does the free plan include dynamic QR codes (so you can update your menu without reprinting)? Is there a scan limit? Does the QR code have any branding or watermark? Can customers view the menu without downloading an app? Does the platform host the menu reliably? Dishtup answers yes to all the right questions — dynamic codes, no scan limit, no watermark, no app for customers, and reliable free hosting.