The short answer
Most restaurants pay between $0 and $50 per month for a QR code menu. Free plans cover a basic digital menu you can update from your phone. Paid plans — typically $5 to $50 a month per location — add things like table ordering, multiple languages, photos, analytics, and removing the provider’s branding.
Generating the QR code itself is always free. What you pay for is the menu behind it: where it’s hosted, how easily you can update it, and what guests can do once they scan.
Typical pricing tiers
Pricing in this market clusters into three bands. Use them as a benchmark when you compare providers:
| Tier | Typical price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | A hosted digital menu, phone-based updates, one QR code. Often shows the provider’s branding. |
| Starter / Pro | $5–$20 / mo | Multiple languages, photos, categories, no third-party branding, basic analytics. |
| Business / ordering | $25–$50+ / mo | Table ordering, kitchen display, multiple locations, staff accounts, integrations. |
Watch for these hidden costs
The sticker price isn’t always the real price. Before you commit, check for:
- Per-location fees — some tools multiply the monthly price by each venue.
- Ordering commissions — a percentage taken on every order placed through the menu.
- Reprinting costs — if your QR code is tied to a plan or a printed PDF rather than a stable link, changing providers can mean reprinting every table tent.
- Setup or onboarding fees charged on top of the subscription.
- Paywalled basics — languages, photos, or removing branding locked behind the top tier.
Free vs. paid: which should you pick?
Start free if you only need to replace a paper menu with a digital one guests can read on their phones. It’s the fastest way to test whether your guests actually use it.
Move to paid when you want guests to order from the table, serve multiple languages, show photos that lift average spend, or run more than one location. The monthly fee is usually recovered by a handful of extra orders or faster table turns.
Scanmie starts free and scales with you — the same printed QR code keeps working as you upgrade, so you never reprint when your needs grow.