QR codes on headstones

How it works

A QR code is a printed pattern that a phone camera turns into a web address. On a grave it usually links to an online obituary or memorial page. Visitors scan it with their phone's camera and see the person's story, photos and family, long after the funeral.

Codes are either laser-etched into the stone itself or put on a small metal, ceramic or acrylic plaque fixed to it. Vendors sell plaques with a memorial page from about $79 to $250.

Source: [3]

Ask the cemetery first

Every cemetery has its own rules on what can be attached to a headstone or marker. Some limit size or materials, and older cemeteries and veterans' sections are often stricter. Ask for the memorial rules in writing before you order anything.

National cemeteries are a special case. In 2022 members of Congress asked the VA and the Army to give families the option of a QR code on or near government headstones, which tells you the option was not generally available then. Eligible veterans already have a free online page on the VA's Veterans Legacy Memorial.

Sources: [4], [5]

Size, contrast and error correction

• Size: about 1 inch (2.5 cm) is the practical minimum for a short link; 1.5 to 2 inches scans more easily on stone, where light and angle vary.
• Quiet zone: QR codes need a clear border four modules wide on every side. Don't let the engraving's frame crowd it.
• Contrast: dark on light is most reliable. On polished granite, a laser etch reads as light on dark, which phones can scan, but test it on a sample of the same stone.
• Error correction: choose level H, the highest of the four levels. It lets a code still scan when part of it is dirty, scratched or covered by lichen.
• A short address: the shorter the link, the fewer and bigger the squares, the easier it scans.

Sources: [1], [2]

The link must last as long as the stone

A headstone lasts a century. A QR code is only as good as the page it points to. Before engraving, ask:

• Will this web address still work in 30 years?
• Does it depend on a subscription that someone has to keep paying?
• Does it go through a short-link or tracking service that could shut down?
• If the name is corrected, will the old address still lead to the page?

Every ObituaryUS obituary has a permanent address that is free forever, and if the family corrects a name or date, the old address keeps redirecting to the page, so a code already carved in stone keeps working.

Test before you engrave

1. Print the code at the exact size it will be on the stone.
2. Scan it with at least two phones, an iPhone and an Android, from arm's length.
3. Try it in bright sun and in shade.
4. Ask the engraver for a proof on a sample of the same material.
5. Make sure the page it opens is the one you want visitors to see.

Make one for free

Our memorial QR code maker makes a high-error-correction code for any memorial page, in ink on paper or light on dark for etched stone and metal, as SVG for the engraver and PNG at 300 dpi. It runs in your browser and stores nothing. If you write the obituary on ObituaryUS, the page's own QR code is in its share kit, along with a printable QR memorial card.