In Thailand, LINE is where customers talk to shops: questions, orders, promotions. But asking people to search for your @ID by hand rarely works. It is easy to misspell and awkward at the till. A LINE QR code turns it into one scan and one tap.

Five kinds of LINE QR code

The LINE QR page offers five kinds:

Kind What a scan does Good for
Add OA Opens the add-friend screen of your Official Account Shops with an OA
Personal ID Opens the add-friend screen of a personal account Sellers using personal LINE
Message OA Opens a chat with your OA, your message ready to send Orders, bookings, questions
Share text Opens LINE to pass a message on to friends or groups Promotions people forward
Paste link Opens a LINE link you paste Group, OpenChat or lin.ee links

With an Official Account, start with "Add OA". If you want people to arrive with a real question rather than just "hi", use "Message OA".

Making the code

  1. Open the LINE QR page.
  2. Choose the kind, for example "Add OA".
  3. In LINE ID or OA @id, type your shop's ID, such as @yourshop. IDs use only a-z, 0-9, dots, underscores and hyphens, 2 to 20 characters long; the page warns you if the format is wrong.
  4. For "Message OA" or "Share text", type the message you want to appear, such as "Hi, I'd like details on this product".
  5. For "Paste link", paste a line.me or lin.ee link.
  6. Style it: the "LINE green" preset, the chat icon in the logo section, and a frame labelled "Scan to add us on LINE".
  7. Download PNG, or SVG or PDF for a print shop.

Your @ID is shown in the LINE Official Account app or manager, which usually also offers a lin.ee add-friend link. If you already have that link, "Paste link" works too.

Where to put it

  • The till, right after people pay, phone still in hand.
  • Tables and menus, while people wait for their food.
  • The shop front, so passers-by can add you and ask later.
  • Bags, boxes, product stickers and parcel inserts, for online shops that want repeat orders.
  • Business cards for the owner or sales staff.

Tell people what they get for adding you, such as pre-orders, promotions or quick answers, on the frame label or the sign.

Combining it with signs and menus

  • Put the code in a corner of the menu or shop sign, in your colours but with dark dots on a light background. The page warns you when dots and background are too alike to scan reliably.
  • If it shares a sign with a scan-to-pay or Wi-Fi code, label each one and leave space between them so the camera picks the right one. See Wi-Fi QR codes for cafés.
  • Match the size to the distance people scan from: QR print size and scan tests.

Which sign gets scanned?

A LINE code can have scan statistics turned on, which makes it a tracked QR code. You see how many scans there were, on which days and at what times, on which devices and from which provinces, and you can change the destination after printing. One tracked code per location shows which sign brings in the most adds.

Tracked codes are for members: a 30-day free trial with no card, then 49 baht a month or 365 baht a year. See What is a dynamic QR code? and the membership page. A plain LINE code stays free with no sign-up.

Test before printing

  1. Scan the printed sample with another phone that has LINE.
  2. Check that it opens the right account: name and profile picture.
  3. For a message code, check that the message appears in full.
  4. Try both iPhone and Android if you can.
  5. If something is off, open the QR reader and choose the code image to see the link inside.

FAQ

What happens when someone without LINE scans it?

Usually the phone opens a LINE web page asking them to open or install the app, so people who do not use LINE cannot add you. If they matter to you, put another contact on the sign, such as a phone number.

My OA already has a QR code. Why make another?

The OA's own code works fine. Make one here when you want it in your shop's colours, with a label, as SVG or PDF for print, or with scan statistics.

I changed LINE accounts. Does the old code still work?

A plain code keeps the old ID or link, so make a new one. A tracked code can be pointed at the new account without reprinting.

Can I use a personal LINE account?

Yes. Choose "Personal ID" and check in LINE's privacy settings that others may add you by ID. If that is switched off, customers may not be able to add you, so test with another phone before printing.

Start on the LINE QR page, free with no sign-up and no ads, and scan a test print before you order the real thing.