Loyalty card without an app: from QR code to the customer’s phone

How does a loyalty card without an app work?

1. The customer scans the QR code

   With the camera, or via the shop’s link.

2. The card opens in the browser

   No app store or password: the card is already on the phone.

3. Saving to Wallet is optional

   On supported phones, in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet.

4. Staff confirm the visit

   From a browser, with the card’s QR code or its code.

Why a loyalty card without an app works better at the counter

At the counter, the invitation to join a loyalty card lasts a few seconds, often while the customer is paying and someone is queuing behind. An app to download asks for a string of actions at exactly that moment: open the app store, find the right name, wait for the download, create an account, remember a password. Each one is a chance to say «I’ll do it at home».

With a loyalty card without an app there is one action: scan a QR code with the camera. The staff line changes too: not «download our app», but «scan here, the card is yours». We know of no reliable figure for how many customers give up when faced with a download, so we quote none: count how many say yes in a week yourself.

There is an upside for the business as well: no app to publish, update or keep working across different phone models. If you are weighing up a proper app, the pros and cons are in the guide to the customer loyalty app.

How to get a loyalty card without an app: QR code, link or a friend’s invitation

Customers reach the card through three doors, and none of them goes through an app store. The most common is the QR code at the counter or on the poster. The second is a link: the shop sends it by WhatsApp or email, or puts it in its social profile, and it opens in the browser just like the QR code. The third is an invitation from another customer.

With Iterum the invitation comes from the card itself. If the shop has switched on Porta un amico, the customer finds an «Invite a friend» panel on their card page, with «Invite a friend» and «Copy the link» buttons to send their personal link. The friend opens the link, taps «Add the card» and saves it to their Wallet, with no app; at the friend’s first visit recorded at the counter, both get the reward the owner chose. The feature is on every plan and stays off until the owner switches it on, card by card.

What the customer’s phone needs, iPhone or Android

The first step needs no extra app. According to the iPhone User Guide, QR codes can be scanned with the Camera app or from Control Centre. On Android, Google Account Help says you need Android 9 or higher to scan them with the built-in camera; on an older version it suggests downloading a QR code app.

The same threshold applies to the Wallet: according to Google Wallet Help, since 10 June 2024 Google Wallet has required Android 9 or higher on the phone. Customers with an older phone are not left out: with Iterum the card works in the browser with the same stamps, and instead of the QR code the shop can send them the sign-up link by WhatsApp or email.

What staff use: the «Al banco» counter app

Staff do not need to download anything from an app store either: «Al banco» opens in the browser on a phone, tablet or computer, with a personal login. Each team member has their own account, with roles and permissions set by the owner, and no plan limits the number of users.

Iterum does not connect to the till or read receipts: the counter step stays separate from payment. Nor is a barcode scanner needed: staff scan the QR code with the camera of whatever device has «Al banco» open, or type the card code. The difference between the two technologies is in the barcode loyalty card guide; set-up is covered in the how-it-works guide.

• Stamp card: staff scan the card’s QR code, or type the code, and confirm the visit.
• Points card: staff type the points due under the shop’s rule; a wrong entry can be undone within 10 minutes.
• Target reached: the app shows the reward available and staff record it as handed over.
• Card shown again before the minimum interval set by the owner: the visit is not recorded twice.
• Visits, points and rewards go into the activity log the owner reviews in the dashboard.

Browser, Apple Wallet, Google Wallet or a native app: the differences

«No app» does not mean a single technology: it is a way of delivering a digital loyalty card. The card can stay a page in the browser, become a pass in the phone’s Wallet or, in other loyalty schemes, live inside the shop’s own app. The table compares the three routes from the customer’s side and the counter’s.

According to Google Wallet Help, you can store «digital copies» of loyalty cards there; the iPhone User Guide explains that to use one you open the Wallet app, tap the card and present the code to the reader. With Iterum the pass is an extra option, not a requirement: the guides on Apple Wallet and Google Wallet explain what to check before offering it.

What happens with no signal or no connection?

A loyalty card without an app lives online, so the connection matters at two moments: when the customer signs up and when staff record the visit. With Iterum both need the internet; there is no offline stamping.

What really counts is the staff device. If the shop’s network drops, the «Al banco» app shows a warning and records nothing until the connection is back, so no stamp is ever half saved. If instead the customer’s phone has no signal, the card code is enough: the Wallet pass stays saved on the phone, and staff can also type the code by hand.

For when the QR code will not scan, because of a cracked or dim screen, the QR code loyalty card guide covers the alternatives.

Older customers and people who do not use a smartphone

A card without an app is simpler than an app, but it still needs a smartphone. According to Eurostat, in Italy in 2025, 88.5% of people aged 55 to 64 and 72.5% of those aged 65 to 74 had used the internet in the previous three months; in the older group, 19.9% had never used it.

If your morning regulars are older, as is often the case in a café or a bakery, three habits help. The first time, offer to scan the QR code together with the customer, on their phone. Explain that the card can stay in the browser, without a Wallet. And keep a paper card for people who do not use a smartphone: better two channels for a few months than a regular left out. The two formats are compared in the paper vs digital loyalty card guide.

Privacy: what data a loyalty card without an app asks for

To get an Iterum card, customers do not have to give a name or any contact details. In the phone’s browser the card is created straight away; if the QR code opens inside another app, such as Instagram, or on a computer, a short sign-up page comes first, with no box to tick: by creating the card the customer accepts the card Terms and confirms they have read the privacy notice. The shop’s privacy notice is always reachable from the card and, in the Wallet, from the back of the pass.

First name, surname, email, phone and birthday are optional: customers add them, if they like, in the «Completa la carta» panel, which asks for no consents. The shop can give stamps or points to customers who complete it, and that reward never depends on a consent; under 14, first name, surname and date of birth are enough. Extra rewards and offers are a separate, optional choice: the card asks «Would you like extra rewards and offers from …?» and the customer answers «Yes, I want them» or «No, thanks», with nothing pre-selected; they can be switched off at any time and, without a «Yes», the customer receives no promotional messages. The birthday is used for birthday wishes, if the shop sends them: tone, timing and rules are in the guide to birthday messages for customers.

Under the Iterum card’s privacy notice, data is kept for 24 months from last use and then anonymised automatically. The owner handles customer requests, such as access or deletion, from the dashboard. The general rules, from consent to retention, are in the loyalty card GDPR guide.

Sources and method

Sources read on 27 October 2026: iPhone User Guide, «Scan a QR code with your iPhone camera» and «Use passes, cards, and keys in Wallet on iPhone»; Google Account Help, «Sign in using QR codes», Android; Google Wallet Help, «Your version of Android doesn’t support Google Wallet» and «Loyalty cards and gift cards». Read on 12 October 2026: Eurostat dataset isoc_ci_ifp_iu, internet use by age group, Italy, 2025. The customer and staff journey describes Iterum as of 27 October 2026.