UPI payment links and QR codes for small shops

If you sell anything in India, from tiffin boxes to handmade earrings to yoga classes, people expect to pay you by UPI. Most small sellers start the same way: they share their UPI ID in a chat, or send a screenshot of a QR code. It works, until a customer types the ID wrong, pays the wrong amount or messages you at 11 pm asking where to pay.

A proper UPI payment link and a printed QR code fix most of that. This guide explains how both work, how to make them, and the small details that decide whether a payment goes through on the first try.

How UPI payment links and QR codes work

Every UPI app in India (Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, BHIM, Amazon Pay and the banks' own apps) understands the same payment format, defined by NPCI. A payment request is a short piece of text that starts with upi://pay and carries a few details:

• pa, the payee address, which is your UPI ID, like yourshop@okaxis
• pn, the payee name that the customer sees
• am, the amount, if you want to fix it
• cu, the currency, which is always INR
• tn, a short note, like an order number

A UPI QR code is that text drawn as a QR code. When a customer scans it, their UPI app reads your ID, name, amount and note and fills in the payment screen. They check the name, enter their UPI PIN and the money moves to your bank account.

A UPI payment link is the same text as a tappable link. On an Android phone, tapping it usually opens a list of the UPI apps installed and the customer picks one. On iPhones it depends on which apps are installed and how they handle these links, so it is less reliable. That is why the best setup offers both: a button for people on their phones and a QR code for everyone else.

Static and dynamic UPI QR codes

You will hear about two kinds of UPI QR.

A static QR has your UPI ID and name and no amount. The customer types the amount. This is the code on the counter of most shops, and it never changes. It is perfect for walk-in sales.

A dynamic QR is made for one bill. It carries the exact amount and a reference number, and it is usually shown on a card machine, a billing screen or an invoice. The customer can't get the amount wrong, and you can match the payment to the bill automatically.

Small sellers can get most of the benefit of a dynamic QR by making a payment link or QR with a fixed amount for each product or service. A ₹499 consultation, a ₹1,200 monthly tiffin plan or a ₹99 wallpaper pack each get their own code with the amount filled in.

What it costs

Under the rules in place since January 2020, banks don't charge a merchant discount rate (MDR) on UPI payments to merchants, so receiving a UPI payment in your bank account costs you nothing. There has been public discussion about allowing a small charge on larger merchant payments, so check your bank's current terms once in a while.

The costs come in when you add a payment gateway. Gateways (Razorpay, Cashfree, PayU and others) charge a percentage per transaction in exchange for things like automatic receipts, refunds, payment links that mark themselves paid and settlement reports. If you have a handful of orders a day, direct UPI to your own ID is usually enough. If you have hundreds, or you need card payments and automatic reconciliation, a gateway starts to pay for itself.

Personal UPI ID or business UPI ID?

You can receive payments on a personal UPI ID, and many small sellers do. There are good reasons to get a merchant or business UPI ID once you are selling regularly. Your bank or one of the business versions of the UPI apps can set one up. Customers see your shop name instead of your personal name, which builds trust. Payment apps treat merchant IDs differently from personal ones, and some apps apply extra checks or limits to payments started from a link or QR towards a personal ID, which can show up as a failed or flagged payment. You also get cleaner records for your accounts and GST if you need them.

How to make a UPI QR code or payment link

The quickest way is from the business app you already use. Google Pay for Business, PhonePe Business and Paytm for Business all show your QR code and let you download or print it.

To make links and codes with fixed amounts, or to put a pay button on your website or Instagram page, you need a tool that builds the upi://pay link for you. With Bliink you have two ways to do it.

On your Bliink page

Add a UPI pay block to your page. Type your UPI ID, the name people are paying and, if you like, a fixed amount or suggested amounts like 99, 199 and 499, plus a note that shows in the UPI app. Visitors on a phone tap a button and their UPI app opens with everything filled in. Choose the block's QR design and the page also shows a code that people on a laptop can scan with their phone. This works on the free plan.

As a printable QR code

Bliink's QR studio has a UPI payment type: enter your ID, name and amount, choose colours, add your logo and download a print-ready file or a PDF layout for the counter. The studio needs a free account. For a quick code that opens your page or menu link, the free QR code maker works without signing up. Our page for small shops and makers shows how sellers combine the two.

Mistakes that make UPI payments fail

Most failed payments come down to a few avoidable problems.

1. A typo in the UPI ID. Copy it from your UPI app rather than typing it, then test the code by paying yourself ₹1 from another phone.
2. A printed code that is too small or glossy. Under shop lights, glossy lamination can reflect and stop the camera reading the code. Matte finish and a size of at least 5 cm across work well on a counter.
3. Editing the image. Stretching a QR code, cropping the edges or putting it on a busy background breaks it. Keep a clear white margin around it.
4. Sharing a screenshot of a screenshot. Every time an image is compressed again in WhatsApp it gets blurrier. Share the original file or a link.
5. Old codes after changing banks. A UPI QR holds your ID itself, so it can't be edited after printing, and UPI apps won't follow a redirect the way a camera does with a web link. If you switch accounts, every printed code has to be replaced. Keep the original file, and print counter codes on stickers you can swap. Our guide to dynamic and static QR codes explains the difference.

Stay safe

UPI fraud usually tricks the person paying, but sellers get targeted too. Two rules cover most of it. You never need to enter your UPI PIN to receive money. Anyone who asks you to scan a code or approve a request "to receive a payment" is trying to take money from you. And NPCI stopped person-to-person collect requests in October 2025, so a stranger sending you a request to approve for a refund or a prize is a red flag.

Check every payment in your own bank or UPI app before handing over goods. A screenshot of a payment screen is easy to fake. A shop soundbox that announces each payment, or a quick look at the app, is not.

Frequently asked questions

Is a UPI payment link free to make?

Yes. A UPI link or QR code is just text in a standard format, and any tool can make one. Receiving UPI payments in your bank account is free for merchants under the current zero MDR rules.

Can I set a fixed amount on my UPI QR code?

Yes. Add the amount when you make the code and the customer's app fills it in. On Bliink's UPI block you can offer a few suggested amounts and let people choose.

Why does a UPI link not open on iPhone?

iPhones handle upi:// links differently depending on which payment apps are installed. Always show a QR code next to the button, so iPhone users can scan it or save it and pay from their app.

Do I need GST registration to accept UPI?

No, you can receive UPI payments without GST registration. Whether you need to register depends on your turnover and what you sell, so check with your accountant.

Can I see who paid me?

Your UPI or bank app shows the payer's name and the note on each payment. Putting an order number in the note makes matching much easier.

Cover photo: Vaibhav Gupta on Unsplash.