Best QR pet tags UK (2026): dog and cat tags compared

Our pick is PetTag (pet-tag.app), but we make it, so weigh that: £10 once for a printed plastic tag with free UK delivery and no subscription needed, an email every time it's scanned, and a finder can message you through the tag's page without your phone number being shown. For £3 more your surname, house number and postcode go on the back, so one tag also meets the Control of Dogs Order 1992. The lowest one-off price of the UK tags compared here is CollarCode (collarcode.co.uk): £4.99 plus UK delivery from £1.20. The next one-off tags are £19.99: Pet-Tags (pet-tags.com) and Tagged Pets (tagged-pets.com, which adds delivery at checkout). Paw ID is £29.99. Which tag is best depends on what you want it to do, so here is the pick for each, with the details further down.

• Lowest price with no subscription: CollarCode (collarcode.co.uk), £4.99 plus UK delivery from £1.20, and every scan emails you the time and, if the finder's phone shares it, the location.
• Reach you without showing your number: PetTag (pet-tag.app), £10 one-off with free UK delivery, posted the next working day. No app for you or the finder: finders message you from the tag's page and can send their location with one tap, and you're emailed every time the tag is scanned.
• One tag that also covers the dog tag law: PetTag personalised (pet-tag.app), £13 with your surname, house number and postcode printed on the back, or Pet-Tags (pet-tags.com), £19.99, with your name and address engraved on the back (PetTag vs Pet-Tags). Either way there's no need for a second, engraved tag.
• A metal tag, with a scan history and lost pet alerts on its free plan: Paw ID, £29.99, metal with an epoxy resin seal and a 30-day return policy (PetTag vs Paw ID).
• Soft and light: Tagged Pets (tagged-pets.com), £19.99 plus delivery, silicone, 3 g for its small and cat tags.
• Free tag, optional plan: Crumb, free tag plus postage, Premium £6.95 a month (PetTag vs Crumb, Crumb alternatives).
• Free tag with an AI vet app: Supernormal PawTag, free tag plus delivery, Care £4.99 a month after a free first month (PetTag vs Supernormal).
• A location sent on every scan: CollarCode (one-off, when the finder's phone shares it), or WagTag (£2.99 a month or £14.99 a year) and ReturnTag (£1.98 a month), both on a paid plan.
• Live tracking: that's a GPS tracker, not a QR tag. Our tag vs microchip vs GPS guide compares them.

• PetTag (UK, pet-tag.app, the tag we make): £10 for one tag, £18 for two, £26 for three, £32 for four, with free UK delivery. A one-off purchase: no subscription needed and no charge per scan. Printed plastic, 40 mm across and about 4 g. Finders scan with any phone camera and can send you their location with one tap, and owners manage the profile in a web browser, so nobody needs an app. You're emailed with the rough area every time the tag is scanned, free (at most once every 15 minutes). Posted the next working day, with returns within 14 days. For £3 more a tag, your surname, house number and postcode go on the back instead of the PetTag name, which is the name and address the Control of Dogs Order 1992 asks a dog to wear, so no separate engraved tag is needed; made to order and posted within 2 working days.
• CollarCode (UK, collarcode.co.uk): £4.99 a tag, a one-off purchase with no subscription, plus UK delivery from £1.20, and it ships the next working day, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Each scan emails you the time and, if the finder's phone shares it, the location, with a scan history on your dashboard. The profile can hold photos and medical and vet details, and you choose which contact details always show and which only show in lost mode. Its site calls the tag lightweight and weatherproof but doesn't give its material or size, and its terms say optional paid features may be added later, with the core service staying free. It launched in March 2026.
• Paw ID (UK, pawid.co.uk): £29.99 for one tag, £49.99 for two and £69.99 for three, with free standard UK delivery (express £4.99) and no subscription. Metal with an epoxy resin seal, 30 mm across and 8 g. Its free plan emails you when the tag is scanned, with the location if the finder shares it, keeps a scan history, hides your number behind a contact form, makes lost pet flyers and alerts nearby Paw ID users, vets and shelters. An optional Premium plan, £3.99 a month or £29.99 a year, adds things like text alerts, family sharing and free replacements (checked 5 November). Owners can use its app or a web app. A 1-year warranty and 30-day returns (unused, you pay the postage). Its current tag doesn't show your name and address; a personalised tag with them on the front was announced on 21 October 2026, not on sale on 4 November.
• Pet-Tags (UK, pet-tags.com): £19.99, including engraving on the back, delivery, a stainless steel split ring and a clip, with no subscription fees. Engraving your name and address on the back means one tag covers the UK law for dogs. Its page calls it the only smart pet tag that combines a QR code with visible owner details; a personalised PetTag does that too, with the details printed into the back, for £13. Stainless steel with an epoxy coating, in Small and Large (30 × 35 mm), a five-year guarantee against breakage and fading, and orders by 8:30am are dispatched within 24 hours.
• Tagged Pets (UK, tagged-pets.com): £19.99 a tag with no subscription, with delivery worked out at checkout. Soft silicone: the large dog tag is 30 mm and 5 g, the small and cat tags 23 mm and 3 g, and it ships within 2 working days. A finder can share their location with you.
• Supernormal PawTag (UK, supernormalpets.com): the tag is free (you pay delivery), and an engraved one is £9. Its Care plan is £4.99 a month after a free first month, or £3.42 a month paid yearly, and adds location texts, a scan map and an AI vet (PetTag vs Supernormal).
• WagTag (UK): the tag is free (you pay the delivery), then £2.99 a month or £14.99 a year (PetTag vs WagTag). The plan includes a lifetime guarantee and unlimited tag replacements, and texts you a location when the tag is scanned.
• ReturnTag (UK): £1.98 a month with unlimited scans, or a £7.50 bundle with the first scan included and then £5.50 for each scan after that (up to 3 chargeable scans a month). A family plan covers up to 5 tags for £2.98 a month. Its page says the codes stop opening your contact details once you cancel. Its tags can be tapped (NFC) as well as scanned, and there's a 30-day money-back guarantee.
• Crumb: the tag is free (you pay postage) and there's a free plan (PetTag vs Crumb). Its Premium plan, £6.95 a month or £5.80 a month paid yearly, adds things like location texts, vet and rescue centre alerts, and phone number privacy. Owners use its app.
• ByteTag: $24.95 a tag (shown to UK visitors as £20, converted from dollars), sent from the US by USPS, with 30-day returns. Finders scan with a phone camera and need no app. Its site doesn't say whether there are ongoing fees, so check before you buy.
• HeyBuddy: mostly $30 a tag (a few from $10 to $25), priced in US dollars, with no subscription for the pet's profile. Finders need no app to scan, but owners register their pet in its mobile app. Its site advertises US shipping.
• Engraved tags: from a few pounds at UK shops. No technology at all, and a dog needs one anyway, because the law asks for your name and address on the collar in public.
• GPS trackers and AirTags: help you find where a pet is, but need charging or a new battery, and GPS trackers usually need a monthly plan. Our tag vs microchip vs GPS guide and AirTag guide go through them.

A tag that's free or cheap to buy can cost more over a dog's life if the useful part sits behind a plan. At £5.80 a month (Crumb's Premium, paid yearly), a plan comes to about £70 a year, or around £700 over a ten-year life. That can be worth it if you want what the plan adds, but it's worth knowing up front.

Over three years, one tag costs £6.19 from CollarCode (with £1.20 delivery), £10 from PetTag, £19.99 from Pet-Tags or Tagged Pets (plus delivery for Tagged Pets), and £29.99 from Paw ID if you stay on its free plan. WagTag's monthly plan comes to £107.64 (or £44.97 paying yearly), and ReturnTag's monthly plan to £71.28. Those two plans include things most one-off tags don't, such as a location sent on every scan (CollarCode sends one too, when the finder's phone shares it), so compare what you'd actually use.

Before buying any smart tag, ask what still works if you stop paying: does the page still open, can finders still reach you, do you still get alerts? Our guide to what smart pet tags cost has more on this.

Every tag here lets a finder scan with an ordinary phone camera, which is what matters most: a stranger holding your dog won't download anything. The difference is on the owner's side. Some tags are managed in an app; PetTag is managed from any browser, on a phone or a computer, which also means there's nothing to reinstall when you change phone.

Tags priced in dollars can carry international postage, a slower delivery and sometimes import charges, and returns are harder. A UK seller prices in pounds, posts domestically and is covered by UK consumer law, including your right to cancel an online order within 14 days.

1. Does anything need paying every month or year, and what stops working if you don't?
2. Can a finder use it with just a phone camera?
3. Are your phone number and address hidden until you choose to share them?
4. Can you update the details yourself, instantly, without buying a new tag?
5. Does it post to the UK, in pounds, with an easy return?
6. For a dog: will your name and address be on it, on its back or on an engraved tag alongside, as UK law requires? See the UK dog tag law.

PetTag is for owners who want the simple version done properly for £10 with free UK delivery: a QR code any phone can read, finders who can message you without your number on show, instant updates, an email every time it's scanned, lost mode, and one payment with nothing monthly. If the lowest price matters most, CollarCode is cheaper. If you want one tag that also covers the law, PetTag's personalised dog tag (£13) and Pet-Tags (£19.99, engraved) both do that; if you want a metal tag, look at Paw ID (see PetTag vs Paw ID); if you want a community recovery network, a paid plan like Crumb's may suit you better; and if you want live location, you need a GPS tracker. You can see what a finder sees before you decide, read about our smart pet tags, or see our QR code dog tags and QR code cat tags.