Both the contactless kiosk and the QR code set out to do the same thing. They turn a moment in a physical space into a digital gift. They go about it in very different ways, though, and the difference shows up in how many donors actually finish, and how much they give. Neither is simply better than the other. Each suits a particular situation, and the strongest fundraising often uses both.
What a QR code asks of the donor
A QR code is cheap, flexible and easy to print on a poster, a bulletin or a screen. Its weakness is the number of steps it asks of the donor. They must have their phone to hand, open the camera, scan the code, wait for a page to load, and then complete a donation on their own device, often signing in or typing card details. Every one of those steps is a chance to give up, and on a patchy signal the whole thing can stall before it starts.
What a kiosk asks of the donor
A contactless kiosk asks for a single tap. The donor does not need their phone, a signal or an app. They choose an amount, present a card or wallet, and the gift is done in seconds. Because the device is always there and always visible, it captures the donor who would never have stopped to scan a code, and the simplicity tends to lift both the completion rate and the average gift.
Where each one wins
For a fixed, high-footfall spot, an exit, an entrance, a busy hall, a kiosk usually wins, because it removes friction at exactly the place where many gifts are available. A QR code comes into its own where you cannot place a device, on printed materials, in a newsletter, on a screen during an appeal, reaching donors who prefer to give on their own phone in their own time. That phone journey usually ends on a giving page, and our comparison of tap to donate versus an online giving page looks at that route in full.
The case for using both
These strengths are complementary rather than competing. A visible kiosk captures the immediate, one-tap gift, while a QR code nearby offers an alternative for the donor who would rather use their phone or wishes to give later. Offering both lets each donor choose the path that suits them, which loses fewer gifts than insisting on either alone.
Choosing for your setting
The honest answer to which works better is that it depends on where and how you are asking. If you have a fixed place where people gather, a kiosk will likely raise more and ask less of your donors. If you are reaching people through print and screens, a QR code earns its place. Match the method to the moment, and where you can, give your donors both.
Deciding how to capture in-person gifts? Compare the devices on our comparison chart, or read about the giving experience they run on the Give A Little page.