US smartphone ownership.

What the source measures

Pew Research Center's current fact sheet reports that 91% of US adults own a smartphone in its 2026 survey. The selected historical points above come from the same published series. Its current survey included 5,511 US adults, with fieldwork from January 30 through June 18, 2026. The source explains that response methods changed over the history of the series.

The chart presents selected observations rather than every survey wave. It does not interpolate missing years or imply that ownership changed smoothly between points. Percentages are shown as published, without adding a precision the source does not provide.

What it does not measure

Owning a smartphone does not establish that someone has a camera available, understands a QR prompt, has connectivity at your location or wants to follow your link. It also does not describe children, every country or the audience of a particular venue. Use this as context for mobile access, not as a forecast of campaign scans.

The data supports a practical design choice: keep an alternative route beside a public QR code. A readable short URL, phone number or printed summary helps people who cannot or prefer not to scan. It also makes the destination easier to verify.

A worked interpretation

Subtracting the selected 2011 observation of 35% from the 2026 observation of 91% gives a difference of 56 percentage points. That is arithmetic on the published observations, not a claim that QR use rose by the same amount. Relative percentage growth would be a different calculation and would still measure ownership.

Use evidence that matches the decision

For a local QR project, test the destination on the devices your visitors actually use. Ask whether the scan leads to a useful action and whether a non-camera route is available. Broad national data cannot replace that direct usability check.

The original source is linked below so the period, population and methodology can be reviewed in context. Corrections are welcome at contact@tidyqr.com. Create a static QR code when the content and destination are ready.