QR Code Generator

QR codes for everything

Four content types, one workflow

Choose what the code should do when scanned. URL / Text opens a page or shows a message; WiFi encodes your network name, password and security type so guests join by pointing a camera instead of typing a 20-character key; Email and Phone pre-fill a message or dial a number. Fill in the fields, style the colors and margin to fit where the code will live, and the canvas re-renders live. Export a high-resolution PNG for screens and documents, or an SVG that scales from business card to billboard without a hint of blur.

Error correction: the feature worth understanding

QR codes carry built-in redundancy called error correction, in four levels — L, M, Q and H — recovering from roughly 7% up to 30% damage. Higher levels make a denser code but keep it scannable when partially covered, scratched or printed imperfectly; that's also the mechanism that tolerates logos placed over a code's center. Practical rule: use a higher level for anything physical (stickers, menus, packaging, event posters) where wear and lamination glare are realities, and a lower level when the code lives purely on screens and you prefer the cleaner, sparser look.

Before you send it to print

Most "the QR doesn't scan" stories trace back to three choices. Size: codes need about 2 cm (0.8 in) per side minimum at typical scanning distance — bigger if it hangs on a wall. Contrast: dark modules on a light background scan reliably; light-on-dark and low-contrast brand palettes confuse many readers, so test custom colors here before committing. Quiet zone: the empty margin around the code is part of the spec — don't crop it or crowd it with artwork. And always scan the final artifact with a couple of phones after printing a proof; thirty seconds of testing beats reprinting five hundred flyers.

Step-by-step: a Wi-Fi code for a guest room or café

Click WiFi in the type switch. Enter the network name exactly as it appears on your phone (SSIDs are case-sensitive), the password, and pick the encryption: WPA covers WPA2 and WPA3 networks, which is almost every router made in the last decade; WEP only for very old hardware; "nopass" for an open network. The canvas redraws on every keystroke. In the Style panel set Size (120–640 px) — 300 px is fine for screens, go larger for print — leave Quiet-zone margin at 2 or more, and choose an error-correction level; for a laminated card on a table pick Quart or High. Adjust the foreground and background colors only if the brand demands it. Then scan the canvas with a phone before exporting: if the "Join network" prompt appears, download PNG for a slide or chat and SVG for anything a printer will touch. Copy image drops the PNG straight onto the clipboard for pasting into a document.

Real-world use cases

• Restaurant table tents. A URL code to the menu at High correction, 2 cm or larger, black on white — sauce splashes and lamination glare are exactly what the redundancy is for.
• Business cards and email signatures. A URL to a contact page or LinkedIn profile; export SVG for the card so the print shop can scale it, PNG at 300 px for the signature.
• Support and sales hand-offs. The Email type with subject and body pre-filled ("Order #— question") turns a poster or invoice into a one-tap message; the Phone type puts a dial prompt on a repair sticker or a van.
• Event check-in and Wi-Fi at venues. Print the Wi-Fi code once for the whole event instead of reading a 16-character key aloud to every attendee; regenerate it when the password changes, since the code is static.

How a QR code is built under the hood

The generator first picks an encoding mode for your text — numeric, alphanumeric or byte — because digits and uppercase letters pack tighter than arbitrary UTF-8, which is why a short all-caps URL yields a smaller grid than a mixed-case one. It then chooses the smallest version (grid size, from 21×21 for version 1 up to 177×177 for version 40) that fits the data plus the error-correction codewords at your chosen level. Error correction is Reed–Solomon coding: the payload is split into blocks, parity codewords are computed for each, and the whole stream is interleaved so that a scratch across one area damages a little of many blocks rather than all of one. The three large squares are finder patterns that let a camera locate and orient the code from any angle, the smaller square is an alignment pattern, and the dotted lines between finders are timing patterns that tell the decoder the module pitch. Finally, one of eight mask patterns is XORed over the data area to break up large same-color regions that confuse scanners; the mask choice and correction level are recorded in the format bits next to the finders. Every module is drawn on the canvas at a whole number of pixels, and the SVG export writes the same grid as crisp rectangles.

Further reading

Our guide to how QR codes work goes deeper into versions, masking and error correction, and the SVG optimization guide explains why the vector export stays sharp at any size. Browse all guides for more.

Frequently asked questions