QR Code Generator

Turn a URL or short text into a QR code for print ads, packaging, and event signage.

Choose the error correction level, size, and colors, then download a PNG or copy the image.

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Point the code at a URL you can measure and change

A printed QR code is permanent the moment the job leaves the printer, so the most important decision happens before you touch the size or colour settings: what address the code opens. For marketing use, paste a full URL that includes https:// and add UTM parameters so scans show up as their own traffic source in your analytics. A flyer for a spring open house might use ?utm_source=flyer&utm_medium=qr&utm_campaign=spring-open-house. If you run the same offer on a poster, a table tent, and a direct-mail card, give each piece its own utm_content value, and you will see which placement actually produced visits.

Long URLs make denser codes. Every extra character adds modules (the small black and white squares), and a denser code needs to be printed larger to scan reliably. Two practical ways to keep codes simple are a short path on your own domain (for example yourbrand.com/spring) that redirects to the full UTM-tagged landing page, or a redirect you control inside your CMS. A redirect you own also lets you fix a broken destination after printing, which a code that encodes the final URL directly cannot do.

The character counter under the preview shows how much you are encoding. Watch it as you add tracking parameters: if the code preview starts to look busy, shorten the link rather than shrinking the print size.

Size, distance, and quiet zone for print

A widely used rule of thumb is a 10:1 ratio between scanning distance and code width. A code on a table card read from about 25 cm (10 in) away works at roughly 2.5 cm (1 in) wide. A poster read from 2 m (about 6.5 ft) needs a code near 20 cm (8 in) wide. Treat that as a floor rather than a target, and go larger for dense codes, low light, glossy surfaces, or audiences who will scan from a moving car or across a room.

The generator exports PNG images between 128 and 512 pixels square. That is plenty for web pages, email, and slides. For print, remember that a 512 px image placed at 300 dpi is only about 4.3 cm (1.7 in) wide. Because QR codes are made of hard-edged squares, you can scale the PNG up in your layout software with nearest-neighbour (no smoothing) resampling without losing scannability, but check a proof at final size.

The ISO/IEC 18004 QR code standard calls for a quiet zone, a clear margin four modules wide, on every side. This tool draws a two-module white margin, so leave extra blank space around the code in your design and do not place it against a busy photo, a border line, or the edge of a label.

  • Minimum practical print size for close-range scans: about 2 cm (0.8 in).
  • Keep text, logos, and folds out of the quiet zone.
  • Avoid curved surfaces such as bottles for small codes, as distortion reduces read rates.

Colours, contrast, and error correction

Phone cameras read QR codes by contrast, so the safest design is a dark foreground on a light background. You can change both colours here to match brand guidelines, but keep the foreground clearly darker than the background. Inverted codes (light modules on a dark background) and low-contrast pairs such as mid-grey on light blue still fail on some camera apps and older phones, which quietly lowers your scan count without any error message.

Error correction adds redundant data so a code can still be read when part of it is dirty, scuffed, creased, or covered. The four levels defined in ISO/IEC 18004 restore roughly 7% (L), 15% (M), 25% (Q), and 30% (H) of the symbol. Higher levels make the code denser for the same content, so there is a trade-off:

  • L: clean digital placements such as a slide or a website, where the code will not be damaged.
  • M (the default): most flyers, business cards, and brochures.
  • Q: packaging, shelf labels, and outdoor posters that get handled or weathered.
  • H: stickers and surfaces likely to be scratched, or when you plan to overlay a small logo in your design software.

If you add a logo on top of the code in another program, keep it small and centred, use level H, and test it; the tool itself does not place logos.

Test before you print thousands

A QR code that fails to scan costs more than the print run: every person who tries it and gives up is a lost lead. Before approving artwork, run a short test on the actual proof or a printout at final size.

  • Scan with at least one iPhone camera and one Android camera app, not only a dedicated scanner app.
  • Scan from the distance and angle people will really use, in the lighting of the venue.
  • Confirm the landing page loads quickly on mobile data and that the UTM parameters survive any redirect.
  • Check your analytics real-time view to see the test visit arrive with the right source and campaign.
  • Print a label near the code saying what happens on scan, such as “Scan for the menu”, which lifts scan rates and reassures cautious users.

The generator runs entirely in your browser using the open-source qrcode library, so the text you encode is not uploaded. Use Download PNG to save the file or Copy Image to paste it straight into a design tool, document, or email.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about the QR Code Generator

No. The code stores your URL or text directly in the image, so it keeps working as long as the destination exists. There is no account, subscription, or redirect service in between. If you may need to change the destination later, encode a short URL on a domain you control and redirect it, because the printed code itself can never be edited.

Sources & References

QR Code Standard

QR symbols follow ISO/IEC 18004, which defines the four error-correction levels (L, M, Q, H restore roughly 7%, 15%, 25% and 30% of damaged data) and a four-module quiet zone.
→Source: ISO/IEC 18004:2024 Information technology - QR code bar code symbology specification(2024)

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