Free QR Code Generator

Make a QR code for a web address, text, phone number or Wi-Fi network. The link goes straight into the code, so it never expires, never redirects through us and works forever.

A web address, text, phone number or Wi-Fi details, up to about 1,200 characters

Change the bar width, height and text here. The barcode on the left is drawn at the size it will print, so at 100% zoom it should match a ruler held to the screen.

PNG and JPG files store their resolution, so Word, Canva and label software place them at this size.

Colours

Dark bars on a light background scan best. Most scanners use red light, so red, orange and yellow bars read as blank.

A QR code that's yours for good

Many QR sites make "dynamic" codes: the code points to their server, which then forwards people to your page. If you stop paying, or the company closes, every printed code breaks. The codes made here are static: your web address or text is stored in the pattern itself. Nothing passes through BarcodePilot, there's no tracking, and the code keeps working for as long as your link does.

The trade-off: you can't change where a static code points after printing. If you might change the address, point the code at a page you control and change that page instead.

StandardISO/IEC 18004 (QR Code Model 2)
CapacityUp to 7,089 digits, 4,296 letters or 2,953 bytes in the largest size
Error correctionLow 7%, Medium 15%, High 25%, Highest 30% of the code can be damaged
Quiet zone4 cells of blank space on every side
Read byEvery modern phone camera, and 2D imaging scanners

How to make a good QR code

  1. Use the full web address, starting with https://. Phones only offer to open it as a link when the scheme is there.
  2. Keep it short. Fewer characters mean bigger cells, which scan faster from further away. Long tracking links make dense codes.
  3. Choose the size for the distance. A rule of thumb is a code at least a tenth as wide as the scanning distance: 2 cm for a business card held in the hand, 10 cm for a poster read from a metre away.
  4. Pick the error correction. Medium suits most uses. Choose Highest if you'll put a small logo over the centre or the code will get scuffed.
  5. Test it. Print one, then scan it with two different phones before printing a batch. Our barcode checker does this in the browser.

What you can put in a QR code

To…Type this
Open a websitehttps://example.com/menu
Join a Wi-Fi networkWIFI:T:WPA;S:Network name;P:password;;
Start an emailmailto:hello@example.com
Call a numbertel:+15551234567
Show plain textAny text up to about 1,200 characters

QR codes on products

A QR code on a pack doesn't replace the UPC or EAN that tills scan. If you want one code that works for shoppers' phones and, in future, store scanners too, use a GS1 Digital Link QR code, which carries your product's GTIN inside a web address.

Pallet racking in a distribution warehouse
Pallet racking in a distribution warehouse.

Questions

  • No. They're static: the address or text is stored in the code itself, so it works as long as the link it contains works. Nothing passes through our servers.

  • Not in a static code. Point the QR code at a page you control and update that page instead.

  • Yes, if you choose Highest error correction and keep the logo small, covering no more than about a fifth of the code. Always test the result with several phones.

  • For phones held close, around 2 cm across with a short link. Longer content needs a bigger code, because the cells get smaller.

  • No. A static QR code goes straight to your link, so we never see who scans it.