QR code guides
Guides to making QR codes that scan first time: Wi-Fi, logos, print sizes, file formats and error correction. Every one is free, with the tool itself a click away.
Design
QR code best practices
A practical hub for everything that makes a QR code reliable — size, quiet zone, contrast, error correction, file format, static vs dynamic, a clear call to action and testing — with links to the deeper guide on each.
9 min read
Wi-Fi
How to make a Wi-Fi QR code
Let guests join your Wi-Fi by scanning — no password typing. Generate one free below, with WPA3, hidden-network and special-character handling done right.
7 min read
Design
How to make a QR code with a logo
Put your logo in the middle of a QR code — for free — without stopping it scanning. The error-correction and sizing rules that make it work.
7 min read
Use cases
QR codes for restaurant menus
Turn your menu into a scannable code for free. How to digitise it, the right table-tent size, static vs dynamic, allergen rules, and how to make it scan first time.
8 min read
Use cases
QR codes for business cards
Put a QR code on your card that actually scans: the right size, front vs back, what to link to, and the contrast and print settings that matter.
7 min read
Formats
QR code formats: PNG vs SVG vs PDF
PNG for screens, SVG or PDF for print, never JPG. The raster-vs-vector difference and which file to download, in plain English.
6 min read
Print
QR code size for print
How big a QR code needs to be to scan — the 10:1 rule, a size table for cards to billboards, plus DPI, quiet zone and contrast.
7 min read
Free
Free QR codes with no watermark
What ‘free’ should actually mean: no watermark, no sign-up, no expiry. And how to avoid the tools that quietly trap you.
5 min read
Design
QR code error correction explained
The four error-correction levels (L, M, Q, H) decide how much of a QR code can be damaged or covered and still scan. How Reed–Solomon redundancy works, the real size tradeoff, and when to pick each.
8 min read
Dynamic
Dynamic QR codes: how they work and when to use them
A dynamic QR code points at a short redirect link instead of the destination itself, so you can change where it goes anytime — without reprinting — and see who scanned it. Here is how to make one and when it pays off.
8 min read
How to
How to edit a QR code
You can only edit a QR code if it’s dynamic. A static code has the link baked into the pattern, so changing it means a new code; a dynamic code redirects through a short link you can repoint anytime — no reprint.
7 min read
Design
How to test a QR code before you print it
A printed QR code can't be fixed — so test it first. Scan the exported file on both iPhone and Android, proof it at real size and distance, and check the quiet zone, contrast and destination before you commit to a print run.
7 min read
Open source
Self-hosting a QR code generator
Run the generator on your own infrastructure. What the AGPL repo contains (and what it deliberately doesn't), how to deploy it with no database and no secrets, and what the licence actually asks of you.
9 min read
Open source
Open-source QR code libraries
Which library to reach for by language, with verified licences, what each is genuinely good at, and the honest line where a library stops being the right answer.
10 min read
Open source
Making QR codes offline and privately
Two different things get called offline. How to check whether a generator uploads what you type, which tools genuinely need no connection, and why scanning a static code never does.
8 min read