📱 QR Code Generator

What QR codes actually are.

QR stands for Quick Response — the format was invented by Denso Wave (a Toyota subsidiary) in 1994 to track components on automotive production lines. Unlike traditional barcodes that encode data in one dimension, QR codes use a two-dimensional matrix of black and white modules, allowing them to store significantly more information and to be scanned from any angle.

QR codes can encode URLs, plain text, Wi-Fi credentials (which iOS and Android can use to join a network directly), contact cards in vCard format, email addresses, phone numbers, and SMS pre-fills. The most common use is a URL — scan, tap, open.

Built into every QR code is error correction — a redundancy system that lets the code be read even when partially damaged or obscured. There are four levels: L (7% damage tolerance), M (15%), Q (25%), and H (30%). Higher error correction makes the code denser and slightly harder to scan at small sizes, so Level M is a sensible default for most uses.

For reliable scanning, print QR codes at a minimum of 2.5 cm × 2.5 cm, maintain strong contrast (dark on light), and leave a quiet zone of at least four modules around the edge. The codes generated here are static — the data is baked in permanently — which means no server, no subscription, and no expiry.