Why a QR code for a link
Typing a web address on a phone is slow and easy to get wrong. A QR code replaces it: the person points their camera, taps the banner that appears, and the page opens. That is why QR codes appear on menus, posters, packaging, tickets and slides. Almost any address can go in one: a website, a menu, a map location, a form, a social profile, a video, an app store page or a download.
Make one
With the URL to QR code tool:
- Paste or type the address. If you leave out https://, it is added for you.
- Scan the preview with a phone to confirm the right page opens.
- Open Appearance and size if you want a different size, colours or error correction.
- Download a PNG for screens, or an SVG for print.
The tool checks the address as you type: it refuses links that could run code (such as javascript:), warns about spaces, and tells you if the text does not look like a web address. It also accepts mailto: and tel: links, which open the email or phone app. Everything happens in your browser, so the address is not uploaded.
Use a short, stable address
The longer the address, the denser the code, and the harder it is to scan from a distance or from a poor print. If your link carries long tracking parameters, consider linking to a clean page instead and measuring visits another way. Make sure the address will still work next year: do not point a printed code at a temporary page, a staging site or a file in a folder you might move. If the destination might change, link to a stable page that you can update.
Static and dynamic codes
A static code contains the address itself. It works forever and without any service, but cannot count scans. A dynamic code contains the service’s own short address, which redirects to yours. That allows scan counts and lets you change the destination later, but it makes the code depend on the service: if you stop paying or the company closes, every printed copy breaks. For anything printed, a static code is the safer choice. To measure results, add parameters such as utm_source=poster to your address and read them in your analytics.
Before you print
- Scan it with two phones, one iPhone and one Android, in real lighting.
- Check the page on mobile. Most scans happen on phones, so the page should load fast and fit a small screen.
- Size and distance. At least about 2 cm (0.8 inch) wide for something held in the hand, larger on a poster.
- Quiet zone. Leave a blank border of four modules around the code.
- Contrast. Dark code on a light background; avoid patterned or photographic backgrounds.
- Add a call to action such as “Scan for the menu”.
Making codes for email and phone
A mailto: link opens a new email to an address, and a tel: link offers to call a number. Both work with the tool: type mailto:hello@example.com or tel:+1234567890. For longer text, such as a message, use the general QR code generator, and for Wi-Fi use the Wi-Fi QR code generator.
Staying safe with QR codes
People cannot see where a code points until their phone shows the address. Anyone can stick a fake code over a real one. If you are scanning, read the address first, and be careful with codes that ask you to log in or pay. If you are publishing codes, use your own domain, print them where they cannot be easily covered, and make the destination clear in the text next to the code. The guide on making a QR code for free has more on size, colours and error correction.
Privacy
The generator builds the code in your browser and does not store the address. A QR code contains the address in plain form, so anyone who scans it can read it; do not put a private link in a public code.