Question 1

What are QR codes actually scanned for? The 5 most common uses.

Accepted Answer

QR codes have quietly become the default link between physical objects and the web. The five most common scans:① Adding a contact — a vCard QR on a business card lets one tap save someone's name, email, and phone into your address book;② Restaurant menus — a QR on the table replaces paper menus and opens an ordering page;③ WiFi login — encode the SSID + password into a QR, stick it on the wall, guests scan and connect without typing a 16-character WPA key;④ Payments — Venmo, PayPal, WeChat Pay, and Alipay all use QR codes at the point of sale;⑤ App downloads / landing pages — print ads, product packaging, and event posters use QR to bridge offline to a specific URL. This tool accepts any plain text payload, so all five work out of the box.

Question 2

How do I make sure my QR code scans on both iPhone and Android?

Accepted Answer

Three rules cover 99% of cross-device problems.① Use a standard Model 2 QR code — every iPhone since iOS 11 and every Android phone since version 9 has a QR scanner built into the stock camera app, no third-party app required.② Respect the quiet zone — leave at least 4 modules of white space around the code. This tool uses margin=2 by default, which is compliant.③ Avoid low-contrast color pairs — yellow-on-white, navy-on-purple, or pastel-on-pastel often fail on older Android scanners. Stick with a dark foreground on a light background (this tool defaults to black-on-white). For outdoor print, select error correction level H (30%) so the code still scans with a logo in the center, scratches, or partial dirt.

Question 3

Are the QR codes generated on this site private? Can anyone see what I encode?

Accepted Answer

No, all generation runs locally in your browser — your content never touches our servers. The mechanism: the `qrcode` JavaScript library renders the QR pattern directly on the client using a Canvas, so the URL, WiFi password, email, vCard, or whatever you typed stays on your device. Most competing QR generators send the payload to a backend for processing, where it ends up in access logs, analytics pipelines, or even ad networks. This tool has no backend, no API, no database. You can verify by opening your browser DevTools Network tab and clicking Generate — there will be no outbound request. Safe for sensitive use cases: home WiFi passwords, internal admin URLs, customer contact lists, anything you would not paste into a chatbot.

Question 4

What is the difference between a static and a dynamic QR code? Which do I need?

Accepted Answer

A static QR code encodes the destination URL directly into the black-and-white pattern. It is free, permanent, and independent of any third party — print it once and it works forever. The downside: you cannot edit it after printing; a typo in the URL means reprinting. A dynamic QR code encodes only a short redirect URL; the real destination lives in the vendor's database and you can change it anytime, plus you get scan-count analytics. Downsides: monthly fees ($5–50), vendor lock-in (if they shut down your QR dies), and free tiers usually cap scans. This tool generates static QR codes only, which is the right choice for 99% of personal and small-business use (business cards, menus, WiFi signs) because you do not need edit-after-print and you do not want to depend on a paid third party.

Question 5

What physical size should my QR code be when printed? (Business card vs poster vs billboard)

Accepted Answer

The rule of thumb: scan distance ≈ 10× the QR's physical edge length. If you expect someone to scan from 1 meter away, the QR itself should be at least 10 cm wide. Concrete recipes:① Business card (scan distance 10–15 cm) — make the QR at least 1.5 cm × 1.5 cm, export as 300 DPI PNG;② Table tent / A4 menu (30–50 cm) — 3–5 cm is plenty;③ Pull-up banner / trade show booth (1–2 m) — 10–15 cm;④ Billboard / bus stop (5–10 m) — minimum 50 cm, often 1 m or larger so it stays scannable from a passing car. For anything that may be reprinted at different sizes, export as SVG vector — it scales infinitely with no quality loss. PNG is fine when the final physical size is known and fixed.

QR Code Generator

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