QR Code
Generate QR codes for URLs, WiFi credentials, vCards, email, SMS, phone numbers, and plain text. PNG and SVG download. Everything runs in your browser.
Encoded bytes: 22 / 2331 at level M
Show encoded string
https://codebrulee.com
About this tool
QR codes are 2D barcodes invented by Denso Wave in 1994. A QR code encodes a string plus enough redundancy (Reed-Solomon error correction) to survive partial damage or coverage. Scanning apps on every modern phone turn the encoded string into an action — opening a URL, joining a WiFi network, saving a contact.
This generator supports the structured formats that scanning apps
recognise as actions: mailto:, tel:,
SMSTO:, WiFi (WIFI: prefix), and vCard
(text/vcard payload). It also accepts plain text or URLs. Pick the
mode, fill the appropriate fields, and the QR code regenerates
live.
Error correction is a capacity/robustness tradeoff: L preserves ~7% of the data for error correction, M ~15%, Q ~25%, H ~30%. Higher correction means the code can survive more damage but holds less data. For most screen use, M is fine; use Q or H if the code will be printed or if you plan to overlay a logo in the centre.
Two cautions. QR codes are not private — anything you encode can be read by anyone with a phone. Don’t put secrets in them. And content drifts — a URL printed on a flyer still scans three years later but the URL itself may 404. For long-lived print runs, use a URL you control (and can redirect if needed).
Frequently asked questions
Is the QR code generated on your servers?
No. Encoding happens entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter — URLs, WiFi passwords, contact info — is transmitted.
How much data can I fit in a QR code?
Up to about 2,953 bytes at error correction level L (lowest redundancy). Higher correction levels trade capacity for resilience — M allows ~2,331, Q ~1,663, H ~1,273. The capacity line under the input updates as you type.
What error correction level should I use?
M or Q for most QR codes. L is fine when the code is displayed cleanly on a screen. H is worth it only when the code will be printed, damaged, partially covered, or overlaid with a logo.
Can I add my logo to a QR code?
The library used here does not composite a logo. However, QR codes at error correction level H can tolerate ~30% coverage without becoming unreadable — import the PNG or SVG into an image editor and drop a logo in the center. Test the result with a real phone before printing.
Do QR codes expire?
The encoding itself doesn’t expire — a QR code scanned today will decode to the same string in 100 years. What can expire is the content: a URL that no longer resolves, a WiFi password that’s been changed, a phone number that’s been reassigned.