How to Generate a QR Code for Free
Plenty of "free" QR code generators quietly redirect the code through their own tracking URL, which means the QR code stops working the moment that company shuts down, changes its pricing, or decides your free code should now point at an ad. A QR code generated locally, encoding your actual destination directly, doesn't have that failure mode — there's no third-party server in between that can break later.
Steps
- Open the QR Code Generator.
- Enter the link, text, or contact details you want encoded.
- Download the generated QR code image.
Before you print it anywhere
Always scan the generated code yourself with a phone before it goes on a flyer, product, or storefront sign — it takes ten seconds and catches the two most common mistakes: a typo in the URL, or forgetting the https:// prefix, which some scanner apps handle fine and others don't.
Sizing for real-world scanning distance
A QR code needs to be printed large enough relative to how far away someone will be standing when they scan it — a code sized fine for a business card becomes unreadable blown up tiny on a poster meant to be scanned from six feet away, and vice versa. As a rough rule, keep the printed code at least 2×2 cm for close-up scanning (business cards, product labels) and scale up substantially for anything meant to be scanned from a distance.