QR & Barcode Tools
Generate, scan and customize QR codes and standard barcodes.
Which tool do I need?
Tools for making and reading machine-readable codes. Codes are generated in your browser and can be downloaded as PNG or SVG, so you can use them on a poster, a label or a product without a subscription or an expiry date.
Choose by what will scan the code. QR codes suit phones: use the QR Code Generator for a link, Wi-Fi login or contact card. Barcodes suit retail and warehouse scanners: use the Barcode Generator for Code 128 labels and stock, or for EAN-13 and UPC-A on products, where it works out the check digit. It can also make a batch from a list, one code per line.
The QR Code Reader works the other way round. It reads a code from a photo, a screenshot or your camera, and shows the link before you open it, which is useful when you do not trust where a code came from. It reads QR codes only, not barcodes.
Whatever you make, test it with a real phone or scanner before you print hundreds. Contrast and print size cause most failures, and dark bars on a white background scan most reliably.
A QR code for a link, Wi-Fi or contact card
Read a QR code from an image or screenshot
A product barcode for retail
A barcode for shipping, stock or labels
Guides worth reading
Questions
- EAN-13 or UPC-A?
- UPC-A (12 digits) is used in the US and Canada; EAN-13 (13 digits) almost everywhere else, including India. Retail barcodes need numbers registered with GS1; making the image yourself is fine once you have them.
- Do QR codes expire?
- Not these. They contain the link or text itself, so they keep working as long as the link does.