How to make a Wi-Fi QR code
Pick the Wi-Fi tab, type your network name exactly as it appears in your phone’s Wi-Fi list, choose the security type, and enter the password. Guests can then point their camera at the code and join without you reading out a 20-character password.
Two details decide whether it works. The SSID must match exactly, including capital letters and spaces — Cafe WiFi and cafe wifi are different networks. And the security type has to be right: almost every modern router uses WPA (WPA2 and WPA3 both fall under this option). WEP only appears on hardware from the 2000s. If your network has no password at all, choose the no-password option and the password field disappears.
If your network is hidden — it doesn’t broadcast its name — tick Hidden network. Leave it unticked otherwise. Some scanners fail on codes that explicitly declare a network as not hidden, which is why this tool only writes that flag when you ask for it.
vCard or MECARD for contacts?
Both store a contact card, and phones understand both. The difference is size.
vCard is the format your address book exports. It carries more fields, is better supported on iPhone, and is the safer default — pick it unless you have a reason not to.
MECARD was designed for Japanese feature phones and is much more compact. The same contact often produces a noticeably simpler code. That matters when you’re printing small: fewer squares means bigger squares, and bigger squares scan from further away. If your vCard code looks like dense static, switching to MECARD is the quickest fix.
Choosing an error correction level
QR codes carry redundant data so they still scan when part of the code is scratched, smudged, or covered. More redundancy means fewer squares available for your actual content.
- L — about 7% recoverable. Fine for a code that only ever appears on a screen.
- M — about 15%. The right default, and what this tool starts with.
- Q — about 25%. Worth it for stickers and labels that get handled.
- H — about 30%. Choose this if you plan to paste a logo over the middle of the code.
Higher isn’t automatically better. Raising the level on a long URL can push the code into a denser version, and a dense code with heavy error correction can scan worse than a simple one with level M.
Printing: size and the quiet zone
A QR code needs empty space around it — the quiet zone, four modules wide on every side. Scanners use it to find where the code begins. This tool always includes it, so don’t crop the downloaded image tight to the black edge, and don’t place text right against it.
For print, a good rule is that the code should be at least 2 × 2 cm for close scanning, and roughly a tenth of the reading distance for anything further: a poster read from 2 metres wants a code around 20 cm across. Download the SVG for anything printed — it stays sharp at any size, while the PNG will soften if you scale it up.