Get a QR code printed so it scans

Most printed codes that fail were fine on the screen. They broke somewhere between the file and the wall. Here is where, in the order it happens.

Step 1: Send a vector file

SVG, PDF or EPS. All three are vector, so the shop can blow the code up to a shop board without the edges going soft.

If the shop only accepts an image, send a PNG of at least 1000 by 1000 pixels. Anything smaller and the squares start to blur when they scale it.

Never send a screenshot from WhatsApp. WhatsApp compresses the picture and the small squares bleed into each other. It still looks right on your phone, and it fails on the wall.

Step 2: Convert to CMYK before the job runs

Indian print shops work in CMYK. Hand over an RGB file and somebody converts it for you, usually in a hurry.

A deep black can come back as a flat grey when that happens. Contrast drops, and contrast is what the camera is reading. Convert it yourself, or ask the shop to convert it and show you a proof before the job runs.

Step 3: Print it at least 30 mm wide

Three centimetres is the width to use for a sticker or a card read at arm's length. Go under it and you are relying on a good camera and a steady hand.

For anything read from a distance, divide the scanning distance by ten. That is the smallest the code can be. Two metres away needs a 20 cm code. Ten metres needs a metre.

People underestimate this every time. A code on a shutter is not a code on a visiting card.

Step 4: Leave the white border alone

Leave four modules of empty space on all four sides. A module is one of the little squares in the pattern.

The camera uses that border to work out where the code begins. Crop it tight against a photo or a coloured panel and the code becomes hard to find, even though every bit of the data is still there.

Your designer will want to crop it. Say no.

Step 5: Keep it dark on light, and matt

Dark code, light background. Not inverted, and not two shades of the same colour trying to match the brand.

Skip the gloss lamination. A shop tubelight bounces straight off it and the camera sees a white blob. Matt costs the same and it reads.

Step 6: Print one and scan it where it will live

Print a single sticker. Put it exactly where the batch is going. Stand where the customer will stand and scan it in that room's own light, with one Android phone and one iPhone.

It takes two minutes. A code that passes on your laptop can still fail on a wall at arm's length.

And a bad batch cannot be recalled. Nobody brings a sticker back to tell you it did not work.

A logo in the middle

A logo covers some of the squares. Done carefully it still reads. Done carelessly the code dies quietly.

Our branded codes are decoded by software once the logo is on. If the finished file does not read back, we do not send it. The measurements are in how big a logo can be on a QR code.

Common questions

What file format should I give the printer?

SVG, PDF or EPS. If the shop insists on an image, a PNG of at least 1000 by 1000 pixels.

What is the smallest a QR code can be printed?

Three centimetres square for a sticker or a card read at arm's length. Print bigger if the scan happens from further back.

Why does my printed QR code not scan?

Usually one of four things. It is too small, the white border was cropped, the contrast is weak, or the file was a compressed image.

Can I print a QR code in colour?

Yes, as long as it stays dark on light and the two are clearly different. Pale on pale is the common way a branded code fails.

Is a WhatsApp image good enough to print?

No. WhatsApp compresses it and the squares run together. Send the original file from your dashboard.

Do I need to test every code I print?

Test every design and every size, once. Same file, same size, same material means you only need one proof.

Before the print run

The vector file comes from your dashboard. The plans are on pricing.