How to make a QR code with a logo for free

A branded code with your logo in the centre scans just as reliably as a black-and-white one. A step-by-step guide, print sizes and the mistakes that stop a code from scanning.

QR codes are part of daily life: a café menu, Google reviews, booking an appointment, guest Wi-Fi. But the standard black-and-white square looks out of place on a well-designed business card or shop window. A code can be styled to match the brand – with the logo in the centre and brand colours – and stay just as reliable.

Most online generators charge for a vector file, for removing their own logo, or for a “dynamic” code on a subscription. For most small-business tasks that is unnecessary: a static code that works indefinitely is enough.

How-toHow to make a QR code with a logo: 5 steps

1. Open the generatorGo to the free QR code generator. No sign-up is needed.
2. Choose what to encodeA link to a website or menu, an Instagram profile, a phone number, Wi-Fi, a contact card or text.
3. Set the brand coloursThe code should be dark and the background light. A gradient is fine if both colours are dark.
4. Add the logoBest of all a PNG on a transparent background, or an SVG. The tool clears the modules under the logo itself.
5. Download the filePNG for screens and social media; SVG, PDF or EPS for the print shop.

PrintWhat size and format you need

The main rule: the further away a person stands, the larger the code must be. Work with a ratio of 1 to 10: a 3 cm code scans confidently from 30 cm.

MistakesWhy a QR code does not scan

Not enough contrast. A camera will not read a light-grey code on white or a yellow one on beige. A dark code on a light background is the most reliable option.

The logo is too big. The logo covers part of the data. If it takes up more than a third of the code, even high error correction will not save it.

No quiet zone. There must be an empty margin at least four modules wide around the code. Text or a frame right against it gets in the way of scanning.

A long link. The longer the address, the smaller the modules. First shorten the link – the code becomes simpler.

HonestlyThe code is ready. What about the thing it sits on?

The tool makes the QR code itself. But what works is not the code, it is what surrounds it: a clear caption, a visible spot, a layout in which the code does not get lost. A table sign, a door sticker, a menu or a business card with your code in your brand style is what we design – and we hand over a file the print shop accepts without corrections. Details are on the print design page.

Before printing a run, always scan the code with two different phones. A printed static code cannot be changed.

ChoiceStatic or dynamic QR code: which to choose

All QR codes fall into two kinds, and this is where generators most often charge money.

A static code holds the link right in the pattern. It needs no intermediary service: the camera reads the address and opens it straight away. Such a code cannot “expire” or be “switched off”, because there is nothing to switch off.

A dynamic code leads to the service’s address, which then redirects to your page. That gives scan statistics and lets you change the link after printing. But the code works only while you pay the subscription: if payment stops, the printed run stops opening.

For a menu, business card, sign, packaging or sticker a static code is enough. To keep the option of changing the address, point the code not at a social media page but at a page on your own website: you can change its content any time, and the code stays the same.

IdeasWhere a business needs a QR code

1. Menu and price listA code on the table, in the window or by the till leads to the current menu. Prices change on the website and nothing has to be reprinted.
2. ReviewsA “Leave a review” sticker by the till with a link to the Google Maps review form brings many more reviews: a person does not have to search for anything.
3. Booking and ordersA code on a specialist’s business card leads straight to online booking or a messenger.
4. Guest Wi-FiA guest points the camera and connects without anyone spelling out the password.
5. PackagingInstructions, ingredients, a product video or a reorder page.
6. Outdoor advertisingShop window, pavement sign, vehicle. Here the code must be large: it is scanned from several metres.

TechnicalWhat error correction is and why it matters

Every QR code carries redundant data: if part of the code gets dirty, scratched or covered by a logo, the rest is enough to restore the content. There are four levels.

The higher the level, the more modules in the code and the smaller they get. So the rule is simple: with a logo – high error correction and a slightly larger print size; without a logo – medium correction and a simpler code.

ChecklistHow to check a code before printing

1. Scan with two phonesOne iPhone and one Android, with the built-in camera. Third-party apps read better, but customers do not use them.
2. Print at real sizeOn an ordinary printer at 100 % scale. A code reads better from a screen than from paper.
3. Check from working distanceScan a window code from the pavement and a menu code from a seat at the table.
4. Open the link all the wayMake sure the page opens on a phone, without logging in and without an error.
5. Add a caption“Menu”, “Leave a review”, “Book now”. A code without an explanation is scanned far less often.

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