How to Make a QR Code for a Link (and Keep It Editable)

A QR code is a link people can scan with their phone camera. Making one takes seconds. Making one you will not regret after printing 5,000 flyers takes a little more thought: you want to be able to change where it points, know how many people scanned it, and be sure it scans on every phone.

Static vs dynamic QR codes

There are two kinds of QR code, and the difference matters more than the design.

• A static QR code stores your link directly in the pattern. It needs no account and never expires, but it can never be changed, and nobody can tell you how often it was scanned.
• A dynamic QR code stores a short link instead. The pattern stays the same while you change the destination behind it, and every scan passes through the short link, so it can be counted.

Rule of thumb: for anything you print or can't easily replace, use a dynamic code.

How to make a static QR code (free, no sign-up)

1. Open the free QR code generator.
2. Paste your link, including https://.
3. Choose your colours and a size.
4. Download PNG for screens or SVG for print.

How to make a dynamic QR code with MiniSnip

1. Create a free account and paste your link into Create a link.
2. Give it a readable alias, for example minisnip.com/menu.
3. Open the link's page, choose your QR colours and download PNG or SVG.
4. Later, change the destination from the same page. The printed code keeps working and goes to the new page.

To tell scans apart from people clicking the same link online, add ?src=qr to the link before you make the code, such as minisnip.com/menu?src=qr. Scans then appear under the source "QR code" in your analytics.

Get the size right

• Minimum: about 2 × 2 cm (0.8 inch) for something held in the hand, like a visiting card or a label.
• Distance rule: make the code roughly one tenth as wide as the distance people scan it from. A poster read from 2 metres needs a code around 20 cm wide; a banner read from 5 metres, around 50 cm.
• Shorter links help. A short link makes a simpler pattern with bigger squares, which scans faster and from further away. That is another reason to put a short link inside.

Colours and contrast

• Dark code, light background. Some phone cameras cannot read light codes on dark backgrounds.
• Strong contrast. Dark navy on white works; mid-grey on light grey does not.
• Keep the margin. The blank border around a QR code, the quiet zone, helps cameras find it. Don't place text or graphics right up against the code.
• Error correction. QR codes still scan when part of the pattern is dirty or damaged. The standard defines four levels, from L (about 7% can be lost) to H (about 30%). MiniSnip uses level M (about 15%), a good balance for links.

PNG or SVG?

PNG is an image made of pixels. It is right for websites, slides and documents, but it blurs if a printer enlarges it. SVG is a vector file that stays perfectly sharp at any size. Send SVG to your designer or printer.

Test before you print

1. Scan the code with at least two phones, an iPhone and an Android if you can.
2. Scan it from the real distance, in the real light, printed at the real size.
3. Check that the page it opens loads quickly on mobile data.
4. Check the scan appears in your analytics, if you used a short link.

Measure what your QR codes do

With a dynamic code you can answer questions a static code never will: how many people scanned the menu this week, which city the flyer worked in, and whether the poster at the station beat the one in the mall. Use a different short link, or a different ?src= tag, for each placement and compare them side by side.

Next, read how to shorten a link or learn why branded short links earn more trust.