1 — Give it a code to read
What this scanner recognises
| Link | Shows the full destination before you open it |
| Wi-Fi | Splits out network name, security type and password |
| vCard | Lists name, company, phone, email and address |
| Recipient, subject and pre-filled body | |
| Phone / SMS | Number and any prepared message |
| Event | Calendar entry encoded in the code |
| Location | Geographic coordinates |
| Text | Anything else, shown exactly as encoded |
Check before you tap. The decoded link appears in full above. Look at the domain carefully — a stuck-on sticker over a genuine code is the most common QR scam there is.
Why read a QR code here rather than with your phone?
Because a phone camera decodes and opens in one movement, which is convenient right up until it isn't.
A QR code is not a link. It is a block of plain text that happens to contain a link, and your phone quietly decides what to do with that text on your behalf. Point a camera at a poster and, in the space of about a second, the code is read, the destination is resolved and a browser is opening it. You never see what you agreed to.
This scanner breaks that chain deliberately. It decodes the code, tells you what kind of data it holds, and prints the full contents on screen. Only then do you decide whether to follow it. For a code on a parking meter, a restaurant table or an unexpected letter, that pause is worth having.
Three ways to feed it a code
01Upload or drag an image
Any photo or exported image containing a QR code. The decoder tries several zoom levels automatically, so a code sitting in the corner of a larger picture is usually still found.
02Paste a screenshot
The fastest route on a laptop. Screenshot a code you have been sent, press paste anywhere on the page, and the result appears without ever saving a file.
03Use the live camera
Grant permission and hold the code up. Frames are analysed continuously and the camera stops the moment a code is found. The video is never recorded or sent anywhere.
04Read what came back
Structured data is unpacked into a table — a Wi-Fi code shows its network name and password in plain text, a contact card shows each field separately.
QR code scams, and how reading first defeats them
Because the printed pattern is unreadable to a human, a QR code is an unusually effective disguise. The common attacks are all variations on the same idea.
- Sticker overlays. A fraudulent code is printed on a sticker and pressed over the genuine one on a parking meter, an EV charger or a restaurant table. Physically, check whether the code is a sticker on top of printed material. Digitally, check the domain before you tap.
- Lookalike domains. The link resolves to a domain one character off the real one, or a real brand name buried in a subdomain of something else. Read the part immediately before the first single slash — that is the actual site.
- Shorteners hiding the destination. A shortened link inside a QR code is a double layer of concealment. Legitimate organisations rarely need one on printed material.
- Unsolicited post and parcels. A letter or package with a code and an urgent instruction is a standing red flag. Navigate to the organisation yourself instead of following the code.
- Wi-Fi codes in public places. A malicious Wi-Fi QR code joins you to a network someone else controls. Reading it here shows the network name first, so you can check it matches the one on the wall.
A simple habit: never enter a password, card number or one-time code on a page you reached from a QR code. If you need to log in or pay, close it and go to the organisation's site or app directly. Nothing legitimate is ever lost by doing this.
When a code refuses to decode
Detection is a computer-vision problem, and image quality does most of the work. If nothing is found, try these in order.
- Include the margin. Crop so the whole code plus a little white space around it is visible. A code cropped tight to its own edge often fails.
- Straighten it. Photos taken at a sharp angle distort the module grid. Get square to the surface and retake.
- Get more pixels. A code occupying 40 pixels in a screenshot has lost the detail permanently. Zoom in before capturing rather than after.
- Watch for glare. A reflection across the middle of a code on a glossy surface erases part of the data. Tilt slightly and retry.
- Heavily designed codes. Very low contrast, unusual module shapes or an oversized centre logo can push a code past what any reader can recover. That is a fault in the code, not the scanner.
What happens to your images
Nothing leaves your device. The image is read into memory by your browser, converted to pixel data, and passed to a decoder running as JavaScript on the same page. There is no upload step, no server-side processing and no log. The camera stream works the same way: frames are analysed and discarded, and the stream is released the instant a code is found or you press stop.
Need to make codes rather than read them? The QR code generator builds styled codes with a centre logo and SVG export, and the bulk generator handles hundreds at once.
Frequently asked questions
Can I scan a QR code without a phone?
Yes — that is exactly what this page is for. Upload the image, drag it in, or paste a screenshot with Ctrl+V. If your computer has a webcam you can also scan a physical code by holding it up to the lens.
Is my camera feed being recorded?
No. The browser hands the page a live video stream, individual frames are examined for a code and immediately discarded, and the stream is released as soon as a code is found or you press Stop. Nothing is written to disk and nothing is transmitted. You can confirm this by disconnecting from the internet — the scanner keeps working.
Will it show me the link before opening it?
Always. The decoded text is printed in full, and opening it requires a separate, deliberate click on the "Open link" button. This is the main practical advantage over a phone camera, which often navigates before you have read anything.
Can it read barcodes as well as QR codes?
This tool reads QR codes specifically. Linear barcodes such as EAN-13 and Code 128 use a different decoding method and are not supported here. You can still create them.
It says no code was found, but I can clearly see one.
Human eyes are far more forgiving than a decoder. The usual culprits are blur, a steep angle, glare across the code, a missing white margin, or simply too few pixels. Recrop to include the whole code plus a margin, take the picture square to the surface, and try once more.
Does the camera work on iPhone and Android browsers?
Yes, in any modern mobile browser, and it requests the rear camera by default. The page must be served over HTTPS, which browsers require before granting camera access. If permission is denied, uploading a photo works just as well.