Does the map send my data anywhere?
Only when you use it. Search, My location and the map load from OpenStreetMap (search text and map tiles go there), and My location asks your browser for permission first. Nothing is sent while you just type a code, and the coordinates you pick are not stored.
Is the QR code generator free?
Yes. No sign-in, no watermark, no limit. Use the files for your own plates and for the products you make.
Will the code scan after I engrave it?
It should, if the squares come out clean. The page decodes your engraved shapes the same way a phone does and tells you if it can read them. That check is done on the drawing, not on the wood, so burn a test piece and scan it with your phone before you cut the real one.
Which material works best?
Anything that gives strong contrast: light wood, anodised or painted metal, slate, or acrylic with a contrasting back. Pick Light material if the engraved squares come out darker than the surface (most wood and card). Pick Dark material if engraving makes the surface lighter (black acrylic, painted or anodised metal, slate).
How big must one square be?
Many diode lasers burn clean squares from about 0.5 mm, many CO₂ lasers from about 0.3 mm. The tool shows the square size and warns you when it is too small. Shorten the link or make the code bigger to get larger squares.
How do I get a shorter code?
Use a shorter link. A short address, or a redirect link you control, makes a code with fewer and bigger squares, which are easier to burn and to scan.
Why is the error correction raised to H when I add a logo?
The logo hides the middle of the code. Level H lets a phone rebuild about 30 % of the data, which covers the missing squares. The page also keeps the three big corner marks, the dotted lines between them and the small alignment squares that phones use to line the code up. If your logo would cover one of those small squares, the code is made one size bigger instead. Without a logo, Auto uses Q.
What is "QR code only"?
It gives you just the code and its empty border as a square file, with no plate, hole, caption or cut line. Use it to put the code into your own design, or on a piece you cut another way. Keep the empty border free of other engraving. On a dark material the border is part of the engraved light background, so the file is still a square of engraving.
Which dot shape scans best?
Squares are the safest and the easiest to burn: touching squares merge into one clean shape. Soft squares have rounded corners and read almost as well. Circles look more decorative but leave more gaps. Dots are circles about 60 % of a square wide: the lightest look, but the smallest marks for your laser, so they need the biggest code and a sharp, well focused beam. The three big corner marks follow the same style. Whatever you pick, burn a test piece.
What is module shrink?
A laser burns a little wider than its line, so dark squares can grow and close the gaps. Module shrink pulls every edge in by the amount you set. Start at 0, burn a test piece, and add a few hundredths of a millimetre if the squares look swollen.
Why is there an empty border around the code?
Phones need a calm area around the code to find it. The standard asks for four squares. Here the border is two squares wide, which most phones read fine on a clean, high-contrast plate. Do not engrave a frame or a pattern inside that border, and test on scrap.
Can I use my own logo?
Yes. Upload an SVG made of filled shapes. Text must be converted to outlines, and thin lines must be turned into shapes. The logo is engraved as a solid shape in the middle of the code, so keep it simple.
Can I put a Wi-Fi code on a plate?
Yes. Pick Wi-Fi, enter the network name and password. Anyone who scans gets the password, so use it for a guest network. Special characters are handled for you.
Can I change the plate shape, the hole and add a frame?
Yes. Besides the rectangle, rounded rectangle and circle you can pick an oval, an arch, a round top, a tag with cut top corners, cut corners or a ticket with notched corners or a star with rounded tips (a star holds a smaller code, so it needs a bigger plate). The hanging hole can sit at the top centre or in the top left or right corner (a corner hole leaves more room for the code). A frame around the code can be corner brackets, a square or a rounded square; combine a square frame with a ribbon caption for a badge look. Corner marks of the code can also be leaf-shaped: three rounded corners and one sharp corner that points at the middle of the code.
What does “Two layers” do?
It makes a base plate and a smaller top plate. The top plate carries the code, the frame and a caption pill; it is glued on the base. The hanging hole and a plain caption (a line or an arc, no pill) stay on the base. The files hold both parts side by side: red cuts the base, blue cuts the top plate, green on the base marks where to glue. Engrave both parts, then cut. On a round plate the code is always in the middle.
Which files do I get?
SVG and DXF. Black is engraved, red is cut. Engrave first, then cut the hanging hole, then the outer edge. The DXF has layers ENGRAVE and CUT; with Two layers it also has CUT_TOP (the top plate and the pill) and MARK (glue marks and fold lines).
Can I change the units?
Yes, with the switch next to Size. Everything on the page follows it, and the files keep their real size. Import them at 100 % and measure one dimension in your laser software before you cut.
Can I put a caption under the code?
Yes. Each kind of data comes with a fitting phrase, such as “Call me”, “Free Wi-Fi” or “Follow me”. Pick another phrase or type your own, up to 32 letters, or clear the field for no caption. The caption is engraved with the code and the plate makes room for it, so the code gets a little smaller. The letters are in one font, Latin letters and common accents only. Letters the font does not have are left out. Nine styles: a plain line; a pill, a label with a small arrow and a wide bar (engraved plates with the letters left bare); a pill with just an outline; three ribbons with notched, pointed or folded ends and a ribbon with raised tails. On a round plate the caption can also follow the lower edge in an arc. Thin letters on a small plate are hard to burn, and the page warns you. Bare letters inside a pill are the thinnest part, so give them a bigger plate.
Is my link or password sent anywhere?
No. The code is made on this page, in your browser. The page counts visits and downloads for statistics (file type, kind of data, plate shape, logo), nothing else. What you type, such as a name, phone number or password, never leaves the page.
What can I put in the code, and will every phone read it?
A website link, a social profile (pick the network, type your username, the page builds the link and puts the network logo in the middle; WhatsApp and Telegram work too), a Google review link, Wi-Fi details, plain text, a contact card (vCard or the shorter MeCard), a phone number, an e-mail with subject and message, an SMS, or a map point. Each kind starts with a fitting logo (a phone for a phone number, an envelope for e-mail and so on). You can pick another logo or remove it. Current iPhone and Android cameras open all of these. Older phones or scanner apps may skip SMS or map points, so scan a test burn with your own phone. A contact card has many characters, so it makes a denser code with smaller squares. Add only the details you need.
