How to put your logo on a QR code (and keep it scannable)

Short answer: yes, your logo can sit in the middle of a QR code, and phones will still read it. Keep the logo small, leave the corner squares and the border clear, use strong contrast, and test a printed copy before the print run.

Why a logo can sit in the middle

Every QR code carries spare data, called error correction. When part of the pattern is covered, the phone uses it to fill the gap. There are four levels, which can restore about 7, 15, 25 and 30 percent of the data. A code with a logo should always use the highest one.

Error correction also protects your code against smudges, glare and wear, so do not spend it all on the logo. A safe rule: put the logo in the center and keep it no wider than about a quarter of the code, border included. That covers about a tenth of the pattern, which the highest level can restore with some room to spare.

A simple mark works best: your icon, monogram or initials rather than a long wordmark. At this size, thin letters turn into a blur.

Leave the corners and the border clear

The three big squares in the corners are how a phone finds your code and works out its size and angle. They hold none of your data, so error correction does not cover them. If a logo, a sticker or a fold touches one, the phone may not see a code at all. Many codes also have a smaller square near the fourth corner that helps with tilted or curved prints, so leave it alone too. Rounded or colored corners are fine if they stay whole.

The code also needs a quiet border: a clear margin on every side, with no text, edges or pictures. The standard asks for at least four modules, a module being one small square of the pattern. A CreateQR.ai logo code already comes with this border, so do not crop it away.

Colors and contrast

Phones read a QR code by telling dark squares from light ones. The bigger the difference, the more reliably it scans.

• Dark code, light background. Black, navy or deep brown on white or cream is safest.
• Give the logo a clean backdrop. Set it on a plain patch in the background color, so its edges do not blend into the pattern.
• Skip pale ink. Yellow, light gray and pastel codes are hard to read, as are gradients that fade to a pale shade.
• Think twice about light on dark. A white code on a black background looks striking, but not every phone reads it.

Print it right, then test it

• SVG for print shops and big sizes. SVG is a vector file, so the pattern stays crisp at any size.
• PNG for everyday use. A CreateQR.ai PNG is 2048 pixels wide. At print quality (300 dpi) that is about 17 cm (almost 7 in), plenty for menus and flyers.

A code that scans on your screen can still fail on paper. Before the full run, print one copy at real size on the real material, then:

1. 1Scan it with at least two different phones, using the built-in camera.
2. 2Stand where your customers will stand, in the light where the code will hang.
3. 3Try it on the real surface: a curved bottle, a glossy menu, a shop window.
4. 4Check that it opens the right page every time.

For size, the rule from our guide to changing a code after printing applies: at least 2 cm (about 0.8 in) wide, and about one tenth of the scanning distance for posters.

How CreateQR.ai helps

In the studio, open Art, logo & frame, click Add logo and choose your file. Set your brand colors under Color. The studio handles the rest:

• Highest error correction. It switches on as soon as you add a logo.
• Right size, clean backdrop. It clears a square in the middle, about a quarter as wide as the code with its border, and sets your logo on a plain patch in your paper color.
• Corners kept whole. The corner squares stay complete in every style, never broken into dots.
• Contrast check. It warns you when the ink or the corner color is too close to the paper.
• Scan test before download. A QR reader in your browser decodes every finished code, and Save and download opens only once it passes. Your printed test with two phones checks the rest.

Your logo is cropped to a square from the center, so upload a square version. Every code is dynamic, so the link inside is short and the pattern stays open, with bigger squares around your logo.

The short version

A small logo in the center, clear corners and border, dark on light, and one printed test with two phones. Add your logo in the studio and watch it pass the scan test before you print.