What a plain-text QR code does
Most QR codes carry a web address, but the format itself just stores text — up to a few thousand characters of it. A plain-text QR code shows the text directly on the scanner's screen with no website involved: a message, a serial number, a Wi-Fi password written out, a poem, instructions on a machine, a coupon code, or anything else that should be readable by phone without typing. This generator encodes whatever you type, in your browser, into a code you can download as PNG or SVG.
How much text fits
| Content | Max characters (error level M) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Digits only | 5,596 | Numeric mode is the densest |
| Uppercase letters, digits, space and $%*+-./: | 3,391 | Alphanumeric mode |
| Any text (UTF-8) | ≈ 2,300 bytes | Latin text ≈ 2,300 chars; Thai or Chinese ≈ 750 chars |
Capacity depends on the QR version (size) and the error-correction level. Practically, keep text under about 300 characters: longer codes need a denser grid that scans poorly when printed small or photographed at an angle. If you need more, put the text on a web page and encode its URL instead.
Text vs URL: which to choose
- Choose text when the content must work offline (a factory floor, a rural site, an event with no signal), when it is short, and when it will never need updating.
- Choose a URL when the content is long, might change, or should be tracked. A text QR is frozen the moment it is printed.
- Choose a specific format — Wi-Fi, vCard, email, SMS, event — when you want the phone to do something with the data rather than just display it. Those formats are plain text too, but with a structure the phone recognises.
Common uses
- Asset and inventory labels — a serial number or location code scanned by any phone, no app required.
- Instructions on equipment — safety steps or a reset procedure readable without a manual.
- Coupon and voucher codes — customers scan instead of retyping a 16-character code.
- Museum and trail signs — a paragraph of description where connectivity is poor.
- Gifts and cards — a hidden message on a card or a scavenger-hunt clue.
- Backup of short secrets — a recovery phrase printed as a code (keep it as secure as the plain text, since anyone can scan it).
Getting a reliable scan
- Print at least 2 cm (0.8 in) square for short text; larger as the text grows and the grid gets denser.
- Keep the white quiet zone around the code — at least four modules wide — clear of borders and other graphics.
- Use black on white or another high-contrast pair; avoid light colours, gradients and inverted (white on black) codes, which some scanners reject.
- Prefer error correction M for normal use; step up to H if the code will be laminated, placed outdoors or overlaid with a logo.
- Test with an iPhone and an Android phone before printing a batch.
Character encoding and special characters
The generator encodes text as UTF-8, so accented letters, emoji and non-Latin scripts work. Almost all modern phones decode UTF-8 correctly; a few older industrial scanners assume Latin-1 and will show accented characters as symbols. Line breaks are preserved. Very long lines may be shown wrapped or truncated by the scanner app, but the full text is still available to copy.