QR codes print checklist

Before you print

Use high contrast: dark modules on a light background. Keep a quiet zone — empty margin — around the code of at least four modules. Do not stretch the square into a rectangle in your layout tool. Encode the shortest reliable URL you can; long UTM-stuffed links make denser codes that fail on cheap printers and glossy packaging.

If you must track campaigns, use a short redirect you control rather than stuffing every analytics parameter into the QR payload. Dense codes need higher print resolution and larger physical size to remain scannable.

Size and testing

For posters viewed at arm’s length, aim for at least two to three centimeters across. For packaging scanned in store lighting, larger is safer. Always test with more than one phone camera and more than one lighting condition. A code that works on your desk lamp can fail under supermarket LEDs.

If you brand the center with a logo, leave enough of the QR pattern intact and re-test. Error correction helps, but it is not magic. Prefer a modest logo and a larger overall code over a tiny code fighting a huge brand mark.

Using Omnipus

The QR generator runs in your browser. Download a PNG, place it in your layout, and print a proof page before a full run. Because generation is local, you are not uploading the destination URL to a QR SaaS just to get a bitmap — useful when the link is an internal staging URL you do not want logged.

After printing, archive the exact PNG you used and the final URL it encodes. When marketing updates a landing page, you want to know whether the QR still points where you think it does.

Materials matter too. Soft-touch laminate, heavy varnish, or low-contrast ink on kraft paper can ruin scans even when the design looked fine on screen. If you print on difficult stock, enlarge the code and keep the quiet zone generous. Add a human-readable URL underneath for accessibility when space allows.

After the campaign ships

Keep a spreadsheet of which QR PNG was printed on which SKU or poster version. When a landing page moves, you will know whether to reprint or redirect. Dead QR codes are expensive in trust — people blame the brand, not the printer. A short human-readable URL under the code gives them a fallback when cameras fail.