QR code blog
Short, useful articles about QR codes — how they work, how to scan and fix them, and clever ways to use them. Search or filter by topic below, or browse the in-depth guides.
48 articles
- Basics
What is a QR code, and how does it actually work?
A plain-English guide to what a QR code is, how it encodes and recovers data, and why it took over the world.
8 min · Jun 2026 - Basics
How to scan a QR code on any phone
Scan any QR code in seconds on iPhone or Android — including from screenshots and saved photos — with fixes for when it won’t work.
7 min · Jun 2026 - Basics
Static vs dynamic QR codes: which one do you actually need?
Static codes encode your data directly and never expire. Dynamic codes route through a server, can be edited and tracked — but can also stop working. Here is how to choose.
7 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
How to add QR codes to your app with the free OpenQR API
A developer's on-ramp to the OpenQR REST API: get a free key, call /v1/qr to render SVG or PNG, handle errors and rate limits, and embed a QR onto a server-rendered invoice.
9 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Editable QR codes and scan analytics with the OpenQR API
Dynamic codes are oqr.to short links you can repoint anytime — no reprinting. Here's the full CRUD plus the scan-analytics endpoint, with worked examples.
10 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Pull QR scan data with the OpenQR analytics API
One endpoint — GET /v1/dynamic/{id}/scans — returns lifetime totals, a zero-filled daily series and country/device/referrer breakdowns. Here's how to read it, chart it, export it and alert on it.
11 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Give your AI agent QR superpowers: the OpenQR MCP server
Point any MCP-capable agent at https://openqr.uk/mcp with a Bearer key and it can generate, edit, bulk-create, style and read scans on QR codes — thirteen tools, no glue code.
9 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
The OpenQR TypeScript SDK: a typed client for QR codes
A zero-dependency TypeScript client over the OpenQR REST API: generate, dynamic CRUD, scans, folders, themes, and a typed OpenQRError. Works in Node ≥18, edge runtimes and the browser. Full method reference.
10 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Generate and manage QR codes at scale: bulk + folders
Create up to 200 dynamic codes per request, file them into folders, list and export them — the ops layer for generating QR codes by the hundred.
9 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Build a branded link shortener with the OpenQR dynamic API
A dynamic QR code is a re-pointable short link with click analytics baked in. That's exactly a link shortener — and every link is also a scannable QR. Here's a complete shortener built on the OpenQR API.
12 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
Rotate and schedule dynamic QR destinations programmatically
One printed code, many destinations over time. PATCH /v1/dynamic/{id} on a schedule to time-box a launch, rotate a daily offer, or hand a venue code off to a new page each session — with per-window scan data.
11 min · Jun 2026 - Developers
How to generate QR codes in Python
Generate QR codes in Python without bundling a library: call the free OpenQR REST API with requests, save PNG or SVG, read the key from an env var, and embed codes in Flask, Django, PDFs or email.
9 min · Jun 2026