YouTube QR Code Generator (Free)

1. 1

   Enter your channel or a link

   Type your channel’s handle (the name after the @), or paste the link to a video or playlist from its Share button.

2. 2

   Check the link

   Open “What’s inside this code” and open the link to make sure it’s the right channel or video.

3. 3

   Style it (optional)

   Pick colors and add your logo.

4. 4

   Download it

   Download a PNG for screens and slides, or an SVG for print.

5. 5

   Test it

   Scan it with your phone: it should open in the YouTube app if it’s installed.

The code holds a YouTube web address. A handle becomes your channel’s address; a video or playlist link is used as it is.

https://www.youtube.com/@juniperandrye
https://youtu.be/aBcD3fGh1jK?t=90

youtube.com/@name

Your channel, by its handle.

youtu.be/…

One video: the short link from the Share button.

?t=90

Starts the video 90 seconds in. Tick Start at in the Share menu on a computer to add it.

playlist?list=…

A playlist, from its first video.

Renaming your channel doesn’t affect the code, but changing your handle does. A video’s code stops working if the video is deleted or made private.

For YouTube QR codes

• Link a video made for the place people scan it: a how-to on packaging, a tour on a property sign, a trailer on a poster.
• Unlisted videos open for anyone with the link, so they work in a QR code. Private videos don’t.
• Tell people what they’ll see and roughly how long it is, for example “Scan for a 2-minute setup video”.

For any printed QR code

• Size: print the code at least 2 cm (0.8 in) wide for something held in the hand. For signs and posters, make it about a tenth of the scanning distance: roughly 10 cm (4 in) wide to scan from 1 m (3 ft).
• Contrast: use a dark code on a light background. Light-on-dark codes and pale brand colors fail on some phones.
• Quiet zone: keep a blank border of at least 4 modules (the code’s small squares) around it. Don’t crop it or put text and graphics right up against the code.
• File type: use the SVG for print, since it stays sharp at any size. The 2048 px PNG is enough for print up to about 17 cm (6.8 in) wide at 300 dpi.
• Surface: avoid glare from glossy laminate, tight curves (bottles, cups) and folds that cut through the code.
• Test: scan a printed proof with an iPhone and an Android phone, at the real distance and in the real lighting, before you print in bulk.

A dynamic code lets you swap the video after printing, for example to a newer version of a product demo, and counts how many people scanned it, and when.

Dynamic codes need a free CirculateQR account. On the free plan a dynamic code stays live for 14 days after you publish it; on a paid plan your codes stay live with no time limit, or you can keep a single code for a one-time $5.

The code you make on this page is static: free, permanent and private, but fixed once printed. Static and dynamic codes compared.