QR Code Scanner: Scan From an Image or Camera

1. From a file: click "Upload an image" and choose a photo or screenshot with the code.
2. From the clipboard: take a screenshot (Windows: Win+Shift+S, Mac: Cmd+Shift+4 then Ctrl to copy) and press Ctrl+V or Cmd+V on this page.
3. With a webcam: click "Scan with camera", allow access and hold the code up to the camera.

The code is decoded on your device. No image or result is sent to QRtracer.

Most phones read QR codes with the built-in camera: open the camera, point it at the code and tap the link or banner that appears. On Android, Google Lens does the same. This page is for the cases the camera can't handle: a code in a screenshot, a PDF, an email or a photo someone sent you. Open this page on the phone, tap "Upload an image" and pick the picture.

QR phishing ("quishing") works because people can't see where a code leads. Fake codes are stuck over real ones on parking meters and charging stations, and scam emails use codes to get past link filters.

The scanner shows the domain in large type and warns about common tricks: unencrypted links, bare IP addresses, look-alike international characters and hidden usernames in the address. Be careful with any code that asks you to log in, pay or install something, especially if you found it on a sticker or in an unexpected email. If a short link hides the destination, use the QR code expiry checker to see where it redirects. Our guide to QR code phishing explains the common tricks in more detail.

• Links: shown with the domain, a copy button and an option to open.
• WiFi codes: network name, security type and password, so you can connect a laptop that has no camera.
• Contact cards, calendar events, phone numbers, SMS and email codes: shown as text you can copy.
• SEPA payment codes (EPC / GiroCode): shown as raw data; open them in your banking app to pay.
• Plain text: anything else.

• Crop the image so the code fills most of it, with a little white border.
• Avoid glare and blur: retake the photo straight on, in even light.
• Include the whole code: all three corner squares must be visible.
• Low contrast: light codes on dark backgrounds and faded prints are harder to read; the scanner tries inverted colours, but a clearer photo helps most.
• Very dense codes (long texts or big contact cards) need a sharper, closer image.

If a printed code of yours is hard to scan, it's usually too small, too dense or too low in contrast. Our guide to the QR code quiet zone covers borders and print sizes.