# Why Is My QR Code Not Working?

A QR code that never scanned is almost always too small, too low in contrast, cropped too tight or holding too much text, while a code that worked and then stopped usually points at a trial, a redirect or a page that no longer exists.

When a QR code does not work, the first question is whether it ever did.
A code that has never scanned has a physical problem: it is too small, too
pale, cropped, or packed with so much text that its squares are too fine for
a camera. A code that scanned perfectly last month and fails today has not
changed at all — the ink is the same. Something at the other end of the link
has.

The most common version of the second problem has become a genuine trap.
Many online generators give out dynamic codes, which hold a short link to
the generator’s own server instead of your address, on a free trial of a week
or two. The code scans, the menus and flyers get printed, and when the trial
ends the redirect is switched off. Every printed copy now opens a page asking
for a subscription. The same thing happens, more slowly, if the provider
raises its prices or closes down. Scanning the code with a scanner that shows
the link rather than opening it tells you in seconds whether this is your
problem: a short link on a domain you did not choose is the giveaway.

The rest of the “stopped working” cases are ordinary web problems. A menu
PDF was replaced with a new file at a new address. A Google Drive file was
set back to private. A domain name lapsed because the renewal card expired.
None of those are the code’s fault, and all of them can be fixed without
reprinting, by putting something back at the address the code already holds.

For a code that never scanned, the fixes are all in the print. Make it about
one tenth as wide as the distance it will be read from. Keep the pattern dark
on a light background, with no photo or texture behind it. Leave the white
border around it, which is how the scanner finds the edges. And if the code
looks dense and busy, shorten the link inside it: fewer characters means
fewer, larger squares at the same printed size.

Source: https://useqr.xyz/why-is-my-qr-code-not-working/
Last updated: 2026-09-28

## Find out why a code is not working
1. Scan the code with the QR code scanner on this site, from a photo or the camera, and see whether it reads at all.
2. If it reads, look at the text it shows. A short link on a domain you do not recognise means the code goes through someone else’s redirect, and that redirect is what stopped.
3. If it reads and the link is your own, open the link on a computer. A page that has moved or a domain that has lapsed is the fault, not the code.
4. If it does not read, measure it. A code scanned from 30 cm needs to be at least 3 cm wide, and one read across a room needs far more.
5. Check the colours. The pattern must be clearly darker than the background, never lighter, with no pattern or photo behind it.
6. Check the white border. If it was cropped off or printed over, the scanner cannot find where the code starts.
7. Make a new code from the original link, test it on two phones, and only then print it again.

## Why a QR code stops working, and what fixes it
| Cause | Scans at all | Fixable without reprinting |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free trial or subscription ended | Yes, to an error page | Yes, by paying the provider |
| Link moved or domain lapsed | Yes, to a dead page | Yes, by restoring the page |
| Printed too small | No | No |
| Low contrast or inverted colours | No | No |
| Border cropped or printed over | No | No |
| Scratched, faded or under glare | Sometimes | No |

## FAQ
### Why did my QR code stop working after a few days?
Almost always because it was a dynamic code on a free trial. Many generators hand out dynamic codes that route every scan through their own server, and when a 7-day or 14-day trial ends they switch the redirect off until you subscribe. The printed code is fine — the link inside it now points at their paywall.

### Do QR codes expire?
No, a QR code itself never expires. The pattern is a picture of some text, and a phone will read that text for as long as the print survives. What can expire is whatever the text points at: a provider’s redirect, a web page, or a domain name you stopped renewing.

### How do I tell if my code is dynamic?
Scan it with a scanner that shows the link instead of opening it. If the link is on the generator’s own short domain rather than your website, the code is dynamic, and it keeps working only as long as that company keeps the redirect running for you.

### Can I fix a printed QR code without reprinting it?
Only if the fault is at the far end of the link. If a redirect was switched off, the provider can switch it back on. If your page moved, you can put a page back at the old address. A code that is too small, too pale or cropped can only be fixed by printing a new one.

### Why does my code scan on one phone but not another?
Because the code is on the edge of readable, and the better camera is hiding it. Older phones, cheaper cameras and dim light fail first. Print it larger, raise the contrast, or put less text in it, and test on the oldest phone you can find.

### Does a logo in the middle stop a code from scanning?
Not if it is small enough. QR codes carry spare error-correction data, so up to about 30 percent of the pattern can be covered at the highest level. A logo much larger than that, or one placed over the three corner squares, will break it.

### Can a code made on this site stop working?
Not by itself. Every code here is static: the link or text is written straight into the pattern, with no server in between, so there is no trial, account or subscription that could switch it off. It stops working only if the page it links to goes away.