How to create a QR code for your WiFi network

7 August 2026 · updated 10 October 2026 · Free QR Pro

Let guests, customers, or family members connect to your WiFi instantly — no passwords to dictate, mistype, or forget.

What is a WiFi QR code?

A WiFi QR code encodes your network credentials (SSID, password, and security type) in a standard format that smartphones read natively. When a visitor scans it, their device prompts them to join — no typing required. The camera apps on current iPhones and Android phones recognise it; an older phone may need a scanner app.

What the code contains

Nothing is looked up when the code is scanned. The network name, the password and the security type are written into the pattern as plain text, in a format documented by the ZXing barcode project and read by phone cameras:

WIFI:T:WPA;S:CafeGuest;P:espresso2024;H:false;;

The format uses backslash, semicolon, comma, colon and double quote as punctuation, so when one of them appears in a name or password it has to be escaped with a backslash. The generator does this for you. A code made without that step fails in a confusing way: a password containing a semicolon simply ends early, and the phone cannot join.

A network name made only of digits and the letters A to F, such as CAFE or 1234, is wrapped in double quotes, because a reader could otherwise take it for a hexadecimal value.

How to create one in three steps

• Open the generator and click the WiFi tab at the top of the form.
• Fill in your network details: SSID (the network name exactly as it appears in your device's WiFi list), password, and security type (WPA/WPA2 for almost all modern routers).
• Customise and download. Choose a shape and colour scheme that matches your space, then download SVG for anything printed or PNG for a screen.

Create your WiFi QR code now →

Tips for the best result

Match the name exactly. WiFi SSIDs are case-sensitive: MyNetwork and mynetwork are different networks. Copy your SSID from your router settings page rather than typing it.

Keep the corner squares plain. Those three squares are how a phone finds the code. If you decorate them, keep a plain square or rounded ring around any decorative centre, and scan-test the print; a guest is less likely to troubleshoot a WiFi code than a link.

Print at least 3 cm × 3 cm. At reading distances of 20–30 cm the one-tenth rule gives 2–3 cm, and a WiFi login makes a denser code than a short link, so take the top of that range. For table cards in a cafe, 5 × 5 cm is a comfortable size.

Download as SVG if you plan to include the QR code in a design file (Illustrator, Figma, Canva). SVG scales without pixelation, so the code looks sharp at any print size.

Security note: your WiFi password is embedded in the QR code image. Don't post it publicly online or where strangers could scan it. For guests in a hotel, cafe, or Airbnb, consider a separate guest network with a different password.

When you change the password

Because the password is inside the pattern, a printed WiFi code is a copy of the password on the day it was made. Change the password and every printed code stops working. There is nothing to update in place, because the code links to nothing: make a new one and replace the prints.

This is one more reason to give guests their own network. Its password can stay the same for years while the main one changes, and the cards on the tables never need reprinting.

Testing your QR code

Always test before printing. On iPhone: open the camera app, point it at the code, and tap the notification banner. On Android: use the camera app or Google Lens. Try from 20–30 cm away under normal indoor lighting. If the phone sees the code but cannot join, check the network name and password first; a typo there is the usual cause. If it does not see the code at all, print it larger.

Source: ZXing, Barcode Contents (WiFi network config).