Business card QR code size

Why a contact code needs more room than a link

A QR code is a grid of black and white squares called modules. Denso Wave, which invented the QR code, lists 40 sizes, called versions. Version 1 is 21 × 21 modules, and each version adds 4 modules per side, up to 177 × 177. The more data you put in, the higher the version, and the more modules have to fit into the same width.

A link like example.com/you is a few dozen characters. A vCard holds the text of a whole contact card: BEGIN and END lines, a version line, your name twice (vCard 3.0 requires both the structured N and the display name FN), and a line for each phone, email and website. That's why contact codes are denser than link codes.

How each field changes the code

We built three fictional contacts in the vCard QR code generator, which uses error correction level M, and measured the codes it makes:

• Name and mobile only: 106 bytes, version 6, 41 × 41 modules. At 2 cm wide, each module is about 0.49 mm.
• Name, company, job title, mobile, email and website: 205 bytes, version 10, 57 × 57 modules. At 2 cm, each module is about 0.35 mm. This is the example loaded in the tool below.
• All of that plus a work phone, an address and a short note: 349 bytes, version 14, 73 × 73 modules. At 2 cm, each module is about 0.27 mm.

The width stays the same but the squares shrink, and small squares are what make a printed code hard to scan. Adding the address and note took the code from 57 to 73 modules a side.

Sizes to use on a card

• Link or very short contact (version 6 or below): 2 cm wide is enough.
• Typical contact card (around version 10): 2.5 cm wide.
• Contact with address and note (version 14 and up): 4 cm wide, or remove fields until it's smaller. The generator warns you once the data passes 300 bytes, and tells you to print it at least 4 cm wide.

These widths are for the code itself. Add the white border on top.

Leave a quiet zone

Denso Wave says a QR code needs a clear margin, the quiet zone, four modules wide on every side. Nothing should be printed there: no text, no card edge, no background pattern.

For the typical card above at 2.5 cm, a module is about 0.44 mm, so the margin is about 1.8 mm each side and the total area is about 2.85 cm square. The PNG and SVG from our generators include a narrow white border of two modules. When you place the code in your card design, leave at least that much clear space again around it.

Make the code smaller without making it worse

If the code doesn't fit, cut data rather than shrinking the print:

1. Drop the note. It's the field people miss least.
2. Drop the address unless people really visit you. A website can hold it.
3. Keep one phone number. Pick the one you answer.
4. Shorten the website. Leave out https:// and any tracking tags; the tool adds https:// for you.
5. Or use a link code instead. A QR code that opens a page about you stays small, and you can change the page later without reprinting.

Print tips

• Download the SVG for print. It's a vector file, so it stays sharp at any size. Use the PNG for screens.
• Dark on light. Black on white scans best. Pale colours and light-on-dark codes trip up some camera apps.
• Avoid the fold or the edge. Keep the code flat and away from rounded corners and trim lines.
• Test a real print. Print one card at full size and scan it with an iPhone and an Android phone at arm's length. On iPhone, Apple's steps are to open Camera in Photo mode and frame the code.

Make your business card QR code

The generator below starts with a fictional joiner's details. Replace them with yours, watch the byte count under the code, and download the SVG when it's ready to print. It runs in your browser and nothing you type is stored.

Related guides

• Minimum QR code size
• How to test a QR code
• How to open a VCF file