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QR code generator with a dinosaur in the middle

A QR code with a dinosaur in the middle was made by Google Chrome. On a computer, Chrome's Create QR code option draws its offline T-rex in the centre of every code it makes. The dinosaur doesn't break the code: QR error correction fills in the part it covers.

QR code generatorUpdated 3 min read

How to make the Chrome dinosaur QR code

In Chrome on Windows, Mac, Linux or ChromeOS:

  1. Open the page you want to share.
  2. Right-click an empty part of the page and choose Create QR Code for this page. You can also find Create QR code in Chrome's three-dot menu, in the save and share submenu (called Cast, save, and share or Save and share, depending on the version).
  3. Chrome shows the code with the web address in a box above it. You can edit that address to make a code for a different link.
  4. Click Download. Chrome saves a PNG named after the site, such as qrcode_example.com.png.

Right-clicking a link or an image gives you Create QR Code for this link or for this image, which make a code for that address instead.

Chrome's source code caps the address at 2,000 characters. Longer content gives an error.

Why Chrome puts a dinosaur on it

The dinosaur is the same T-rex from Chrome's "no internet" page. In Chromium, the open-source code behind Chrome, the QR code window calls the code generator with a centre image set to kDino. The same generator has other centre images, but the desktop QR window uses the dinosaur, with round dots and rounded corner squares.

There's no option to remove it in the window itself. If you want a plain code or your own logo, use another generator.

Why it still scans

A QR code stores extra error-correction data alongside your content, so a scanner can rebuild a damaged or covered part. Denso Wave, which invented the QR code, lists four levels: L restores about 7% of codewords, M about 15%, Q about 25% and H about 30%.

A picture in the middle covers some modules, and error correction makes up for them. What it can't make up for is a covered corner square, because the scanner needs all three to find the code. That's why logos always go in the centre.

Make a QR code with your own logo instead

The generator below works in any browser, including Chrome, and gives you more control than Chrome's window:

  1. Enter your link, or switch to Wi-Fi, email, phone, SMS or plain text.
  2. Pick your colours. Dark on a light background scans best.
  3. Add your logo. The tool switches error correction to H, the highest level, and keeps the logo to the middle so the corner squares stay clear.
  4. Scan the preview with your phone, then download a PNG or SVG. The SVG stays sharp at any print size, which Chrome's PNG doesn't.

Or leave the logo out for a plain, dinosaur-free code.

QR code generator

Open the full tool

Tips for any QR code with a picture in it

  • Keep the picture small. The bigger it is, the less room error correction has left for scratches and smudges.
  • Use a simple, square image with a solid background plate behind it.
  • Test the final code with two or three phones, on paper as well as on screen. How to test a QR code has a checklist.

Related guides

Sources

Questions

What QR code has a dinosaur in the middle?

The ones Google Chrome makes on a computer. Right-click a page and choose Create QR Code for this page, and Chrome draws the code with its offline T-rex in the centre.

Why does my QR code have a dinosaur in the middle?

Because you made it with Chrome's built-in QR code option. Chromium's source code sets the centre image of that code to the dinosaur. There's no setting to switch it off.

Does the dinosaur stop the QR code from working?

No. QR codes include error correction, which rebuilds the part of the pattern the picture covers. Scan it with your phone to check, as with any code.

How do I make a QR code without the dinosaur?

Use another generator, such as the one on this page. It makes a plain code by default, and you can add your own logo in the middle instead.