AnyTool
Your files never leave your device. All processing happens locally in your browser.

How do I make a WiFi QR code so guests can scan to connect?

Open AnyTool WiFi QR Code Generator, type your network name (SSID), choose the encryption (WPA/WPA2/WPA3, WEP or open), enter the password and mark the network hidden if it is. A live QR code appears that joins the network when a phone camera scans it. Tune the size, colours and error-correction level, optionally add a centre logo, then download the QR as PNG or SVG — or build a printable “Scan to connect” card for guests. Everything runs in your browser, so your WiFi password is never uploaded.

  • Encodes the standard WIFI:T:WPA;S:ssid;P:password;H:true;; string, escaping \ ; , : and " for you
  • WPA, WPA2 and WPA3 all use the “WPA” type; WEP for legacy gear; “None” for open networks
  • Printable guest card: QR + network name + optional visible password + camera instructions
  • Custom size, colours, error-correction level and an optional centre logo; PNG, SVG or copy
  • 100% client-side — your SSID and password are encoded locally and never leave the browser

What is

WiFi QR Code

A WiFi QR code is a QR code that encodes a network’s credentials in the MeCard-style WIFI: string — type (WPA/WEP/nopass), SSID, password and a hidden flag — so that scanning it with a phone camera prompts the device to join the network with no typing. The data is plain text inside the code, not encrypted, so anyone who scans it can read the password.

Generators

Related terms

SSIDWPA2MeCard formatQuiet zone

Frequently Asked Questions

Pick WPA for almost every modern network — WPA, WPA2 and WPA3 all use the “WPA” type. Use WEP only for old gear and “None” for open networks.

The WiFi QR format has just three security types: WPA, WEP and nopass. “WPA” covers WPA, WPA2 and WPA3 — the phone negotiates the actual protocol with the router, so you do not choose WPA2 or WPA3 separately. Choose WEP only for legacy equipment that still uses it, and “None (open)” for networks with no password, which omits the password field entirely. AnyTool defaults to WPA because that fits the vast majority of home and business routers today.

The code is generated privately in your browser, but the password is stored in plain text inside it — anyone who scans the printed code can read it.

AnyTool builds the WiFi QR code entirely in your browser, so your network name and password are never uploaded to any server. However, the WiFi QR format itself is not encrypted: the credentials are encoded as plain text, so any QR reader can extract the SSID and password from the finished image. That is fine for a guest card at home or in a café, but you should place printed cards only where you trust the people who can reach them, and avoid posting the code publicly online if the password is sensitive.

Fill in your network details, then use the printable card section to add a heading and download a PNG or print a framed-ready “Scan to connect” card.

After entering your SSID, password and encryption, scroll to the printable “Scan to connect” card. Add a heading like “Free WiFi”, choose whether to show the password on the card, and the tool draws a clean card with the QR, your network name, the optional password and short camera instructions. Click Download card PNG to save it, or Print card to send it straight to your printer at about 90mm wide — ideal for a 4×6 frame in a guest room, rental or café. The card is rendered locally on a canvas, so nothing is uploaded.

Usually a wrong encryption type, a mistyped password, a hidden-network flag that doesn’t match, or a low-contrast or oversized-logo code that won’t scan.

The most common causes are a mismatch between the encryption you picked and the network’s actual security (use WPA for WPA/WPA2/WPA3), a password typed with the wrong case or special characters, or forgetting to tick “Hidden network” for an SSID that isn’t broadcast. Scan failures themselves usually come from low contrast, an oversized logo or a very long password making the code dense — keep dark-on-light contrast, leave the quiet zone intact, and use H error correction with a logo. Scan-to-connect needs iOS 11+ or Android 10+; a few older phones need a dedicated QR app, and some WPA3-only networks vary. Always test the finished code on a real phone before printing.

Detailed Explanation

Technical Details

The WIFI: Payload Format and Escaping

AnyTool WiFi QR Code Generator encodes network credentials as the MeCard-style WIFI: string that phone cameras recognise: WIFI:T:<type>;S:<ssid>;P:<password>;H:<true if hidden>;;, always terminated with the required double semicolon. The type field accepts three values only — WPA (which covers WPA, WPA2 and WPA3, since the device negotiates the actual protocol with the router), WEP for legacy networks, and nopass for open networks where the password field is omitted. Because the format treats backslash, semicolon, comma, colon and double-quote as delimiters, the generator backslash-escapes each of those characters inside the SSID and password so a network name or password containing them still produces a valid code that joins on the first scan. Hidden networks set H:true so the phone searches for a non-broadcast SSID.

  • Format: WIFI:T:WPA;S:ssid;P:password;H:true;; — terminated with ;;
  • Type is one of WPA (= WPA/WPA2/WPA3), WEP, or nopass (open)
  • Special characters \ ; , : and " are backslash-escaped in SSID and password
  • Open networks omit the password; hidden networks set H:true
  • Scanning prompts iOS 11+ / Android 10+ to join with no typing
Methodology

Printable Card, Appearance and Output

Beyond the raw QR, the tool renders a printable “Scan to connect” card on a local canvas: a heading the user sets (for example “Free WiFi”), the QR at print resolution, the network name, an optional visible password and a short camera instruction line. The card can be downloaded as a PNG or sent to the printer at roughly 90mm wide for a 4×6 frame, which suits cafés, holiday rentals and guest rooms. The underlying QR is tunable for size (up to 1024px), quiet-zone margin, custom foreground and background hex colours, and one of four Reed–Solomon error-correction levels (L ~7%, M ~15%, Q ~25%, H ~30%), with an optional centre logo read locally that caps at about 22% of the code area and forces H-level correction. A live scannability hint checks contrast, error-correction level and logo size, and output can be saved as PNG, exported as resolution-independent SVG, or copied to the clipboard.

  • Printable card: heading + QR + SSID + optional password + instructions
  • Card downloads as PNG or prints at ~90mm for a 4×6 frame
  • QR size up to 1024px, custom colours, EC levels L/M/Q/H
  • Optional centre logo capped ~22%, auto H correction
  • Outputs: QR PNG, vector SVG, clipboard image, and card PNG
Privacy & Security

Privacy and Honest Limitations

All encoding and rendering happen in the browser with a bundled QR library and no server or CDN, so the SSID, password and any logo never leave the device and the page works offline once cached. The honest caveat is that the WiFi QR format is not encrypted: the credentials are stored as plain text inside the code, so any QR reader can extract the network name and password from the finished image — printed cards should therefore be placed only where the people who can reach them are trusted, and sensitive passwords should not be posted publicly. Scan-to-connect relies on the native camera on modern iOS (11+) and Android (10+); some older devices need a dedicated QR app, and a few WPA3-only networks vary in how reliably they auto-join. As with any QR code, low contrast, an oversized logo or a very long password produce a denser, harder-to-read code, so the tool recommends keeping dark-on-light contrast, preserving the quiet zone, and testing on a real phone before printing.

  • Encoded locally — SSID and password are never uploaded; works offline
  • The format is unencrypted: anyone who scans the code reads the password
  • Scan-to-connect needs iOS 11+ / Android 10+; older phones need a QR app
  • Some WPA3-only networks vary in auto-join reliability
  • Test the finished code on a real phone before printing
WiFi QR generation: in-browser (AnyTool) vs typical online generators
CapabilityAnyToolTypical online generators
ProcessingRuns in your browser, no CDNOften server-side / API
CredentialsSSID & password never uploaded; offline-capableMay send credentials to a server
Encryption typesWPA/WPA2/WPA3, WEP, open; hidden-SSID flagVaries; some omit hidden support
Printable cardBuilt-in “Scan to connect” card, PNG + printOften paid or sign-up gated
Logo overlayLocal file, capped ~22%, auto H correctionOften paid or upload-based
OutputQR PNG + vector SVG + copy + card PNGPNG free; SVG often paid
Code typeStatic (no expiry, no tracking)Often dynamic, may expire on free tier
Cost / signupFree, no signup, no watermarkOften watermarked or gated

AnyTool encodes the WiFi QR code and draws the printable card locally in the browser — your network name and password are never uploaded.