Print Guide

While we offer several high-quality printing options, your needs may be different. From banners and magnets to yard signs, purchasing the high-resolution file gives you the freedom to print on whatever medium suits your project. We love seeing how our customers innovate—let us know what you create! The following guidance is designed to set you up for success.

Size

Generally, larger is better. A 12×12-inch print results in unit images that are only 1/3 of an inch wide—quite small. That is why our smallest offered print is 24×24 inches. However, your specific use case might work well at a smaller size. We recommend downloading the preview image and printing it at scale to verify. If you are planning something very large (>6 feet), be aware that each data pixel corresponds to 256 image pixels; calculate whether the resulting DPI meets your quality standards.

The size of a QR code depends on the amount of data it contains. Contact information requires more data pixels than a URL. To make a QArtCode legible at smaller sizes, consider reducing the content. URL shorteners are a great way to link to longer addresses with less data. Alternatively, using uppercase letters for a URL (e.g., HTTPS://MYSITE.COM) is more efficient in QR encoding, resulting in a smaller code.

Glare

Acrylic prints are beautiful; their deep colors make the artwork pop, and the photos appear to float. Unfortunately, acrylic surfaces can introduce significant glare, which often prevents QR codes from scanning reliably. While shifting angles can resolve this, it doesn't make for the best user experience—which is why we do not offer acrylic prints directly. If you choose to print on acrylic or other glossy surfaces, be aware that scanability may be compromised.

Quiet Zone

QR codes are easier to scan when isolated from surrounding visual noise. It is generally recommended to maintain a "quiet zone" of 1–4 data pixels around the code. By default, a QArtCode includes a 2-data-pixel border. In some applications, this built-in quiet zone may not be necessary—for instance, if there is already ample white space around the print area. In such cases, you can crop 1024 pixels from the height and width of the high-resolution image to remove the white border.

Further Editing

You may wish to edit the image after downloading it—for example, to replace a photo with a vector logo. Careful editing that respects the data pixel grid is certainly possible. Additionally, QR codes have built-in error correction (redundancy), which is why you often see logos placed in the center of codes without breaking them. Even if your edits aren't pixel-perfect, the code may still work. We recommend scanning the code frequently throughout your editing process to ensure it remains functional. Note that scanning from a bright monitor can be difficult; stepping back with your phone often helps.