QR Code Scanner Online — Camera or Image, Nothing Uploaded
Scan with your camera or drop a screenshot — decoded on your device.
🔒 Runs in your browser — files never uploaded ⚡ No signup 💯 Free
Scan a QR code with your device's camera, or drop in a screenshot or photo containing one. Decoding happens entirely on your device — camera frames never leave it, the camera stops the moment a code is found, and links are shown to you rather than opened automatically.
That last part is deliberate: a QR code is just text you can't read, and the safe scanner is the one that shows you the URL before you visit it.
How to use QR Code Scanner
- Scan with camera — your browser will ask permission — and hold the code steady in view.
- Or drop an image: a screenshot, a saved photo, a WhatsApp forward.
- Read the result first. Links get an explicit "Open link" button; nothing opens by itself.
- Copy the text if it's a Wi-Fi credential, serial number or anything else.
Why "show, don't open" matters
QR codes are the one link format humans cannot read before following — which is why sticker-over-the-real-code scams on parking meters and restaurant menus work. A scanner that auto-opens URLs executes that attack for you. This one always shows the decoded text first, and its Open button carries no referrer. Check the domain before you tap — that's the entire defence, and it's a good one.
Camera vs image scanning
Camera is fastest for a code in front of you. Image scanning covers the rest: the screenshot someone sent, the code inside a PDF, the poster photo from across the room. Large photos are downscaled before decoding — QR codes carry their data in structure, not resolution, and a 12-megapixel image just makes the decoder slower.
What's inside QR codes
Plain text, in formats apps recognise: URLs, WIFI: network credentials, vCard contacts, otpauth:// 2FA secrets. This scanner labels links and Wi-Fi payloads; everything else is shown verbatim. To make your own, the QR generator is the mirror of this tool.
Which browsers can use the camera?
All modern ones, over HTTPS — the permission prompt is the browser's own. Where a native barcode decoder exists it's used (it's fast); elsewhere a decoder library is fetched once on first use and runs locally. Either way, frames stay on your device.
Frequently asked questions
Are my camera frames or images uploaded?
No — decoding runs on your device, using the browser's built-in detector where available and a local library elsewhere. The camera stream stops the moment a code is found or you press stop, and nothing is transmitted at any point.
Why doesn't it open links automatically?
Safety, on purpose. QR codes are links you can't read — the classic scam is a sticker over a legitimate code. Seeing the URL before opening is the entire defence, so this scanner always shows it and makes opening an explicit tap with no referrer sent.
Can I scan a QR code from a screenshot?
Yes — drop any image containing a code: screenshots, saved photos, pictures of posters. This is also the answer for codes displayed on the device you're holding, which its own camera obviously can't photograph.
Why won't my camera start?
Either permission was denied (check the camera icon in the address bar) or the page isn't on HTTPS — browsers only allow camera access on secure pages. Image scanning works regardless.
It won't read my blurry photo — any tricks?
Crop closer to the code, or retake with the code filling more of the frame and in focus. QR error correction recovers from dirt and small damage, but focus blur destroys the module grid itself — no decoder recovers from that.