Wi-Fi QR Codes for Guests
One scan connects a guest to your network — no spelling the password out. How Wi-Fi QR codes work, and how cafés, offices and rentals should print them.
On this page
The short answer
A Wi-Fi QR code encodes your network name, password and security type in a standard format that iPhone and Android camera apps understand natively: point the camera, tap the prompt, connected. The details live inside the printed pattern — nothing is looked up online, and this site never sees your password because the code is generated in your browser.
What you need before generating
- The exact network name (SSID) — case-sensitive, spaces included.
- The password, exactly as the router has it.
- The security type. Almost every current router uses WPA2 or WPA3, which the WPA option covers. WEP survives only on very old hardware; "no password" is for genuinely open networks.
- Hidden network? Tick the hidden option if the SSID is not broadcast, or phones will not find it.
Use a guest network
Most routers can broadcast a separate guest SSID that reaches the internet but not your own devices. Encode that. Anyone who scans the code has the password — a QR code is a convenience, not a security layer — so give guests a network you are happy for strangers to be on, and keep the one your till, printer or laptop uses to yourself.
The one thing that breaks these codes
Changing the Wi-Fi password. The moment the router changes, every printed code is a polite decoration. So change the guest password on your schedule, not the router's: reprint day is password day. Writing the month in small type under the code tells you at a glance which prints are stale.
Where and how big
| Placement | Typical reading distance | Print size |
|---|---|---|
| Table card or counter sticker | 30 cm | 25–30 mm |
| Framed print by the door / check-in binder | 50 cm–1 m | 50–100 mm |
| Meeting-room wall | 1–2 m | 100–200 mm |
For a holiday rental, a laminated card in the welcome folder plus one by the router covers both the guest who reads instructions and the one who never does. The label maker prints a sheet of identical stickers in one pass.
When it does not connect
Re-check the SSID and password character by character, confirm the security type, and make sure the code is printed dark-on-light with its quiet zone intact — then work through the troubleshooting checklist. Very old phones without a native scanner may need a QR app; there is nothing a different code can do about that.
Sources
The WIFI: string format originates from the network-config schema popularised by ZXing and is now read natively by iOS and Android camera apps. WPA2 and WPA3 security are specified by the Wi-Fi Alliance.