A free Wi-Fi QR code for your guests

Spelling out a Wi-Fi password gets old fast. A Wi-Fi QR code lets guests point their camera at a sign and join, with no typing. It's free on our home page, needs no account, and never expires, which makes it good for cafes, rentals, waiting rooms and offices.

Make your Wi-Fi code

1. On the free QR code maker, choose Wi-Fi.
2. Enter the network name exactly as phones show it, capitals included.
3. Pick the security type: WPA or WPA2 for most home and shop routers (if your router says WPA3, pick this one too, then test it with a phone), WEP for older routers, or No password for an open network.
4. Enter the password. WPA passwords are at least 8 characters, so a shorter one is probably mistyped.
5. Check The network is hidden if your network doesn't appear in the list of networks.
6. Download it, and add your colors or a logo if you like.

If you change the password

A Wi-Fi code holds the network name and password itself. That's how a phone can join straight from it. So if you change the password or rename the network, the old code stops working, and you'll need a new one. It takes a minute.

Why it can't be an editable code: an editable code holds a short link to a web page, and a web page can't join a phone to Wi-Fi. A phone joins only from what's in the code itself. A web page could show the password, but then guests would have to type it again, which is what the code was meant to save.

If you change the password often, an editable Wi-Fi information page on Pro and Business can show the current network name and password for guests to copy or type; the one-tap join code stays fixed.

Why a Wi-Fi code won't connect

• The network name doesn't match. It has to be exact, capitals and spaces included.
• The password changed. Make a new code.
• The security type is wrong. Most networks are WPA or WPA2.
• The network is hidden. Check "The network is hidden". Some iPhones may still not join a hidden network from a code. If that happens, make the network visible.
• The code is too small or too far away. Check the size below.

How big to print the sign

Pick where the sign will be, such as On a table or counter or On a wall or window, and the print checker gives the smallest width that will scan from there. A Wi-Fi code holds more than a short link, so it has more dots and needs a little more size. Print it dark on light, on matte paper if you can, because glare from gloss makes codes harder to read. If some guests use laptops, print the network name and password on the sign as well.

Is it safe to share Wi-Fi this way?

Anyone who scans the code, or takes a photo of the sign, gets the password. So put it only where you'd share the password anyway. A separate guest network keeps visitors off the network you use for your own devices, if your router offers one. When you make the code, we don't save what you type: it's made, sent back to you and discarded.

Your phone may already make one. To share Wi-Fi with one person nearby, iPhones (in the Passwords app) and Android phones (since Android 10) can show a Wi-Fi code on screen. For a printed sign that stays up, make one here.

Related: How to print QR codes that scan · Add a logo or icon