Adding your logo to a card without breaking the QR code

A logo makes a card yours — but careless branding is the fastest way to make a QR code unreadable. Here’s how to have both.

Keep the logo and the code apart

The simplest, safest layout puts your logo in one corner and the QR in another, each with clear space around it. The QR keeps its quiet zone, the logo gets room to breathe, and nothing competes. This alone avoids most scanning problems.

If you put a logo inside the code

QR codes carry error correction — about 15% of the data can be rebuilt at the usual level M and about 30% at level H (DENSO WAVE) — so a small mark in the centre usually still scans if you keep it well under that. This generator switches to level H when you put your logo in the code. Cover no more than about 20% of the code, centre it, and leave the corner “finder” squares completely untouched. Always scan-test afterwards; if it hesitates, shrink the logo.

Mind the contrast

Brand colours are fine around the card, but the code itself should stay dark on light with strong contrast. Tinting the QR in a pale brand colour, or placing it on a busy background or gradient, is where scans start failing. Give it a solid, light patch to sit on.

Protect the quiet zone

Don’t let the logo, text or card edge encroach on the empty margin around the code. The QR standard requires four modules of clear space on every side. Crowding the quiet zone is an easy-to-miss cause of “it won’t scan.”

Test like a stranger

Scan the final design with a different phone than you designed on, in normal lighting, from a natural distance. If it reads quickly on screen, print one test card and scan that too before ordering a batch.

FAQ

Can I put a logo in the middle of a QR code?

Yes, if it’s small — under about 20% of the code — centred, and the corner squares stay clear. Test the result before printing.

Why did my QR stop scanning after I added branding?

Usually low contrast, a tinted or busy background behind the code, or a crowded quiet zone. Put the code dark-on-light with clear space around it.