qrencode

Encode text into QR code images

TLDR

Generate QR code to terminal

$ qrencode -t ANSI "[text]"

Generate a PNG image

$ qrencode -o [qr.png] "[text]"

Generate an SVG file

$ qrencode -t SVG -o [qr.svg] "[text]"

Set module pixel size

$ qrencode -s [10] -o [qr.png] "[text]"

Set custom foreground and background colors

$ qrencode --foreground=[000000] --background=[FFFFFF] -o [qr.png] "[text]"

Generate a Micro QR Code

$ qrencode -M -o [qr.png] "[text]"

Read from stdin

$ echo "[text]" | qrencode -o [qr.png]

qrencode is a command-line QR code generator built on the libqrencode library. It encodes text into QR codes and outputs them in multiple formats including PNG, SVG, EPS, ANSI terminal art, and ASCII, making it suitable for both display and print use cases.Options control the error correction level (L/M/Q/H), QR version (which determines capacity and physical size), and module size for raster output. Input can come from command-line arguments or standard input, supporting integration into scripts and pipelines.

PARAMETERS

STRING

Text to encode. If omitted, reads from stdin.

-o FILE, --output=FILE

Output file. Use "-" for stdout.

-t TYPE, --type=TYPE

Output type: PNG, PNG32, SVG, EPS, XPM, ANSI, ANSI256, ASCII, ASCIIi, UTF8, UTF8i, ANSIUTF8, ANSIUTF8i, ANSI256UTF8.

-s NUMBER, --size=NUMBER

Module (dot) size in pixels (default: 3).

-l {L|M|Q|H}, --level={L|M|Q|H}

Error correction level from L (lowest) to H (highest). Default: L.

-v NUMBER, --symversion=NUMBER

Minimum QR symbol version (default: auto).

-m NUMBER, --margin=NUMBER

Margin width in modules (default: 4).

-d NUMBER, --dpi=NUMBER

DPI for PNG output (default: 72).

-r FILE, --read-from=FILE

Read input data from file.

-8, --8bit

Encode entire data in 8-bit mode.

-M, --micro

Encode as Micro QR Code.

-i, --ignorecase

Ignore case and use only uppercase characters.

--foreground=RRGGBB[AA]

Set foreground color in hexadecimal.

--background=RRGGBB[AA]

Set background color in hexadecimal.

--svg-path

Use single path to draw modules in SVG.

--inline

Generate SVG without the XML declaration.

--strict-version

Disable automatic version adjustment.

-V, --version

Display version number.

INSTALL

sudo apt install qrencode

sudo dnf install qrencode

sudo pacman -S qrencode

sudo apk add libqrencode-tools

sudo zypper install qrencode

brew install qrencode

nix profile install nixpkgs#qrencode

CAVEATS

Maximum data capacity depends on QR version and error correction level. Higher error correction reduces capacity. Binary data may need -8 flag for 8-bit mode.

HISTORY

qrencode was written by Kentaro Fukuchi and is built on the libqrencode library. It provides command-line QR code generation in various output formats.