# How to add a QR code to a business card

> Decide the payload first: a vCard saves your details straight to the phone and needs no hosting; a URL stays sparse and lets the destination evolve. Print at 1.6–2 cm minimum (cards are scanned at 15–20 cm), as vector, on the back or a clean corner, and scan a printed proof before ordering hundreds.

Source: https://useqr.app/docs/how-to/how-to-add-a-qr-code-to-a-business-card · Last reviewed 2026-08-21 · UseQR is free forever, no signup.

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## 1. vCard or URL: the real decision

Everything else is layout; this choice shapes the card:

| | **[vCard](/vcard)** | **URL** |
|---|---|---|
| What a scan does | Opens your contact card, ready to save | Opens a page: site, LinkedIn, booking |
| Needs hosting? | **No**, details live inside the code | Yes: the destination must stay up |
| Works offline? | **Yes** | No |
| Code density | Higher (hundreds of characters) | Low, if the URL is short |
| Updatable later? | No, reprint to change details | The *page* can change; the URL cannot |

The vCard is the classic card payload: nothing to host, works in aeroplane mode, and the
phone's contact app opens instantly. Its cost is density: keep it to **name, one phone,
one email, one URL**, or the modules get too fine for a card-sized code (a
MeCard encodes the same essentials about 40% smaller). Common
formatting mistakes that make a
[vCard import wrongly](/docs/troubleshooting/vcard-qr-code-imports-wrong) are worth a
skim before printing 500 of anything.

## 2. Size: the card is scanned in the hand

Cards are scanned at **15–20 cm**, and the
[10:1 rule](/docs/print/qr-code-size-for-a-business-card) makes the floor
**1.6–2 cm**, for a dense vCard, treat 2 cm as the minimum rather than the target. On an
85 × 55 mm card that is a meaningful block, which is why the code usually earns the
**back of the card**: full contrast, generous quiet zone, no
fighting the logo. A front-corner placement works only on genuinely sparse designs.

## 3. Prepare print-ready artwork

Business cards are commercial print, so the
[print rules](/docs/how-to/how-to-make-a-qr-code-for-print) apply in full:

- **Vector artwork**: download SVG or PDF, never a stretched PNG.
- **Dark modules, light background, 100% K** for the modules in CMYK artwork.
- Keep the code **inside the safe area**, at least 3 mm from the trim line, plus its own
  quiet zone; guillotines drift, and
  [a clipped margin kills the code](/docs/print/bleed-trim-and-safe-area-for-qr).
- Matt or soft-touch laminate scans more reliably than high gloss under downlights:
  glare is a real failure mode on shiny cards.

## 4. Proof before the run

Order or print **one proof at final size on the final stock**. Scan it with an iPhone and
an Android, in normal room light and dim light. Run a photo through the
[validator](/validate), for a vCard, check every field landed correctly in the contact
that opens, not just that something opened. Only then approve the box of 500. A card
run with a broken code is the most literal version of
printing a mistake at scale.

## 5. Keep the humans covered too

Print your details as text regardless. The code accelerates the exchange; it should never
be the only path. (Same principle as
codes in email signatures:
supplement, not replace.)

## Gotchas

- **Job-title churn**: a vCard bakes your title and employer into ink. If you change
  roles often, encode a URL you control instead and update the page.
- **Styled codes on cards**: a small logo at centre is fine at
  error correction H with under 20% coverage,
  but at 2 cm there is little damage budget: plain codes are safer at card size.
- **Dark cards**: do not invert the code; give it a light panel. Light-on-dark codes fail
  on a meaningful share of scanners.
- **Foil, emboss and letterpress** distort module edges: keep the code in flat ink even
  when the rest of the card is fancy.

Generate the payload: [a vCard code](/vcard) or a
[short URL code](/url?data=https://example.com), and download SVG for the print file.

## FAQ

### Should a business card QR code be a vCard or a link?
vCard if the goal is "save my details now". It needs no hosting and works offline. URL if you want the destination to evolve or the card to stay sparse. Pick one; don't print both.

### How big should a QR code be on a business card?
At least 1.6 cm, and 2 cm for dense vCard payloads: cards are scanned at 15–20 cm and code width should be about a tenth of that. Keep the white margin around it intact.

### Where should the QR code go on the card?
Usually the back: full contrast, clean quiet zone, no competition with the logo. Keep it at least 3 mm inside the trim line so cutting drift cannot clip it.

### Can I update the code after the cards are printed?
No: a static code is ink. Encode a URL you control if you need the destination to change, or budget for a reprint when your details do.

## Try it

- https://useqr.app/vcard
- https://useqr.app/url
- https://useqr.app/validate