Free tool · PNG and SVG · Runs in your browser
Contact QR code generator (vCard)
Short answer
Enter a name and any of a company, job title, phone, email and website, and the tool writes a vCard 3.0 into the code. The more fields you add, the denser the code: name and phone was Version 6 (41 × 41), adding an email Version 7 (45 × 45), and all seven fields Version 10 (57 × 57). ZXing's wiki calls vCard "a bit verbose" for QR codes and notes the more compact MECARD, which made the same contact Version 7 (45 × 45). Nothing is uploaded.
Enter at least a first name.
Nothing is uploaded: the code is drawn in your browser. Codes do not expire and carry no tracking.
Key takeaways
- The code holds a vCard 3.0: BEGIN:VCARD, VERSION:3.0, N, FN and one line for each field you fill in, ending with END:VCARD. The ZXing wiki says many apps understand the vCard specification.
- Fields cost size: 95 characters for name and phone (Version 6 (41 × 41)), 127 with an email (Version 7 (45 × 45)) and 200 for all seven fields (Version 10 (57 × 57)).
- MECARD is shorter: name, phone and email took 68 characters (Version 5 (37 × 37)) instead of 127. The tool writes vCard, because that is the format the ZXing wiki says many apps understand.
- Commas, semicolons, backslashes and line breaks inside a field are escaped with a backslash, so a company called "Rivera, Cole & Partners" does not split the field.
- A phone number is written with its country code. Spaces and punctuation are removed.
What the code contains
A vCard is a short text file. The tool builds one line per field you fill in and ends each line with a carriage return and a line feed, as the format asks.
| Line | Meaning |
|---|---|
| BEGIN:VCARD | Start of the card |
| VERSION:3.0 | The vCard version |
| N:Rivera;Ana;;; | Structured name: last, first |
| FN:Ana Rivera | The name as displayed |
| TEL;TYPE=CELL:+14155550132 | Phone number, digits with a leading plus |
| END:VCARD | End of the card |
The vCard the tool writes for a name and a phone number.
That card is 95 characters. Optional lines are ORG, TITLE, EMAIL and URL.
Measured: what each field costs
Measured with the qrcode library the tool uses and the jsQR decoder; the method is on the QR code generator page. One decoder is not every phone, so test a print on yours.
Every code below decoded back to exactly the text we built.
| Contact | Characters | Size | Decoded text matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| vCard, name and phone | 95 | Version 6 (41 × 41) | Yes |
| vCard, name, phone and email | 127 | Version 7 (45 × 45) | Yes |
| vCard, all seven fields | 200 | Version 10 (57 × 57) | Yes |
| MECARD, name, phone and email | 68 | Version 5 (37 × 37) | Yes |
| MECARD, all fields | 120 | Version 7 (45 × 45) | Yes |
The same contact in vCard and MECARD at error correction level M.
Version 10 is 57 × 57 modules and version 5 is 37 × 37. On a business card or a poster that difference is the size of each square.
How to keep the code easy to scan
- Leave out what people do not need: name, phone and email are usually enough, and that is a smaller code than all seven fields.
- Put your website in the code only if you do not have a better place for it; a link is a shorter way to give the same information.
- Use level M. A contact is not a place for a logo.
- Print it at least as large as the modules allow: the more fields, the more modules.
- Test it on an iPhone and an Android phone before you print a thousand cards.
Free tools:QR code generatorWi-Fi QR codeWhatsApp QR codeEmail QR codeText message QR codeLocation QR code
vCard or MECARD
ZXing's wiki says vCard is a bit verbose for 2D barcodes, whose capacity is limited, and that NTT DoCoMo popularized the compact MECARD format. On our contact MECARD was 120 characters against 200, a Version 7 (45 × 45) code against Version 10 (57 × 57). The wiki also says that many apps understand the vCard specification, which is why the tool writes it. If you need the smallest code and know your readers support MECARD, write it by hand.
Questions people ask
How do I make a QR code for my contact details?
Enter your name and the details you want to share, then download the code. Scanning it offers to save the contact.
Which format does the tool use?
vCard 3.0, which the ZXing wiki says many apps understand.
How many fields can I add?
All seven the tool offers. The code gets denser: name and phone was 41 × 41 modules and all seven fields 57 × 57.
Why is my code so dense?
Every field adds characters. Leave out what people do not need.
Can the contact be updated later?
No. The code holds the details themselves. If they change, make a new code.
Is my information uploaded?
No. The code is drawn in your browser.
Related
Sources and how we checked
- ZXing wiki: Barcode Contents (read 2026-10-09)
- Denso Wave: Information capacity and versions of the QR Code (read 2026-10-09)
- Denso Wave: Error correction feature (read 2026-10-09)
Reviewed October 9, 2026. The measurements generated codes with the same library the tool uses and read them back with an independent decoder (jsQR). The script and the results are in data/seo/hub/evidence/2026-10-09/qr.