I think of QR codes as a gateway to useful information – a web page, media, an app. QR codes give access to all of these and more just by scanning them with your smartphone camera.
Since this blog is about making your digital lifestyle easier and a much more fun experience, I wanted to share one of the least talked about tools in the digital world.
I’m giving you a breakdown of How to scan a QR code with your Android smartphone or iPhone in short and simple steps.
What’s a QR Code?
You’ve most likely seen a black pixelated square while surfing the internet or at a bus station, anywhere at all and it looks like it has boxes inside it and one of things that cross your mind is a maze. Probably, you’ve wondered, what is this?
Quick Response Codes – given the acronym QR are gates of black and white are used to store links, URLs and keep information.
When you scan a QR code, which is a two-dimensional barcode by the way, you get access to whatever is stored on it.
Why scan a QR code?
A QR code offers a wide range of useful services that allow you to:
- Add contacts.
- Open a link that’ll lead to a webpage.
- Make calls.
- Use them in your business.
- Deliver coupons.
- Leave feedback on a product you bought or a service rendered to you.
- Confirm tickets and check venues.
- Transfer files.
- Access a social media site and so on.
When using a QR code, there’s a low risk of your information being tampered with or accessed. In short, there’s very little possibility of phishing when you use a QR code. It’s important however to note that QR codes are also digital tools and can be corrupted with malicious software.
How to Scan a QR Code
Be it an Android or iPhone, or you use a Mac, PC or laptop, you can scan a QR code with your device’s camera or QR code readers. You can also do it in the easiest fashion too, let me lead you through the steps across various devices.
How to Scan a QR Code on Android
You’re probably wondering if your Android phone can scan QR codes without an actual QR code reader app, find out here. Scanning a QR code on an Android phone is a feature supported by only Android 8 or higher, Android 7.0 or less needs a QR code reader app to scan QR codes.
- Long press the Home button.
This is by pressing it down for a few seconds.
- Select the Lens option.
It is located at the bottom of your screen beside the four coloured dots.
Note that if it’s your first time using this feature, a pop up will appear in your phone screen to Allow or Deny your phone permission to scan. Simply choose Allow.
- Position your Camera to the QR code.
Make sure you can see the four corners of the QR code from your phone camera.
- Scan the QR code.
Then at the bottom of your screen you’ll find the icon in the form of a magnifying glass – the one you click to take pictures, Tap it. You’ll get a notification.
- Tap the pop-up notification.
This action will take you to the desired result securely lodged in the QR code, a web page or access to files.
Note: The Google Lens feature on Android allows it to scan QR codes, and if your smartphone doesn’t have one, you can download the app from the Google Play Store.
Apps like Snapchat, Xender and Amazon allow Android users to scan QR codes without having to download QR code reader apps.
Perhaps this article will not be complete if we don’t inform you about QR code reader apps, it might not be fair on you, our audience whose smartphones do not support QR code scanning.
We’ve gone an extra mile to research the top 5 QR code reader apps for your Android smartphone if it doesn’t support scanning QR codes with your camera app.
Here’s our top 5 pick:
- Kaspersky’s QR Code Reader and Scanner.
- Bar-Code Scanner.
- Neo reader QR and Barcode Scanner.
- QR Code No Ads.
- QR and Barcode Reader by Gamma Play.
How To Scan A QR Code On iPhone
iPhones would probably still need QR code readers to scan QR codes had the iOS 11 update in 2017 not happened. Let me take you through the steps of scanning a QR code on your iPhone.
- Firstly, enable the “Scan QR Codes” feature on your iPhone.
You can do this by going to Settings >> Camera, when you see the “Scan QR Codes” feature tap on the slider, it’ll turn green as a sign that it’s on.
- Open your iPhone’s Camera app.
The Camera app can be accessed directly from your Home screen or when you swipe left on your iPhone’s Lock screen.
- Align your phone camera to scan the QR code.
The four corners of the QR code have to show in your phone camera, it doesn’t necessarily need to fill your phone screen. Once it’s scanned properly a notification pops up on your screen.
- Open the pop-up notification.
Once you tap on the notification, it takes you to the action contained in the QR code.
Can I scan a QR code on my Mac or PC?
Although it is not common to see people scan QR codes with a laptop, Mac, or a PC, the answer is YES! But you’ll need to download third-party QR Code reader apps on it. And the best we’ve selected for a Mac is the QR Journal app, it is free and easy to use.
How to Scan a QR code on a Mac
- Download and open QR Journal.
It is available for download on the App Store, once you open it, look for the “Scan” feature in the top left corner.
- Select Scan.
You will have to “Allow” the app to access your Mac’s camera when the notification for permission shows on your screen.
- Position your Mac’s Camera to face the QR Code.
You’ll get a notification if you’ve successfully scanned the QR code, you’ll be led to a web page, a social media account, a restaurant menu or what-have-you.
How to Scan a QR code on a Windows PC
When scanning a QR code on a Windows PC, the process is pretty much similar to that of a Mac
- Download and open the QR Code for Windows 10.
- Allow permission for the app to use your PC’s Camera.
This step is a must, otherwise your PC’s camera wouldn’t be able to scan the QR code.
- Place the QR code in front of your PC camera.
The app reads the QR code and directs you to an in-app browser for you to view what’s in the QR code.
How to Scan a QR code from photos
There are ways to scan an already saved image of a QR code on your phone, there’s the traditional way of using a code reader app for Android users and an interesting feature we found on Google lens.
Method 1 of 3:
Using Google Lens for Android
This app isn’t available for download on the Apple App Store.
- Download Google Lens from the Play Store and open it.
You can identify it easily. It has the outline of a camera lens with colours blue, red, yellow and green on it.
- Tap the Gallery Icon.
You’ll find it on the upper right corner of the screen to the left of the three-dot icon.
- Select the photo with the QR Code.
You’ll be able to browse through your gallery once you tap the icon in step 2 above, you’ll have access to navigate your Google drive, phone memory or any other external memory. A notification will pop-up on your screen and you should be able to access the content of the QR code.
Method 2 of 3:
Using Google Photos for iPhone
Android users can use this method too.
- Download Google Photos from the Apple Play Store.
- Open the app.
This will give you access to all your photos.
- Tap the Photo with the QR code.
- Tap the Lens Icon on the image.
You can find this to the left of the delete icon.
Method 3 of 3:
Using a QR code reader app
- Download any QR code reader app from Play Store.
- Open the app.
- Tap the scan image icon.
You’ll be redirected to your phone gallery or Google drive for you to select the image with the QR code.
- Tap on the image.
Once the app successfully reads the QR code, it will display its contents on the screen.
Conclusion
As advanced as this generation is digitally, a lot of us don’t know QR codes for what they really are. Many users do not understand what they do to a full extent, making them one of the most unpopular digital tools around.
We hope that this post has shed light on QR codes, their importance in various aspects of our lives and most importantly, how to scan them.
We would love it if you write us a comment on your thoughts, experiences and suggestions in the comment section below.
