QR Cake generator
Use this file to QR code converter to upload a PDF, image, video or audio file and get a code that opens it in the phone's browser. ZIP, DOCX, XLSX and PPTX files can't be uploaded, so share them from Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive and make a Website QR code to the link. Either way, you can change what the code opens later without reprinting.
Loading the QR code maker
| File category | Formats | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Upload it. Opens in the phone's PDF viewer. | ||
| Images | JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP, SVG, AVIF, HEIC, TIFF, BMP | Upload it. Shown full-size in the browser. |
| Audio | MP3, WAV, OGG, M4A | Upload it. Plays in the browser's audio player. |
| Video | MP4, MOV, WebM, M4V, OGV | Upload it. Plays in the browser's video player. |
| Documents | DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, PPT, PPTX, ODT, ODS, ODP, RTF | Can't be uploaded. Share it from Google Drive, OneDrive or Dropbox and make a Website QR code, or export it to PDF. |
| Archives, data and other files | ZIP, CSV, TXT, JSON, EPUB, APK and more | Can't be uploaded. Host it on a cloud drive or your site and make a Website QR code to the link. |
| Several files at once | Any mix of the above | Use a Link List QR code with one button per file, or link to a shared cloud folder. |
Upload caps: video up to 200 MB, audio up to 100 MB, PDF up to 50 MB, images up to 25 MB. Replace an uploaded file at any time and the printed code stays the same.
Add a PDF (up to 50 MB), an image (up to 25 MB), an audio file (up to 100 MB) or a video (up to 200 MB) in the editor. For a ZIP, DOCX, XLSX or PPTX file, share it from Google Drive or Dropbox and make a Website QR code with the link instead.
Pick colors, dot and corner styles, a logo in the middle and a frame with text such as "Scan to download". Save the code to your free QR Cake account to make it live, then download it as PNG, SVG, JPEG or WebP.
Open the code in your dashboard, upload the new version of the file and save. The next scan opens the new file, and the printed code stays exactly as it is.
Manufacturers print a code on a packaging insert that opens the assembly guide PDF, then upload a corrected edition without reprinting the insert.
Teachers add a code to a printed worksheet that plays the listening exercise or the video walkthrough for that lesson.
Conference organizers put one code on badges and table tents that opens the agenda PDF, updated whenever a session moves.
Real estate agents add a code to a yard sign or flyer that opens the floor plan, as a PDF or an image, on the buyer's phone.
Agencies share the brand asset ZIP from Google Drive and print a Website QR code to that link on the cover of the final report.
Law firms and accountants print a code on welcome letters that opens the intake form, uploaded as a PDF or shared as a DOCX from OneDrive.
Musicians and podcasters print a code on merch, posters or show inserts that plays a bonus track or episode clip in the browser.
Course creators put a code in a printed workbook that opens the exercise PDF, with a second code linking to spreadsheet templates in Google Sheets.
SaaS and hardware companies print quick-start cards for the box or the trade show booth. The code opens a setup video or PDF guide hosted on QR Cake. When a release changes the steps, swap the file and keep the cards.
Teachers print a code on a worksheet that opens the answer key as a PDF or plays a listening track. Editable slides and spreadsheets can stay in Google Slides or Sheets, with a Website QR code pointing at the share link. When the lesson changes, replace the file and the same printouts keep working.
Law firms, accountants and consultancies print a code in welcome packs and proposals that opens the engagement letter or fee schedule as a PDF. Password protection adds an access code for client-only files, and editable DOCX forms can be shared from OneDrive through a Website QR code.
Agencies print a code on report covers and leave-behinds that plays the campaign video or opens the case study PDF. The full brand pack of logos, fonts and templates usually lives in a ZIP, so it goes on Google Drive or Dropbox with a Website QR code pointing at the share link.
Exhibitors print one code on booth signage that opens a spec sheet PDF or plays a product demo video, in place of stacks of printed brochures. To offer several documents from one code, a Link List QR code gives each file its own button.
Agents add a code to yard signs, flyers and brochures that opens the floor plan PDF or a walkthrough video. When the price or layout changes, they upload the new file and the sign stays where it is.
The printed pattern holds a short QR Cake link, not the file itself, so a small code can lead to a 100-page PDF or a full video. By default the link goes straight to the file: a PDF opens in the phone's PDF viewer, video and audio play in the browser's built-in player, and images display full-size. You can instead show a hosted page with your title, description, logo and colors around the file, and add password protection so scanners enter an access code first. On the free plan, each scan shows a short QR Cake page with a brief ad before the file opens.
Every code you save to a QR Cake account is dynamic: the link inside the pattern stays fixed while the file behind it can change. Replace a draft price list with the final version, swap last season's product video for the new one, or fix a typo in a menu PDF, and every copy already on paper opens the new file on the next scan. A static QR code that encodes a file's web address directly can't be changed once printed, and it breaks if that address ever moves.
QR Cake hosts four kinds of file: images, audio, video and PDF. It does not host ZIP archives, Word documents, Excel or CSV spreadsheets, PowerPoint decks, EPUB books or APK installers. To give one of those a QR code, upload it to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive, set sharing to anyone with the link, and make a Website QR code with the share link; the cloud service then shows its own preview and download button. A Word, Excel or PowerPoint file can also be exported to PDF and uploaded here directly. For several files behind one code, share a folder or use a Link List QR code.
| File QR | PDF QR | Link List QR | |
|---|---|---|---|
| File formats supported | Images, audio, video, PDF | PDF only | None; it links to web pages |
| Delivers a downloadable file | Yes | Yes | No, it opens web links |
| Bundle multiple files at once | No, one file per code | No, one PDF per code | Yes, as separate links |
| Update content without reprinting | Yes (dynamic) | Yes (dynamic) | Yes (dynamic) |
| Scan analytics | Pro and Business plans | Pro and Business plans | Pro and Business plans |
| Best suited to | A single image, audio, video or PDF file | Polished documents, reports, brochures | Several files or links behind one code |
A file QR code is a QR code that opens a file when scanned. With QR Cake you upload the file (a PDF, image, video or audio clip) and the code links to it, so anyone who scans it can view, play or save it on their phone without typing a link.
The QR type is already selected. Add your content, style the code, then save it to a free account to get a dynamic QR code you can update anytime.
Make a file QR codeYou can upload images, audio, video and PDF files to QR Cake: JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP, SVG, AVIF, HEIC, TIFF and BMP images; MP3, WAV, OGG and M4A audio; MP4, MOV, WebM, M4V and OGV video; and PDF. ZIP, DOCX, XLSX, PPTX, CSV and other formats can't be uploaded, so host those on Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive and make a Website QR code to the share link.
Host the file on a cloud drive and make a Website QR code to its share link. Upload it to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive, set sharing to "Anyone with the link", copy the link and paste it into a QR Cake Website QR code. Save the code to your account so it stays editable, and point it at a new link when the file changes. Word, Excel and PowerPoint files can also be exported to PDF and uploaded directly.
Yes. QR Cake caps each upload by file kind, from 25 MB for an image up to 200 MB for a video, with audio allowed up to 100 MB. If your file is bigger, compress it, split it, or host it on Google Drive or Dropbox and link to it instead. Smaller files also open faster on mobile data.
Yes. Open the code in your QR Cake dashboard, upload the new file and save, and the next scan opens the new version. The printed pattern holds a short QR Cake link rather than the file, so nothing on paper changes. A Website QR code that points at a cloud share link works the same way: paste in a new link whenever the file moves.
It opens on the phone, and the visitor can save a copy from there. By default the code links straight to the file: a PDF opens in the phone's PDF viewer, audio and video play in the browser's player, and JPG, PNG or WebP images display full-size. You can switch to a hosted page that shows your title, description and logo with the file. Files shared from Google Drive or Dropbox open in that service's preview, which has its own download button.
Yes. QR Cake's free plan gives you up to 5 dynamic QR codes with unlimited scans and no credit card. Each scan on the free plan first shows a short QR Cake page with a brief ad, then opens the file. Paid plans start at $2.99 a month and remove that page. Basic and higher plans raise the code limit, and the Pro and Business plans add scan analytics.
No. A file QR code saved to your QR Cake account never expires, on the free plan too. It keeps working as long as your account exists, unless you delete or pause the code. A code that points at a Google Drive or Dropbox link also needs that file to stay shared.
Yes. Turn on password protection when you create or edit the code, and anyone who scans it has to enter your access code before the file appears. It works on every QR Cake code type, including codes that point at a cloud share link. For confidential files, also restrict sharing on the file itself, because anyone with the access code can pass it on.