Can I Put My Logo in the Middle of a QR Code?
Yes. Error correction lets a QR code still scan with its center covered. Use level H, keep the logo small and centered, and never cover the corner squares.
Nookesh Karri · 7 min read 
Yes, you can put your logo in the middle of a QR code, and it will still scan if you do it right. Set the error correction to level H, keep the logo small and centered, and leave the three big corner squares completely uncovered. Then test the printed code on several phones before you use it.
How a QR code survives a logo
Every QR code carries redundant data called error correction. Wikipedia’s QR code article explains that the standard defines four selectable levels, and higher levels add more backup data:
| Level | Data it can recover |
|---|---|
| L | About 7% |
| M | About 15% |
| Q | About 25% |
| H | About 30% |
When you put a logo on top, the scanner doesn’t know it’s a logo. As the same article puts it, “the scanner treats the obscured squares under the logo as a damaged area” and rebuilds the missing data from the backup. The code was built to survive scratches, smudges and tears. A logo is deliberate damage in a tidy shape.
Why level H matters
DENSO WAVE, the company that created the QR code, says “Typically, Level M (15%) is most frequently selected.” Many generators default to it. Wikipedia lists level M as the standard default for most consumer uses and names level H for “artistic QR codes where a logo deliberately covers the center of the grid.”
At level M, a logo of any real size eats most of your 15%. Level H gives you about 30%.
The price is density. DENSO WAVE notes that raising the level increases the data size, so you get more, smaller squares at the same printed width. Add a long URL and the code crowds fast. A short link helps, which is one reason people put logos on dynamic QR codes that hold only a short redirect.
Where the logo can go
The middle, and only the middle. The three large squares in the corners are finder patterns. The scanner looks for them first to work out where the code is and which way up it sits. Wikipedia is blunt: “if damage obliterates one of the corner finder patterns, standard scanners will fail to orient the QR code.” Error correction can’t save you there, because the scanner never gets as far as reading the data.
A logo tucked into a corner, or a big one whose edges reach toward the corners, breaks the code even when the covered area is small.
Not in the margin either. DENSO WAVE’s guidance on the code area says “QR Code requires a four-module wide margin at all sides of a symbol.” Keep logo badges and frames out of it.
How big the logo can be
A widely shared guide on QR error correction and logos advises keeping the logo to roughly 20 to 30% of the code’s area, centered, with error correction set to H.
Wikipedia notes that a level H code “can theoretically lose up to 30% of its total codewords and still scan.” Theoretically is doing work in that sentence. A logo at the maximum leaves nothing for anything else that goes wrong.
My take
Keep the logo around 20% of the area and ignore the 30% ceiling. The logo is there so people recognize the brand, and a symbol at 20% does that fine.
Picture a café table card with the logo filling a third of the code. It scans on the designer’s phone in the office. A month on the table adds a coffee ring and some window glare, and it starts failing for customers. The logo had already spent the backup data that wear needed. Restaurant QR code tracking covers table cards in more detail.
The limitation to accept
As Wikipedia puts it, covering the center with a logo “consumes a large portion of the code’s error-correction budget upfront.” A plain code at level H can lose up to about 30% to dirt, folds or reflections. A code with a logo can lose much less. If the code will be handled, folded or left outdoors, use a smaller logo or none.
For a large picture, DENSO WAVE has a separate format: Frame QR, “a QR code with a ‘canvas area’ that can be flexibly used,” where graphics in the center don’t interfere with reading. For an ordinary brand mark, a standard code with level H is enough.
How to add a logo safely
- Make the code with error correction set to H. If your generator has no setting, check whether it raises the level automatically when you add a logo.
- Use a simple version of your logo: a symbol or initials, not the full wordmark with a tagline.
- Put a small solid background behind the logo so its edges are clean.
- Keep it centered and well away from the three corner squares.
- Keep strong contrast in the rest of the code: dark squares on a light background.
- Print a test copy at real size and scan it on several phones, as the same guide recommends, before you print the full run.
QRAnalytica’s dynamic QR code generator supports logo overlays alongside colours and eye patterns, and you can download SVG files for print.
What goes wrong
- Oversized logo. The most common failure. Shrink it before you change anything else.
- Too little print size. A logo plus level H makes a dense code, and dense codes need room. What size should a QR code be for printing? covers the size rules.
- Low contrast. A light brand colour for the squares, plus a logo, is two problems at once.
- No test on paper. Screens are bright and sharp. Paper, glare and distance are not.
If a code with a logo won’t scan, remove the logo. If it scans without it, you’ve found the problem. QR code not scanning? covers the other usual causes.
FAQ
Why does a QR code still scan with a logo covering part of it?
QR codes carry backup data called error correction. The scanner treats the squares under the logo as damage and rebuilds the missing data from the backup, as long as not too much is covered.
What error correction level should I use with a logo?
Level H, which can recover about 30% of the data. Level M, the usual default, only recovers about 15%, which leaves little room for a logo.
How big can the logo be?
Common guidance is roughly 20 to 30% of the code’s area, centered. I’d stay near the smaller end, because the logo uses up the same backup data that protects against scuffs and glare.
Can the logo go in a corner instead of the middle?
No. The three big squares in the corners are finder patterns that the scanner uses to locate and orient the code. If one of them is covered, standard scanners fail.
Do I need a special kind of QR code for a big picture?
For a large image, DENSO WAVE offers Frame QR, a variant with a canvas area in the center that doesn’t interfere with reading. For a normal logo, a standard code with high error correction is enough.