Download formats (PNG/SVG/PDF/EPS)
Every code can be downloaded in four formats, from both the code card (overview) and the code detail page.
| Format | Type | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| PNG | raster | websites, slides, quick previews |
| SVG | vector | web, scaling without quality loss |
| vector | print, handover to print shops | |
| EPS | vector | professional layout / DTP tools |
How to download
On the code overview, each card has PNG · SVG · PDF · EPS buttons. On a code’s detail page the same four formats are available next to the QR preview. The file is named qr3-<short-code>.<format>.
Logo overlays
All four formats — PNG, SVG, PDF and EPS — embed a code’s uploaded logo. See Logo in the QR code for how to upload one and what it changes.
Colors in the dashboard
On a code’s detail page, the Colors card sets the foreground and background color. Enter them as hex values, e.g. #1F4E79; the color picker next to the field is only a helper. The background also offers Transparent (no background). The preview shows your draft; until you save, the downloads show the saved state.
The dashboard checks the color pair immediately, with the same check the API runs:
| Level | When | Saving |
|---|---|---|
| Scans well | contrast of 4:1 or more and a luminance difference of 0.50 or more | right away |
| Limited scannability | contrast below 4:1, difference below 0.50, or light modules on a dark background | with a note |
| Critical | contrast below 2:1, difference below 0.30, a warning together with a logo, or any transparent background | only after confirming |
| Cannot be saved like this | contrast below 1.5:1 | not at all |
Transparent background: the code takes its contrast from the material it is printed on. That surface must be plain, contrast clearly with the modules and leave a quiet zone of 4 modules free on every side. The preview therefore puts the code on a checkerboard, light or dark depending on the foreground; you can switch it, and it is never saved. The area behind a logo stays white.
Reset: Reset to black on white removes the stored colors. The message names the previous values so you can enter them again if needed. Afterwards all four formats return exactly the files without colors again.
Colors in print (CMYK)
Colors from fg and bg, or colors stored on the code (Colors and error correction), are drawn in the PDF and the EPS as well, as print colors:
- Black and every grey (red = green = blue, e.g.
#333333) are written as grayscale. That prints on the black plate only, and the tone is exact on screen. - Any other color is converted to CMYK in whole percent by a simple formula: K = 1 − max/255, C = (max − R)/max, M and Y likewise. One of the three chromatic inks is always 0, so a colored code sits on at most three printing plates.
| Color on screen | In the file | Printing plates |
|---|---|---|
#1f4e79 (dark blue) | C 74% · M 36% · Y 0% · K 53% | C, M, K |
#ff6600 (orange) | C 0% · M 60% · Y 100% · K 0% | M, Y |
#f5f0e6 (cream, as background) | C 0% · M 2% · Y 6% · K 4% | M, Y, K |
#808080 (mid grey) | grayscale 0.502 (K 49.8%) | K |
#333333 (dark grey) | grayscale 0.200 (K 80%) | K |
Background: without colors the file has no background, as before. As soon as a color is chosen, an opaque fill sits behind the code and its quiet zone: white, or the bg color, as in the SVG. bg=transparent draws no fill; the surface must then be light and leave the quiet zone clear. The title band and the rest of an A4 sheet stay unpainted. In the square format the fill reaches the edge of the page, without bleed: right for placing it in a layout, but a print shop flags it as a standalone print job.
What stays black or white: the PDF title stays black, and its font is not embedded. The plate behind a logo stays white, and the logo itself stays an RGB image. A preflight check reports both. The PDF of a product passport (/v1/dpp/{id}/qr.pdf) stays uncolored.
Limits of the conversion:
- No color management: the file contains no ICC profile and is not PDF/X. Every program converts CMYK back for the screen a little differently:
#1f4e79shows as 41/71/110 in Poppler and 26/78/118 in Ghostscript instead of 31/78/121. Grey and black are not affected. - Saturated greens, violets and blues print noticeably differently from the screen, dark tones such as navy, slate or dark red only slightly. If a brand color must match exactly, give the print shop its CMYK values.
- Small codes are best printed in black or grey. A color built from several plates frays at the module edges when the plates are not in perfect register.
- GS1 recommends dark modules on a light background for codes on packaging, ideally black on white, and advises against red for the modules.
- On paper: the check when you store colors judges the screen colors; printed, the contrast can be weaker. Do a test scan on the real material before printing.