QR Code Statistics 2026: What People Put in QR Codes

Most QR code statistics are surveys about scanning. This page shows the other side: what people actually put into QR codes. The numbers come from more than 3,500 sessions in which someone created and exported a QR code with QR Code Banana, from September 3 to October 3, 2026.

Updated on October 4, 2026. We update these numbers at the end of each month until the end of 2026.

Key Findings

88%

of QR codes are website links.

21%

of links point to a shared document, such as Google Drive or Canva.

57%

of exports are SVG vector files.

15%

of exports are copied, not downloaded.

What Kind of QR Codes People Make

Share of QR codes by content type. September 3 to October 3, 2026, more than 3,500 sessions.

Website link (URL)
88%
Plain text
8%
Contact card (vCard)
2%
Phone number
0.6%
Email
0.6%
WiFi login
0.4%
SMS
0.2%

Note: The generator opens with the URL type selected, which raises the URL share.

Insight

Almost 9 in 10 QR codes open a web page. Plain text is a clear second at 8%, more than contact, phone, email, WiFi, and SMS codes together (4%). Text codes work without internet, which suits labels and serial numbers.

Text QR code generator

Where QR Code Links Point

Share of URL QR codes by destination category. We store only the category, never the link. September 27 to October 3, 2026, more than 800 sessions.

Other websites
50%
Shared documents
21%
Social media profiles
7%
Forms and surveys
6%
Videos
5%
Maps and directions
3%
Music
1%
PDF files
1%
Review pages
1%
Link-in-bio pages
1%
Messaging
0.8%
App store pages
0.7%
Bookings and events
0.7%
Video meetings
0.5%
Restaurant menus
0.2%
Food ordering
0.1%

Note: Categories are assigned in the browser from a fixed list of domains and path patterns. Links we cannot place, including self-hosted menus with unusual paths, count as other websites. This category data started on September 27, 2026, so the sample is smaller.

Insight

After general websites, shared documents are the biggest group at 21%, three times more than social media profiles (7%). Many people use a QR code to hand over a file: slides, handouts, and forms.

How to make a QR code for a PDF

Which File Format People Choose

Share of exports by file format. September 3 to October 3, 2026, more than 3,500 sessions.

SVG
57%
PNG
31%
JPG
11%

Note: The main download button gives SVG, and PNG and JPG are in its menu. This raises the SVG share.

Insight

SVG leads, partly because the main button gives SVG. Still, 31% of exports are PNG, chosen from the menu. Many people need an image file for documents, slides, and websites, not only a print file.

How People Take Their QR Code

Share of exports by action. September 3 to October 3, 2026, more than 3,500 sessions.

Download a file
77%
Copy to the clipboard
15%
Share from the phone
7%

Insight

More than 1 in 5 exports does not end as a downloaded file: 15% are copied to the clipboard and 7% are shared from the phone. QR codes often go straight into another tool or message.

Methodology

Source: anonymous Simple Analytics events from the free generator on qrcodebanana.com. Simple Analytics uses no cookies and collects no personal data.
Unit: one count per session and value. A session that downloads both an SVG and a PNG counts once for each format. Repeated downloads of the same format in one session count once.
No content is collected. QR codes are made in the browser. For links, the browser sends only a category such as "document" or "social", never the link itself.
Limits: this is one generator's audience, not the whole market. Default settings affect the results, as noted under each table. Percentages are rounded, so a table can add up to slightly more or less than 100%.

How to Cite This Data

You are welcome to use these numbers. Please credit "QR Code Banana, QR Code Statistics 2026" with a link to this page.

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