An Instagram QR code holds the web link to a profile, so a person who scans it lands on that account with the Follow button in front of them, without typing a username into search and picking the right one from a list of lookalikes.
This tool builds the code in your browser. Type the username, or paste the profile link, choose colours and a logo if you want them, and download a PNG or SVG. Nothing is sent to a server, and the page keeps no record of what you typed.
What the code contains
The code holds a plain web link of the form https://www.instagram.com/username/, with the trailing slash Instagram itself uses. The panel under the preview shows the exact string, so you can confirm nothing has been added to it.
It is a web link on purpose, not an instagram:// app scheme. A phone with the Instagram app installed opens instagram.com profile links in the app. A phone without it opens the profile page in the browser, which Instagram may put behind a sign-in prompt, but the link still resolves instead of failing with an unknown-scheme error.
What you can type
The username field accepts a bare username, the same name with a leading @, or a pasted instagram.com profile link. The @ and any trailing slash are stripped, the username is lifted out of a pasted link, and anything after a question mark in that link, such as a share tracking code, is dropped.
Instagram usernames are up to 30 characters of letters, digits, periods and underscores, and the tool checks for that shape. A name with a hyphen, a space or any other character shows the message that it does not look like a valid Instagram username, and the download button stays disabled until it does.
Paste the profile link, not a link to a post, reel or story. Those start with instagram.com/p/, /reel/ or /stories/, and the tool rejects them with a message saying what a profile link looks like, instead of guessing a username out of them. The readout under the preview shows the final link either way.
Where a profile code earns its place
A code works wherever the account is not already a tap away: a table tent in a cafe, a tag on a garment, the back of a business card, packaging, a poster at a market stall or a slide at the end of a talk. On screen, inside a story or a caption, a code is pointless, since the profile is already one tap away.
Print the word Instagram or the @username beside the code. A person deciding whether to raise their phone wants to know what will open, and the username on its own is a fallback for anyone who prefers to type it.
Printing it
Download the SVG for anything that will be printed. It scales from a sticker to a shop window without going blurry, where a PNG has a fixed pixel size. For screens and documents the PNG is fine, and the resolution slider sets how large it is.
Keep the quiet zone, the blank border around the code, at two modules or more. Dark modules on a light background scan most reliably; a brand palette with low contrast is the usual reason a styled code will not read.
If the username changes, the printed code points at the old name and stops working. Keep the SVG so a fresh version is quick to make.
Frequently asked questions
Is my username sent to Instagram or to a server?
No. The code is generated inside your browser and the username is only placed into the image file you download. There is no upload, no account and no history kept on this page.
What happens when someone scans it without the Instagram app?
The code holds a normal instagram.com link, so the phone opens the profile page in the browser. Instagram may ask the visitor to sign in before showing much, but the link resolves. With the app installed, the same code opens straight in it.
Do I include the @ sign?
Either way works. A leading @ is removed before the link is built, and so is a trailing slash. Pasting the full profile link also works; the username is read out of it and any tracking parameters are dropped.
Why does it say my username is not valid?
The tool checks for Instagram's rules: up to 30 characters, using only letters, digits, periods and underscores. A name with a hyphen or a space is rejected before a code is made, since it could never open an Instagram account.
Can I make a code for a post or a reel instead of a profile?
Not with this tool. It reads the username out of whatever you paste and builds a profile link. For a post or reel, copy its link and use the plain URL type in the QR generator instead.
Can I add my logo and brand colours?
Yes. Under Branding, add a logo and it is centred over the code, with error correction raised to H so the covered modules can be recovered. Under Colours, set the foreground and background, keeping the contrast high so it still scans.
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