The file is not in the code
This is the part most PDF QR tools are quiet about. A QR code cannot contain a PDF. It holds at most 2,331 bytes at the common error correction level, and 2,953 at the lowest. Here is what that means against real files:
| File | Typical size | As text in a code | Over the limit by |
|---|---|---|---|
| One page PDF, text only | 25 KB | 34,000 characters | 12 times |
| One page PDF with a logo | 120 KB | 164,000 characters | 55 times |
| A two page menu | 400 KB | 546,000 characters | 185 times |
So every PDF QR code, including the ones that ask you to upload the file, is a link. The difference is whose server the file sits on. When a tool hosts it for you, your printed code depends on that company staying in business and on you staying subscribed. That is worth knowing before a thousand menus go to print.
Because it is a link, the size of your PDF makes no difference to the code at all. A 40 MB brochure and a 20 KB leaflet produce identical codes if their addresses are the same length.
Where to put the PDF
- Your own website. Best option by a distance. Upload it, use a short tidy path such as
/menu.pdf, and you can replace the file later without touching the printed code. - Google Drive. Free and fine, but the sharing setting has to be Anyone with the link or people hit a request access wall. Our Drive generator rewrites those links properly.
- Dropbox or OneDrive. Works, but the default share link opens a preview page with their branding rather than the file.
- A QR company's hosting. Convenient, and the one option where someone else can switch your printed sign off.
Keep the path short. Every character makes the code denser and denser codes need to be printed larger. yoursite.com/menu.pdf is a far better target than a long generated filename with a date and a hash in it.
What happens when someone scans it
The phone opens the link in its browser, and the browser opens the PDF in its built in viewer. On both iOS and Android that is a reasonable reading experience for a page or two.
It is a poor one for anything long or complex. A twenty page brochure laid out for A4 is painful on a phone, because the reader has to zoom on every page. If the content is meant to be read on a phone, a web page will beat a PDF every time. The PDF is the right answer when the thing genuinely is a document: a form to print, a spec sheet, a menu people will glance at.
Making it last longer than the PDF
A printed code cannot be repointed. If the PDF moves, gets a new name, or the folder is reorganised, every copy you printed is dead.
The fix costs nothing. Point the code at a short address you control, such as yoursite.com/menu, and have that address serve or redirect to the current file. Change the file whenever you like and the printed code keeps working. Our guide to static and dynamic codes covers when a paid redirect service is worth it instead.
Common questions
Can I upload my PDF here?
No, and that is deliberate. We do not host files, because a code that depends on our servers is a code we could break. Put the PDF somewhere you control and paste the link.
Does the PDF file size affect the QR code?
Not at all. The code carries the address, so only the length of the address matters. A 40 MB file and a 20 KB file give identical codes if the links are the same length.
Does it work without internet?
No. The scan opens a link, so the phone needs a connection to fetch the file. If you need something that works offline, a text code holds its content inside the image, within the few thousand character limit.
Will it expire?
The code will not. It is static and has no service behind it. What can expire is the file it points at, which is entirely in your hands.
How big should I print it?
It depends on how far away people will be. A table card wants about 45 mm, a wall poster about 100 mm. Our sign maker applies those sizes for you, and the sizing guide explains where they come from.
Related tools
For a Drive hosted PDF use the Google Drive generator, which rewrites the link so it previews rather than opening the editor. For images, video, audio or Office files, the file and media generator handles the quirks of each. For an ordinary web page, use the URL generator.