How to Scan a QR Code on iPhone and Android
Scanning a QR code takes seconds once you know where to look. Here is how to do it on any modern phone, plus what to do when the camera won’t cooperate.
Published February 2, 2026 · LinkQRPro
Most people don’t need an app to scan a QR code anymore — the phone in your pocket already does it. The tricky part is that the exact steps differ a little between iPhone and Android, and older phones behave differently again.
On an iPhone
Open the built-in Camera app and point it at the code. You don’t need to take a photo — hold steady for a second and a small yellow banner slides up at the top or bottom. Tap it, and the phone opens the link, WiFi prompt, or contact card. This works on iOS 11 and later, which covers just about every iPhone still in use.
If nothing happens, check Settings → Camera and make sure “Scan QR Codes” is switched on. It’s enabled by default, but it’s the first thing to rule out.
On an Android phone
On phones running Android 9 or newer, open the Camera app and aim it at the code the same way. Many phones show a button or link to tap. If your camera doesn’t react, look for a dedicated “Scan QR code” tile in the quick settings panel you pull down from the top of the screen — Google, Samsung, and others put one there.
Google Lens is the reliable fallback. It’s built into the Google app and the Photos app, and it reads codes even from a screenshot you already saved.
When the camera won’t scan
- Move closer or further away — codes have a sweet spot, usually where the code fills about half the frame.
- Wipe the lens. A smudge blurs the fine detail a scanner needs.
- Improve the lighting or reduce glare; a code behind shiny glass is hard to read.
- If the code is on your own screen, you can’t scan it with the same device — open it on another phone, or upload the image to a scanner instead.
That last case is common: someone sends you a QR code as an image and you need to read it on the same phone. For that, use an online scanner that accepts an uploaded picture. The LinkQRPro scanner does exactly this — choose the image option, pick the file, and it decodes the code right in your browser.