WhatsApp QR code generator
This WhatsApp QR code generator turns a phone number into a code that opens a chat with a first message already typed in. It builds a standard wa.me link - no account connection needed here.
type to generate
Scan it once from the screen before you print a batch. Keep it 2 cm or larger on paper, and leave the white margin around it.
Do more with it
Same code, more placesSave this design - colors, corners, logo and frame - and put it on any code later. Saved in this browser.
One value per line, or paste a CSV. With two columns the first is the file name and the second is the value. Every code uses the design you set up above.
Lay the code out on an A4 page with cut marks, ready for the printer or a label sheet.
How a WhatsApp click to chat QR code works
A WhatsApp QR code doesn't carry a conversation, just an address for one: the number to message and, optionally, a first line sitting ready in the text box. Get the number right and the rest takes care of itself.
From phone number to open chat
-
Type the number
Full international number, country code first - no plus sign, no spaces, no leading zero.
-
Add a first message, if you want one
It appears ready-typed in the chat box - the visitor still taps send.
-
Share the code
A scan opens WhatsApp - the app if installed, whatsapp.com if not - straight into the chat.
Get your wa.me QR code exactly right
wa.me is WhatsApp's own domain for this one job: opening a chat with a specific number rather than a profile or a site.
The number has to be digits only, because a dash or a local 0 isn't part of the number as far as wa.me is concerned - and a pre-filled message rides along after a question mark, encoded so spaces survive.
- https://wa.me/ WhatsApp's own click-to-chat domain.
- 447700900123 country code then number, digits only - no plus, no spaces, no leading 0.
- ?text= the optional first message, URL-encoded; skipped entirely with nothing to pre-fill.
Two ways a phone number breaks the code
https://wa.me/+44 7700 900123
https://wa.me/447700900123
The + and the spaces aren't digits, so wa.me doesn't recognise the number.
https://wa.me/07700900123
https://wa.me/447700900123
The leading 0 is replaced by the country code, not kept alongside it.
Sources
Checked September 2026
WhatsApp updates this page from time to time - it has the current wording.
WhatsApp QR code questions
No - if it isn't, the link offers web.whatsapp.com or the app instead of failing outright.
No - don't mix them up. That code is scanned inside your own WhatsApp app to sign a computer in; this one is built to be scanned by other people, to start a chat with you.
No - it sits typed out in the chat box until the visitor taps send.
Yes - any number with WhatsApp active works the same way.
The chat opens empty - nothing breaks, there's just nothing pre-typed.
Want one QR that opens a landing page?
Build a QR landing page: add links, text, images and your logo, then point one editable QR at it.
- Private by design Everything runs in your browser. Your content is never uploaded, saved, or shared.
- No account needed Open the page and start. No sign up, no limits, and nothing to install.
- Use it anywhere Download PNG, SVG, or WEBP and place your code in print or on screen.