QR codes for posters, sized to scan from across the room
A poster gets read from farther away and for longer than a flyer, and it often lives outdoors. Here's how big to print the code, where to place it, and how to keep it scannable through rain, sun, and fading.
A poster's viewing distance isn't fixed the way a flyer's is. Someone might stop right in front of it, or glance over from across a room — and a code sized for the close-up case will simply disappear at the farther one.
That distance range is the main thing that separates poster sizing from flyer sizing. The second is exposure: a poster taped to an indoor noticeboard behaves very differently from one glued to a wall outdoors for a month. Both are solvable with the right numbers before the file goes to print.
The numbers
How big should the code be?
For a standard A2/A1 poster, viewed from roughly 30–80 cm away, 5 × 5 cm is the practical minimum. That maps to the general rule print professionals use for any format: the code should be at least 1/10th of the maximum distance it needs to be scanned from. If your poster will realistically be read from the far end of that range — 80 cm — size the code to at least 8 cm, not the 5 cm that would only cover a close-up read.
Quick reference
Printing for outdoor placement — rain, direct sun, or a wall that gets dirty? Add roughly 50% to whatever size you land on as a safety margin, and use SVG rather than a raster export so the code stays crisp at large-format print size. See the full print resolution guide for the complete size table across other formats and DPI settings.
Beyond size
What actually gets a poster code scanned
Size for the farthest realistic viewing distance
A flyer is read at arm's length, but a poster might be read from 30 cm away or from across a room. Work out the farthest distance someone will realistically stand and size the code for that — not for whoever happens to walk right up to it.
Weatherproof printing and a higher error correction level outdoors
An outdoor poster takes rain, sun, and general wear that an indoor flyer never sees. Laminated or weatherproof stock keeps the print intact, and a higher error correction level gives the code room to still scan after the surface has faded or picked up a few marks.
Put it at eye level, not just anywhere on the layout
A flyer gets picked up and looked at closely regardless of where the code sits. A poster is viewed from a fixed position, so placement height matters — a code near the bottom edge of a tall poster is easy to miss or awkward to reach for a scan.
Test the print before committing to the full run
Print one copy at final size, pin it up where it'll actually hang, and scan it from the distance people will really stand. It's the only way to catch a code that looked fine on screen but is too small, too low-contrast, or too glossy once it's actually printed and mounted.
Questions
Common questions about poster QR codes
5 × 5 cm is the practical minimum for a standard A2/A1 poster viewed from 30–80 cm away. If the poster will realistically be read from farther than that — say, from across a room — size up using the 1:10 rule: the code should be at least 1/10th of the maximum distance it needs to be scanned from.
Get the sizing right before you print
Export at print resolution as SVG, PNG, or PDF — no watermark, no account required to try it.