Frequently asked questions

Yes. When your camera recognizes a code but shows no result, or another app turns it into meaningless characters, the code is not necessarily broken. QRefine shows the data it read as hexadecimal bytes and as text on the same screen, so you can see what is actually inside.

For example, QR codes printed on game cards sometimes hold binary data rather than text. A typical reader tries to display that data as text, and the result is a string of meaningless characters (garbled text). QRefine shows the same data as hexadecimal bytes, so you can tell that it is binary data and not text at all.

Not every code that will not scan or comes out garbled is binary, though. For codes that do contain text but were read with the wrong character encoding, the details screen also lets you re-read the text in an encoding you choose (UTF-8, Shift_JIS or ISO-8859-1). On Android, this requires "Retrieve detailed info" to be enabled when scanning.

A QR code carries extra data so that it can be read even when part of it is dirty or damaged. The error correction level sets how much of that extra data is included. There are four levels, L, M, Q and H. A higher level restores more, but it leaves less room for data, so the same content may need a larger QR version (a bigger code).

A mask pattern is one of several patterns that the generator applies to the data area so that dark and light modules are spread more evenly and the code is easier for a reader to process. It changes how the code looks, not what it contains.

QRefine reads the error correction level, mask pattern (shown as a number from 0 to 7) and QR version of a scanned code and shows them on the details screen.

Source: Error correction feature (QRcode.com by DENSO WAVE, the developer of QR Code).

Yes. QRefine reads the error correction level, mask pattern and QR version of a scanned code, along with how its data is split into segments (numeric, alphanumeric, byte, Kanji and so on), and can generate a new code with those same parameters. You can also change the error correction level, mask pattern or version on the details screen and generate again.

This works on codes QRefine was able to read. It is not a tool for repairing a code that cannot be scanned.

Yes. When you add a code, switch the type from text to binary and enter the data as hexadecimal digits (0 to 9 and A to F, an even number of characters). This lets you build codes that ordinary text-based generators cannot.

The generated code can be saved as a PNG image or as the raw binary data, and shared with other apps.

QRefine is free to download, and in-app purchases are available. Some features become available by purchasing the paid plan, QRefine Pro.

Pro is offered as auto-renewable subscriptions (monthly or yearly) and as a one-time purchase. Prices are shown in the app and on the store pages.

See the Terms of Use for details.

QR code data you scan, create or save in the app is stored only on your device. It is never sent to our servers. When you use the backup feature, the backup file is written only to the destination you choose, and we do not receive it.

To improve the app and understand problems, usage information and crash logs are collected through third-party services. This information never includes the content of your QR codes.

See the Privacy Policy for details.