How to Create QR Codes in Bulk

Need a QR code for every product, table, poster, or delegate badge? Making them one at a time in a generator doesn't scale past a dozen. This guide shows how to create QR codes in bulk from a spreadsheet, download them all as a single zip of PNG or SVG files, and keep every one of them editable and trackable after printing.

There are three ways to do it in Linkly, from no-code to fully automated:

1. 1
   Spreadsheet → zip — paste your URLs into Linkly's spreadsheet importer, then export every QR code with one click. No code, takes about a minute.
2. 2
   QR codes by URL — add .qr.png to any short link to get its QR image. Drop that into a Google Sheets or Excel formula, a mail merge, or a print template and generate thousands of codes without downloading anything.
3. 3
   API — create links (with QR styling) from your own system, then fetch the images.

Every QR code Linkly makes is a dynamic QR code: it points at a short link, so you can change the destination after the codes are printed, and every scan is tracked.

PNG or SVG?

If you've added a logo or custom eye styles to your codes, export PNG — the bulk export renders exactly what you see in the QR editor for each link. If you're handing files to a printer or designer who needs vectors, export SVG; you can always re-export in the other format, since the codes stay in Linkly.

How many QR codes can you export at once?

Your dashboard lists up to 500 links per page, and the header checkbox selects all of them, so a single export can produce up to 500 codes. For more, page through or narrow the list with search — each page becomes its own zip. Some QR tools cap bulk downloads at 100–150 codes per batch; Linkly renders everything in your browser, so there's no server-side ceiling to hit.

Because the QR codes belong to the links, you can come back and export again at any time — after renaming, restyling, or adding more links to the batch.

Branding QR codes in bulk

QR styling (colour, dot pattern, eye style, logo) is saved per link. There are three ways to apply a consistent brand look across a whole batch:

• Style parameters on the image URL — every short link's QR is available at <short link>.qr.png, and you can pass styling as query parameters. The same parameter string brands every code identically, without editing any links. See Method 2 below.
• Set styles when creating links via the API — pass a qr_styles object with each link and the bulk PNG export (and .qr.png) will use it. See Method 3 below.
• Style individual links in the QR editor — open any link, click its QR code, and adjust colours or add a logo. Good for a handful of hero codes; tedious for hundreds.

Whichever you choose, keep the scannability rules in mind: dark code on a light background, a logo no bigger than about 20% of the code, and a real-world test scan before you print.

Method 2: Generate QR codes by URL

Every Linkly short link has a QR image at the same address with .qr.png on the end. No login, no API key:

https://demo.linkly.so/7BLL3CM.qr.png

That turns bulk QR generation into a string-concatenation problem, which spreadsheets are good at.

In Google Sheets or Excel

Put your short links in column B (the spreadsheet importer shows them after an import, or use Export data on the dashboard to download them as CSV). Then, in column C:

=IMAGE(B2 & ".qr.png")

Fill the formula down and a QR code appears next to every link. Google Sheets renders =IMAGE() directly; in Excel 365 the same IMAGE() function works. To brand them all at once, append the style parameters:

=IMAGE(B2 & ".qr.png?fgColor=%231f6f4a&qrStyle=dots&eyeStyle=rounded&size=600")

(%23 is a URL-encoded #.) Change the parameters in one cell and every code updates.

In mail merges, labels and print templates

Any tool that can place an image from a URL can use the same trick: mail-merge tools for personalised postcards, label printers, InDesign data merge (use @QR as the column header and the .qr.png URL as the value), or a CMS that renders product pages. Because the image is generated on request, you never manage a folder of files — and if a destination changes, the printed code still works because it's a dynamic QR code.

The full list of parameters — size (up to 2048px), colours, eye colours, logo, padding and quiet zone — is in the QR Code Generator API docs. The endpoint is rate-limited to 5 requests per second per IP, so for very large one-off batches prefer the zip export.

Method 3: The API

If your links live in a database, a booking system, or an e-commerce back end, create them with the Link Shortening API and skip the spreadsheet entirely. Include a qr_styles object to brand each code at creation time:

POST https://app.linklyhq.com/api/v1/link
{
  "api_key": "your_api_key",
  "workspace_id": 1234,
  "url": "https://example.com/products/sku-4471",
  "name": "SKU-4471 – care card",
  "domain": "go.example.com",
  "qr_styles": {
    "fgColor": "#1f6f4a",
    "qrStyle": "dots",
    "eyeStyle": "rounded",
    "logoImage": "https://example.com/logo.png",
    "logoStyle": "circle"
  }
}

The response includes the short link. Append .qr.png to fetch the styled QR image whenever you need it, or select the links on the dashboard and use the bulk zip export. There's also a bulk endpoint that accepts an array of links in one request.

Prefer no-code automation? The Zapier and Make integrations can create a Linkly link (and therefore a QR code) whenever a row is added to a sheet, a product is published, or a form is submitted.

Tips for printing QR codes in bulk

• Test-scan a sample before you print the run. Print one sheet, scan it with an iPhone and an Android phone from the distance people will actually stand at, and check every code lands on the right page. A batch of 500 wrong labels is expensive; a batch of 500 wrong dynamic codes is a two-minute fix in Linkly — but only if the codes themselves scan.
• Use your own domain. Codes generated on a custom domain don't depend on anyone else's brand, and a branded domain reads better on packaging.
• Tag the traffic. Add utm_source=qr and a utm_campaign in the importer's UTM columns so QR scans are separated from web clicks in Google Analytics. Linkly's own traffic reports show scans per code either way.
• Mind the quiet zone. Leave clear space around each code (about four modules' width). If you're placing codes on dark backgrounds via the URL method, add quietZone=50&bgColor=%23ffffff.
• Size for the scanning distance. A rough rule: the code's width should be at least one tenth of the distance it'll be scanned from — 2 cm for a hand-held leaflet, 25 cm for a poster read from across a room.
• Keep the names tidy. Nicknames become filenames, and searching by nickname is how you'll re-select the batch later for re-export, editing, or a group traffic report.
• Set expiry where it matters. Event or promotion codes can be given an expiry date or click limit so old print doesn't send people to a dead offer.

Related guides

• Create a QR code for a link — the basics, one link at a time
• Spreadsheet import — every column the importer accepts, including UTM tags, pixels and redirect rules
• Bulk link import with Google Sheets — the CSV template route
• Add a logo to a QR code — styling rules that keep codes scannable
• SVG QR codes — vector output for print
• QR Code Generator API — all .qr.png parameters
• Link Shortening API — create links programmatically
• QR code analytics — track scans per code