QR codes

Every short link can carry a QR code. Create one for a link, style its colours and error-correction level, and fetch it as a PNG or SVG through a signed URL that needs no API key — so an <img> tag, an email template, or an automation’s file field can load it directly.

Scans through a QR code are recorded separately from ordinary clicks.

The QR code object

{
  "id": "5c8a2f61-7b93-4d05-8e14-a6f2c9d3b708",
  "link_id": "9b1f4e2a-6c3d-4a17-9f2e-7c8d5a1b3e40",
  "redirect_url": "go.acme.com/summer/?r=qr",
  "foreground": "#1a73e8",
  "background": "#FFFFFF",
  "style": "dots",
  "level": "H",
  "image_url": "https://app.linksqueeze.io/api/v1/qrcodes/5c8a2f61-7b93-4d05-8e14-a6f2c9d3b708/image/png?signature=...",
  "svg_url": "https://app.linksqueeze.io/api/v1/qrcodes/5c8a2f61-7b93-4d05-8e14-a6f2c9d3b708/image/svg?signature=...",
  "scans": 42,
  "created_at": "2026-08-28T10:14:02.000000Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-08-28T11:02:44.000000Z"
}

Error-correction levels

Higher levels pack more redundancy into the symbol, making it denser but more tolerant of damage.

Create or restyle a QR code

POST /v1/links/{id}/qrcode

Scope: links:write

A link has at most one QR code, so this endpoint is an upsert: it creates the code the first time and restyles it thereafter.

Every field is optional. Returns 201 Created when the code did not exist, and 200 OK when an existing one was restyled.

curl -X POST https://app.linksqueeze.io/api/v1/links/9b1f4e2a-6c3d-4a17-9f2e-7c8d5a1b3e40/qrcode \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LINKSQUEEZE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Accept: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "foreground": "#1a73e8",
    "level": "H",
    "style": "dots"
  }'

Colours must be hex. A named CSS colour or an rgb() string is rejected with 422:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "validation_error",
    "message": "The given data was invalid.",
    "errors": {
      "foreground": ["The foreground must be a hex colour, e.g. #1a73e8."]
    }
  }
}

An unrecognised level or style is likewise a 422.

Retrieve a QR code

GET /v1/links/{id}/qrcode

Scope: links:read

Returns the link’s QR code, or 404 not_found if the link does not have one yet. A link belonging to another account also returns 404.

curl https://app.linksqueeze.io/api/v1/links/9b1f4e2a-6c3d-4a17-9f2e-7c8d5a1b3e40/qrcode \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LINKSQUEEZE_API_KEY" \
  -H "Accept: application/json"

Render the image

GET /v1/qrcodes/{id}/image/{format}

No API key required. Use the image_url (PNG) or svg_url (SVG) returned on the QR code object exactly as given — the signature is part of the URL and the request will be rejected without it.

Because these URLs carry no credentials, they can be used anywhere a plain image URL works:

<img src="https://app.linksqueeze.io/api/v1/qrcodes/5c8a2f61-.../image/png?signature=..." alt="Scan for the summer sale" />

Getting a different size

The PNG renders at a fixed 512×512. For any other size, use svg_url instead — an SVG scales to whatever dimensions you render it at without losing sharpness, and needs no size parameter.

How the signature behaves

The signed URL is minted fresh each time you read the QR code object, and it does not expire on its own. It is scoped to one QR code in one format, so it cannot be edited into a URL for someone else’s code.

The image only ever encodes a short link, which is public by design — the signature exists to stop the URL being forged for another account’s code, not to keep the image secret. Treat the URL as shareable, and re-fetch it from the API rather than storing it indefinitely.

Scans versus clicks

A scan increments scans on the QR code, and is also recorded as a click on the link — it arrives with the ?r=qr marker that distinguishes it. So:

• scans on the QR code object counts QR scans only;
• clicks on the link object counts every visit, scans included.

Individual scans appear in the click log like any other click.