How to turn QR code scanning on or off on iPhone

Your iPhone has two built-in ways to read QR codes: the Camera app and the Scan Code control in Control Center. On iPhone models with Camera Control, that button can open a code scanner too.

In each case the iPhone doesn't open anything by itself. When the Camera sees a QR code, a link appears at the bottom of the screen, and the content opens only when you tap it. So if you want fewer interruptions, or you're fixing a camera that no longer reacts to codes, here's where each setting lives.

Turn QR code detection in the Camera on or off

Don't confuse it with Show Detected Text, which is in the same place. Apple's guide describes Show Detected Text as the setting that turns off Live Text, the camera's text recognition.

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Scroll down and tap Camera.
3. Turn Scan QR Codes off to stop the Camera from reacting to codes, or on to bring it back.

Add or remove the Scan Code control

Control Center has its own scanner. The control is labeled Scan Code (in iOS 14 to 17 it was listed as Code Scanner), and Apple still calls the scanner itself Code Scanner. It's handy when you'd rather not open the Camera at all.

1. Open Control Center: on an iPhone with Face ID, swipe down from the top-right corner; on an iPhone with a Home button, swipe up from the bottom.
2. Tap the Add button in Control Center to start editing.
3. To add the scanner, tap Add a Control, then tap Scan Code. To remove it, tap the Remove button at the upper left of the control.
4. To finish, swipe up from the bottom center of the screen on an iPhone with Face ID, or press the Home button.

Use Camera Control to scan

On iPhone models with Camera Control, Apple lets you set that button to open the Code Scanner instead of the Camera. Go to Settings › Camera › Camera Control and choose Code Scanner.

If your iPhone doesn't detect QR codes

• Check the Camera setting above. If Scan QR Codes was turned off, the Camera won't show a link for any code.
• Use Photo mode. Apple's steps are to open the Camera in Photo mode and position the iPhone so the QR code appears inside the camera frame.
• Add light. When you use the Scan Code control, Apple suggests tapping the flashlight if the code is hard to read. In Scan QR Code Master, the Start with Torch On setting turns the flashlight on whenever the scanner opens.
• Try the Scan Code control in Control Center. If it reads the code, the code itself is readable, so check the Camera setting and mode.
• Look for the code in your photos. The Photos app collects pictures that contain QR codes under Collections › Utilities, which helps if you took a photo of a code earlier.

Scan without the built-in scanner

Scan QR Code Master is another option. According to its App Store listing, it scans QR codes and barcodes, offers hands-free automatic scanning, and keeps a history of the codes you've scanned and created. Its screenshots show the decoded link on a result screen with Open and Share buttons, so you can check where a code leads before opening it.