How-To 2026-02-25 4 min By Cornelious Fazal
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How to Scan a QR Code From a Screenshot, Image or Screen (iPhone and Android)

Quick Answer

Received a QR code in a screenshot, PDF, email, or on a TV screen? Your camera cannot scan it directly.

Why You Can't Just Point Your Camera at a Screenshot

Your camera app scans a QR code by using its lens to capture a live image of the physical world. When a QR code is already on your screen - in a screenshot, a PDF, an email attachment, or a WhatsApp message - pointing your front camera at your own screen creates focus and depth-of-field problems, and the live scan typically fails or is too slow to be practical.

The solution is different depending on where the QR code is and which device you are using. Here is every method, organised by device and scenario.

iPhone: Scan a QR Code From a Saved Image or Screenshot

Method 1: Photos App (iOS 15 and later - quickest)

  1. Open the Photos app and find the screenshot or image containing the QR code.
  2. Tap the image to open it at full screen.
  3. Press and hold directly on the QR code within the image.
  4. A menu appears with the option "Open in Safari" (or the URL linked by the code). Tap it.

This works with iOS 15+ Live Text. If it does not respond to a long press, verify Live Text is enabled: Settings → General → Language & Region → Live Text (toggle on).

Method 2: Control Centre Code Scanner (any iOS 11+)

  1. Add the Code Scanner to Control Centre: Settings → Control Centre → tap + next to "Code Scanner."
  2. Swipe down from the top-right corner (iPhone X and later) or up from the bottom (iPhone 8 and earlier) to open Control Centre.
  3. Tap the Scan Code icon (the square viewfinder icon).
  4. In the scanner, tap the small photo icon (bottom-left corner) to select an image from your Photos library.
  5. Choose the screenshot containing the QR code. The scanner reads it and displays the URL or content.

Method 3: Google Lens on iPhone

  1. Open the Google app on iPhone.
  2. Tap the camera icon (Lens) in the search bar.
  3. Tap the photo gallery icon (bottom-left) to import from your camera roll.
  4. Select the screenshot. Google Lens identifies the QR code and shows the URL.

iPhone: Scan a QR Code Visible on Your Screen (in a PDF, Email, or App)

If the QR code is displayed in an open document, email, or app - not a saved image - use the Control Centre Code Scanner (Method 2 above) but instead of selecting from Photos, simply hold the scanner up to the screen. At very close range (5-10 cm), the Code Scanner can read a code on your own screen if the screen brightness is set to maximum.

Alternatively: take a screenshot of the screen showing the QR code (press Side button + Volume Up simultaneously), then use Photos app long-press (Method 1) on that screenshot.

Android: Scan a QR Code From a Saved Image or Screenshot

Method 1: Google Lens (most Android phones - quickest)

  1. Open Google Photos.
  2. Find and open the screenshot or image with the QR code.
  3. Tap the Lens icon (the small camera icon) at the bottom of the screen.
  4. Google Lens scans the image, detects the QR code, and displays the URL or content - tap to open.

Method 2: Google Lens Standalone App

  1. Open the Google Lens app (or use the camera icon in the Google Search app).
  2. Tap the gallery icon (bottom-left) to access your photos.
  3. Select the screenshot. Lens processes the QR code and shows the result.

Method 3: Circle to Search (Pixel 8+ and Samsung Galaxy S24+)

If the QR code is visible on your Android screen right now (in any app):

  1. Press and hold the home button (or long-press the navigation bar on gesture navigation) to activate Circle to Search.
  2. Draw a circle around the QR code on your screen.
  3. Google processes it and shows the URL or content encoded in the code.

Method 4: Samsung Gallery App (Samsung phones)

  1. Open Gallery and find the screenshot.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu → Scan QR code in image (if available on your Samsung model).
  3. The Gallery app reads the code and shows the link.

How to Scan a QR Code From a Computer Screen Using Your Phone

If a QR code is displayed on a laptop or desktop monitor and you need to scan it with your phone:

  1. Increase the QR code's size on screen (zoom in if it appears in a browser or document).
  2. Set screen brightness to maximum.
  3. Open your phone's standard camera app and point it at the monitor from about 20-30 cm away.
  4. Hold steady for 2-3 seconds - most camera apps will detect and activate the QR code link.

If this fails: take a screenshot of your computer screen (PrintScreen or the screenshot tool), send it to your phone via AirDrop, WhatsApp, or email, then use the iPhone Photos app long-press or Android Google Lens method above.

Frequently Asked Questions

Auto-focus struggles at very close range (under 15 cm), and screen brightness combined with camera exposure settings can make the QR code pattern wash out. The solutions in order of effectiveness: (1) use the Photos app long-press if the code is in a screenshot; (2) use the Control Centre Code Scanner close to the screen with maximum screen brightness; (3) take a screenshot, save it, then use Google Lens from Photo import.

Yes. On iPhone with iOS 15+, open the PDF, screenshot the page containing the QR code, then use the Photos app long-press on the code in the screenshot. On Android, screenshot the PDF page and use Google Lens from the Google Photos app on that screenshot. Alternatively, the iOS Files app can sometimes detect QR codes in PDFs directly using the long-press method on the displayed code, depending on the PDF viewer.

On iPhone: press and hold on the QR code image in the WhatsApp chat, then tap "Save to Photos." Open the saved image in the Photos app and long-press the QR code. On Android: long-press the QR code image in WhatsApp, tap "Download," then open it in Google Photos and use Lens to scan. Some newer Android phones also support long-pressing a QR code image inside WhatsApp directly, which may trigger a scan option depending on your Android version.

The closest to one-step on iPhone is iOS 15+ Live Text: open the screenshot in Photos, long-press the QR code, tap the URL. Three taps. On Android with Google Photos, it is: open the screenshot, tap Lens, wait for scan - also three steps. There is no zero-step method - some interaction is always required because the device needs to be told to interpret the existing image as a QR code rather than simply display it.

If the QR code appears very small in the screenshot, pinch-to-zoom in the Photos app before long-pressing - this does not help with the scan itself (the app scans the original resolution regardless of zoom level). Instead: screenshot or crop the original source to isolate just the QR code area at maximum available resolution, removing surrounding content. If the original image is low resolution, the QR code may genuinely be too small in pixels for digital scan to work, in which case accessing the content by the alternative method (typing the URL) is the practical solution.
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