# Generate a QR code in Google Apps Script

> UrlFetchApp.fetch the keyless API and you have a QR blob: save it to Drive with DriveApp.createFile, place it in a Sheet with insertImage, or write =IMAGE() formulas into a column so every row gets its own code. No key, no OAuth scopes beyond fetch and the destination service.

Source: https://useqr.app/docs/developers/generate-a-qr-code-in-google-apps-script · Last reviewed 2026-08-21 · UseQR is free forever, MIT licensed, no signup.

---

## First: do you even need a script?

If the goal is "a QR code next to each URL in my sheet", the no-code `=IMAGE()` formula
does it without Apps Script at all — that route is written up in
[how to make a QR code in Google Sheets](/docs/how-to/how-to-make-a-qr-code-in-google-sheets).
Reach for a script when you need files in Drive, codes in Docs or Slides, batch output, or
regeneration on a trigger.

## Fetch a code, save it to Drive

The [keyless API](/docs/developers/free-qr-code-api-no-key) needs no key, so
`UrlFetchApp` is the whole integration:

```javascript
function saveQrToDrive() {
  const url = "https://useqr.app/api/v1/qr?data="
    + encodeURIComponent("https://example.com") + "&size=1024";
  const blob = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url).getBlob().setName("qr.png");
  DriveApp.createFile(blob);
}
```

`encodeURIComponent` is mandatory — an unencoded `&` in the payload truncates the code's
contents silently. Add `format=svg` for vector output destined for
[print](/docs/print/qr-code-size-for-print).

## A code per row in a Sheet

Writing `=IMAGE()` formulas from script scales cleanly, because Sheets then fetches and
displays each image itself:

```javascript
function qrColumn() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();
  const urls = sheet.getRange("A2:A101").getValues().flat().filter(String);
  urls.forEach((u, i) => {
    sheet.getRange(i + 2, 2).setFormula(
      '=IMAGE("https://useqr.app/api/v1/qr?data=' + encodeURIComponent(u) + '&size=512")'
    );
  });
}
```

For an image anchored over the grid rather than in a cell, `sheet.insertImage(blob, 3, 2)`
places a fetched blob at column 3, row 2. Spreadsheet-driven batch workflows more broadly
— including CSV export routes — are covered in
[QR codes from a spreadsheet](/docs/how-to/how-to-make-qr-codes-from-a-spreadsheet).

## Quotas, and why formulas beat fetch loops

`UrlFetchApp` is quota-limited (20,000 calls per day on consumer accounts), and a fetch
loop over a big sheet burns it. The formula approach spends zero fetch quota — the
requests come from Sheets, not your script — and the API's immutable caching means each
distinct payload is only ever fetched once anyway.

## Regenerate on a trigger

Because static codes never expire, regeneration is only needed when the *source data*
changes. An installable trigger keeps a column honest:

```javascript
function onEditInstallable(e) {
  if (e.range.getColumn() !== 1) return;    // only react to URL edits in column A
  const row = e.range.getRow();
  const value = e.range.getValue();
  if (!value) return;
  e.source.getActiveSheet().getRange(row, 2).setFormula(
    '=IMAGE("https://useqr.app/api/v1/qr?data=' + encodeURIComponent(value) + '")'
  );
}
```

Install it via Triggers → Add Trigger → On edit. Time-driven triggers suit nightly batch
jobs that pull rows and write PNGs to a Drive folder. If your automation lives outside
Google's stack, the same API drops into
[n8n, Zapier and Make](/docs/developers/qr-codes-in-n8n-zapier-and-make) with an HTTP
node.

## FAQ

### How do I generate a QR code in Google Apps Script?
UrlFetchApp.fetch the keyless API URL with your data encoded, call getBlob(), and hand the blob to DriveApp, Sheets, Docs or Slides.

### How do I put a QR code in every row of a Google Sheet?
Loop the rows and setFormula an =IMAGE() call per row, or skip scripting entirely and drag the formula down — no quota is consumed either way.

### Does UrlFetchApp have a limit?
Yes — daily quotas apply (20,000 fetches on consumer accounts). Prefer =IMAGE() formulas for bulk sheets so Sheets does the fetching instead of your script.

### Can the QR codes update automatically when data changes?
Yes. An installable on-edit trigger can rewrite the formula for the edited row, and time-driven triggers handle scheduled batch regeneration.

## Try it

- https://useqr.app/url
- https://useqr.app/json
- https://useqr.app/validate