macOS · menu bar utility
Scan Screen QR Code
Reads QR codes that are already on your screen, so you don't have to point a phone at your monitor. One click or hotkey, and the decoded text is on your clipboard.
what it does
If you can see it, you can scan it.
QR codes keep showing up where a phone camera is useless — a video call, a slide deck, a login page on your own screen. This app reads them in place.
- Whole screen or a region. Scan the entire display, or drag a box around just the code you care about.
- Menu bar or global hotkey. Trigger a scan from the status item, or assign shortcuts and never leave the keyboard.
- Four symbologies. QR, Aztec, DataMatrix, and PDF417 — including angled, small, and low-contrast codes.
- Straight to the clipboard. The decoded text is copied and confirmed with a brief floating HUD.
- Links can open themselves. Optionally auto-open
http(s)URLs; other schemes from a scanned code never launch. - A tiny agent. Sandboxed, no Dock icon, no account, no analytics — it waits in the menu bar and does one job.
how it works
From click to clipboard in about a second.
Choose a scan
Pick "Scan Screen for QR Code" or "Scan Selected Area" from the menu bar icon — or press your hotkey.
Vision finds the code
The app captures the screen in-process with ScreenCaptureKit and decodes it with Apple's Vision framework. Nothing is written to disk.
The result is copied
The decoded text lands on your clipboard, a HUD confirms it, and if it's a link it can open in your browser automatically.
privacy
Screen recording is the most sensitive permission on your Mac. This app treats it that way.
everything happens on your Mac
- Capture runs in-process with ScreenCaptureKit.
- Detection is on-device, using Apple's Vision framework.
- The app is sandboxed with the minimum entitlements.
- The full source is on GitHub for anyone to inspect.
it never…
- Uploads anything, anywhere.
- Writes a screenshot to disk — captures live and die in memory.
- Runs analytics, tracking, or crash reporting.
- Asks for an account.
The App Store privacy label reads "Data Not Collected" — because there is nothing to collect it with.
support
Stuck? Two fixes cover almost everything.
Nothing happens when I scan
macOS requires Screen Recording permission. The system prompts on the first scan — grant it in System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Screen Recording, enable Scan Screen QR Code, then scan again.
"No QR code found"
Make sure the code is fully visible and not covered by another window. For small or tightly cropped codes, use Scan Selected Area and drag a box around just the code.
Requirements
macOS 14 (Sonoma) or later. Selected-area scans currently target the main display.
Bugs and feature requests
Please open a GitHub issue — or check existing issues first. I read all of them.
get it
Free on the Mac App Store.
No purchase, no subscription, no upsell — it's a utility.