Exam certificates with QR verification: issue, print and let anyone check them
A printed certificate is easy to copy and easy to edit. Employers and admissions officers know it, so they call or email the organisation that issued it, and someone has to look the candidate up by hand. A QR code on the certificate removes that step: whoever holds the paper scans it and sees, on a page hosted by ExamQR that the candidate cannot edit, whether the certificate is genuine and still valid.
This article explains how certificates work in ExamQR, from the template to the verification page, and what to decide before you issue the first one.
1. Choose or design a template
Start from one of the ready-made designs (classic, modern, elegant, corporate, academic, or a portrait layout for training courses) or from a blank page. Add your logo, a signature and a seal, move any field with the mouse, and change fonts, colours and sizes. All the fonts are free for commercial use and support accents in every language the site offers. If you already have pre-printed certificate paper, upload a scan of it as the background, place the fields on it, and print without the background later.
2. Issue certificates to the candidates who passed
Turn certificates on in the subject's settings, then press Issue certificates when the exam has ended. ExamQR only issues to candidates who:
- finished the exam and reached the pass mark;
- have no essay answers still waiting to be marked;
- have no remark request still open.
Before you press the button, the page shows how many candidates qualify and why the others do not. Pressing it again later only issues to candidates who do not have a certificate yet. What a certificate prints (name, title, score, dates) is copied when it is issued, so editing a candidate's profile afterwards does not change certificates already given out.
3. Print, download or email
Print a whole subject or only the candidates you select, with the background or onto pre-printed paper, one or two certificates per sheet. Download a single PDF or a zip with one PDF per candidate. On paid plans each candidate also receives an email with the PDF attached, a link to the verification page and a button that adds the certificate to their LinkedIn profile. Candidates can download their certificate again from their result page.
4. Anyone can check it
The QR code opens app.examqr.com/verify/ followed by the certificate's code. The page says whether the certificate is valid, expired or revoked, and shows the holder's name, the certificate title, the issuing organisation, the dates and the register number. The score appears only if the certificate itself prints it. The page is reachable only with the random code, is limited in how often it can be queried, and asks search engines not to index it, so nobody can browse your candidates.
Word mail merge or verifiable certificates?
| Mail merge in Word | ExamQR certificates | |
|---|---|---|
| Who gets one | Whoever is in the spreadsheet you exported | Only candidates who passed, with marking and remarks finished |
| Checking a certificate | A phone call or an email to you | Scan the QR code, any time |
| A remark lowers a score below the pass mark | The paper stays in circulation | The certificate is revoked and its page says so |
| A lost copy | Find the file, merge again | Print or download it again in two clicks |
| Register numbers | Typed by hand | Prefix, start and digits; numbered in name order; never twice the same |
Register numbers and corrections
Many organisations keep a register. Number the certificates with your own prefix and start number, for example CERT-2026-0251, or type a number in by hand. ExamQR refuses a number already used in your account. If a name was misspelled, correct the candidate and press Reissue: the old certificate is revoked, the new one gets a new code and keeps the register number.
Which plan do you need?
- Free: design, issue and print certificates. They carry a small "Made with ExamQR" line and no QR code.
- Personal: certificates with a QR code, a verification page, emails and the LinkedIn button, with a small "Issued with ExamQR" line.
- Organization and Enterprise: the same, carrying only your brand.
A certificate issued with a QR code stays verifiable even if your plan later changes, so the people who rely on it are never misled. See pricing for the plans.
Questions
Is an ExamQR certificate a degree? No. It is a certificate of achievement issued by your organisation. ExamQR stores it and shows its verification page on your behalf.
Can a candidate fake one? They can edit a PDF or a printed copy, but not the verification page. Whoever checks should rely on the page, not on the paper.
What if a score changes after a remark? If it drops below the pass mark the certificate is revoked automatically; if it changes but still passes, the score on record is updated.
Can I use my own design? Yes. Start from a ready-made design or a blank page, or put the fields on a scan of your own pre-printed paper.
Certificates are part of online exams in ExamQR. You can try the whole flow on the Free plan.