How Tos

How to scan Animal Crossing QR codes and share designs

Get all the designs you need in New Horizons through Animal Crossing QR codes

How to scan Animal Crossing QR codes and share designs
July 4, 2022: We have updated the Animal Crossing QR codes and reworked the article

Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It's a good game, and we can't get enough of it. In fact, I myself once again spent multiple hours this morning playing Animal Crossing before breakfast, and once again, I am hungry, yet have paid off a considerable amount of debt. Swings and roundabouts.

How to scan Animal Crossing QR codes?

One lovely feature you can use in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the ability to scan QR codes of designs created in New Leaf or Happy Home Designer, and then import them into your main game. You can only do one at a time, sadly, and not all designs look clean with New Horizons' new image smoothing put onto pixelated designs, but this is a feature I love since I can steal designs from more talented people online.

Custom designs portal

If you want to share designs made in New Horizons, however, it's a bit more complicated, and you will need a Nintendo Online Subscription in order to share them. Frustrating, I know, but luckily the QR codes are free at least.

To find out how to scan QR codes and share your new designs, just take a look at our guide below… But if you want to create your own QR codes, or even convert images into ACNH designs, check out our guide.

Scanning Animal Crossing QR codes from New Leaf

In order to scan QR codes in Animal Crossing from New Leaf or Happy Home Designer, you will need to use the Nintendo Switch Online app on an Android or iOS device - you know, that app for voice chat and Splatoon 2 items - and you will need to connect it to your New Horizons save file. Follow these instructions to link up NookLink…

  • Download the Nintendo Switch Online app, and ensure you are logged in with the same account you use for your New Horizons save file.
  • On Animal Crossing: New Horizons, press - on the main menu screen, this will take you to the game's settings. Here you can activate NookLink.
  • Restart the app on your mobile device, and NookLink should now be active.

Now NookLink is active, and you can start scanning the Animal Crossing QR codes. Unfortunately, you can only scan one at a time into the game, and the face cut-out boards that were available in New Leaf are now no longer compatible with the game, so don't try those.

animal crossing QR codes
  • In the Nintendo Switch Online App, tap on Animal Crossing: New Horizons and then Designs.
  • Press the Scan a QR Code button.
  • Allow any permissions requested, and then simply point your camera at a QR code. You can easily find one on Google if you wish to test.
  • Once you have an Animal Crossing QR code scanned and saved, it's time to open up New Horizons.
  • Go to your designs app, and then press +. This should download any saved designs.
  • Pick a slot to save your new design in, and it should be complete!

Sharing designs in New Horizons

Finally, you can share designs made in New Horizons, but not with QR codes anymore, meaning that previous advice is meaningless when it comes to this. First, you will need to construct the Able Sister's Tailor shop, and once that is done, along with a Nintendo Switch Online Subscription, you will be able to share your designs…

how to scan QR codes
  • Go to the Able Sister's shop, and at the back of the room should be an online kiosk.
  • When you first use this kiosk, you will be assigned a creator code. Share this code and people will be able to find all of your designs at any point.
  • You will be able to upload your designs now. It's as simple as navigating the menus, and each design will also be assigned a code that you can share online.
  • And finally, of course, you can type in design or creator codes if you want to seek out certain designs that people have created. That's all you need to know!

Unfortunately, you will need an online subscription to use this kiosk, and frankly, it's not as easy as scanning a QR code in Animal Crossing, but we're glad the creator codes allow you to showcase all of your best designs.

Dave Aubrey
Dave Aubrey
Dave is the Guides Editor at Pocket Gamer. Specialises in Nintendo, complains about them for a living.