Payload

Payload is the actual data to transmit, excluding control information. QR code payload is user data (URLs, text, contacts) minus error correction. Usable payload share varies by error correction level: of the 3,706 total codewords at Version 40, 2,956 (~80%) hold data at Level L but only 1,276 (~34%) at Level H. The ~7% and ~30% in the level names are the share of damage that can be recovered, not the payload share. Maximum payload at Version 40 Level L: 7,089 numeric, 4,296 alphanumeric, or 2,953 bytes.