What is a favicon?
A favicon is a small, square icon that identifies a website or web page. The browser fetches it once and then reuses it everywhere the site is referenced — the tab strip, the address bar, the bookmarks menu, the history list, and the home screen if the site is saved or installed on a phone.
It is one of the oldest pieces of web branding still in daily use, and it is the only piece of your visual identity that sits permanently inside the browser chrome rather than inside the page.
Where does the word "favicon" come from?
Favicon is a contraction of favorites icon. Microsoft introduced the feature with Internet Explorer 5 in 1999: the browser looked for a file called favicon.ico in the root of your site and used it as the icon next to the page in the Favorites menu.
The Favorites menu was later renamed Bookmarks, and browsers stopped requiring the exact filename, but the name and the convention survived. To this day the safest place to put your icon is still /favicon.ico in the site root.
Where favicons appear
- Browser tabs — the primary use. The icon is how users recognise your tab among twenty others.
- Address bar and search bar — shown as a trust cue next to the URL.
- Bookmarks and favourites — a bookmark without an icon looks broken.
- Browsing history — helps users find a page they visited earlier.
- Mobile home screen — via
apple-touch-iconon iOS and the web app manifest on Android. - Installable web apps (PWA) — the icon is part of the install prompt and the splash screen.
- Search results — Google and other engines may show your icon beside your result on mobile.
Because it appears in so many places, a favicon is usually the most-seen image on a website in terms of raw impressions per visitor.
Favicon file formats compared
| Format | Transparency | Best for | Browser support |
|---|---|---|---|
| ICO | Yes (1-bit or 32-bit) | Multi-resolution tab icon, Windows shortcuts | Universal, including legacy |
| PNG | Yes (8-bit alpha) | Modern tabs, Apple Touch Icon, PWA icons | All current browsers |
| SVG | Yes | Safari pinned tab, crisp at any scale | Safari (pinned tabs), modern Chrome/Firefox |
| WebP | Yes | Small file size on modern browsers | Chrome, Edge, Firefox — not Safari everywhere |
| AVIF | Yes | Smallest file size, newest format | Chrome, Firefox, Safari 16+ |
| JPG | No | Not recommended for icons | Renders, but edges show white boxes |
| GIF | Yes (1-bit) | Animated favicons (rarely a good idea) | All browsers, but animation is distracting |
Why favicons matter
Instant brand recognition
Users keep dozens of tabs open. A distinctive icon lets them find yours without reading a single tab title, which is worth more than most people assume — it is the difference between a tab staying open and being closed.
Perceived legitimacy
A site with no favicon shows a generic globe icon. That reads as unfinished, and on a checkout or signup page it reads as suspicious. The icon is a small trust signal, but it is one users notice when it is missing.
Better click-through in search
Search engines may display your icon beside your listing on mobile. A recognisable icon makes a result easier to spot among competitors, particularly for branded queries.
Required for installable web apps
If you want your site to be installable on a phone, a proper icon set is mandatory — Android and iOS will not offer the install prompt without one.
How do you add a favicon?
Three steps: generate the icon files, upload them to the root of your site, and declare them in the <head> of every page. The full walkthrough, including the exact HTML and how to clear your cache when the old icon refuses to go away, is in how to add a favicon to a website.
If you are still deciding what resolution you need, start with favicon sizes explained.
Frequently asked questions
What is a favicon in one sentence?
A favicon is the small square icon that identifies a website — it appears in browser tabs, bookmarks, history lists, mobile home screens and often next to your site in search results.
What does the word favicon mean?
It is a contraction of "favorites icon", coined when Internet Explorer 5 introduced the feature in 1999. The file was literally the icon for your Favorites menu, and the name stuck even though that menu is now called Bookmarks.
Where do favicons show up?
Browser tabs, the address bar, bookmarks, browsing history, mobile home screens when a site is saved or installed, Android and iOS app switchers, and increasingly in mobile search results and browser tab search.
What file format should a favicon use?
ICO for the legacy multi-resolution file, PNG for modern browsers and mobile icons, and SVG for a crisp scalable monochrome Safari pinned tab. JPG is a poor choice because it has no transparency.
Do favicons affect SEO?
Not directly — a favicon is not a ranking factor. It does affect click-through rate: a recognisable icon in a search result or tab makes a site look legitimate and helps returning visitors spot it instantly, and browsers and search engines may display it beside your result.
Can I use a favicon that is not a square?
Technically yes, but do not. Browsers and operating systems crop or pad non-square icons, so an off-ratio image ends up stretched or letterboxed. Always start from a square source.
Convert your image now
Everything on FaviconPal runs inside your browser — your files are never uploaded to a server. Pick the converter that matches your source file: