Favicon generator

The ICO format exists for Internet Explorer, and nothing else has needed it for years. Every current browser takes a PNG, and most prefer an SVG because it stays sharp at any size and can respond to dark mode. Generating a multi-image ICO to satisfy a browser nobody runs is work spent on nothing, so this produces PNGs and gives you the markup that matters.

The sizes are not arbitrary. 16 and 32 are the browser tab and bookmark bar — 16 is the one that actually appears in a tab, and anything with detail turns to mush at that size. 180 is the Apple touch icon for a home-screen shortcut. 192 and 512 are what a web app manifest wants for Android install prompts and splash screens.

Design for 16 pixels first and everything else follows. A logo that works on a letterhead almost never works in a tab, because at 16 pixels you have room for one shape or one letter and nothing else. That is why so many favicons are a single initial — not laziness, but the only thing that reads at that size.

Images are cropped to fill rather than fitted inside, because a favicon with letterbox bars looks like a rendering fault rather than a design. Give it something square if you can.

One thing worth knowing about caching: browsers cache favicons aggressively and often ignore a normal refresh. If a new icon does not appear, the file is usually fine and the cache is stale.