What is a favicon?
A favicon is the small icon displayed in browser tabs, bookmarks, and device home screens. A complete favicon set includes multiple sizes and formats.
Definition
A favicon (favorite icon) is a small icon associated with a website, displayed in browser tabs, bookmarks, history, and when added to device home screens. Modern favicons require multiple sizes and formats for cross-platform compatibility.
How it works
The classic 16x16 ICO file is dead. Modern favicon requirements: 32x32 PNG for browser tabs, 180x180 for Apple Touch Icon, 192x192 and 512x512 for Android/PWA manifests, plus an SVG for scalability. That's 5+ files from one logo. Most developers skip this, leaving the default Next.js or Vite icon — which screams 'I didn't finish the project.'
Why it matters
Favicons are the smallest brand touchpoint with the highest visibility. Users see them in every tab, every bookmark, every PWA install. A missing or default favicon is the #1 tell that a project isn't production-ready. It takes 5 minutes to fix and makes a disproportionate difference in perceived quality.
Example
A complete favicon set: `favicon.ico` (32x32), `favicon-16x16.png`, `favicon-32x32.png`, `apple-touch-icon.png` (180x180), `android-chrome-192x192.png`, `android-chrome-512x512.png`, `site.webmanifest`, and `favicon.svg` for modern browsers.
Related terms
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