What app icon sizes do you actually need in 2026?
Every app store, launcher, and browser wants its icon at a slightly different size. Doing this by hand is slow, and one missed export is enough to fail an App Store review. Below is the short version of what each platform needs — the exact list this tool generates.
iOS (iPhone and iPad)
Apple's App Store needs one big 1024×1024 marketing icon that must have no transparency. Inside your app, you need smaller sizes for the home screen, Settings, and Spotlight search:
| Size | Where it's used |
|---|---|
| 180×180 | iPhone home screen (60pt @3x) |
| 120×120 | iPhone home screen (60pt @2x) |
| 152×152 | iPad home screen (76pt @2x) |
| 167×167 | iPad Pro (83.5pt @2x) |
| 80×80, 120×120 | Spotlight search results |
| 58×58, 87×87 | Settings app |
| 1024×1024 | App Store listing (no alpha) |
Android
Android uses "density buckets." Each bucket is a size tuned for a class of screen resolution:
| Bucket | Size | Typical screens |
|---|---|---|
| mdpi | 48×48 | Old low-density phones |
| hdpi | 72×72 | Mid-range phones |
| xhdpi | 96×96 | Most modern phones |
| xxhdpi | 144×144 | High-density phones |
| xxxhdpi | 192×192 | Flagship phones |
| Google Play | 512×512 | Play Store listing (no alpha) |
A note on adaptive icons: modern Android launchers mask the icon into different shapes (circle, squircle, teardrop). Adaptive icons need two separate layers — foreground and background — and they must be built in Android Studio's Image Asset wizard. This tool gives you a safe-zone PNG you can drop into that wizard.
Web and Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)
If your web app can be "installed" on a phone's home screen, you point to your icons from a manifest.json file. The minimum set is 192×192 and 512×512. Add a 512 version with "purpose": "maskable" if you want a nice adaptive icon on Android. This tool generates both sizes and a starter manifest.json when you select the Favicon + PWA preset.
Favicons
Modern browsers handle PNG favicons perfectly. The sizes worth generating are 16×16 (browser tab), 32×32 (retina tab), 48×48 (Windows taskbar), 180×180 (Apple touch icon), and 192×192 / 512×512 (PWA). If you also want a multi-resolution .ico for very old browsers, run the 32×32 PNG through our free PNG to ICO converter afterwards.
macOS
Mac apps use a .iconset folder containing 10 files — sizes from 16px up to 1024px, each in 1x and 2x versions. This tool names them exactly as Xcode expects (icon_16x16.png, [email protected], and so on) so you can drag the folder straight into your project.
Microsoft (Windows 10/11)
Windows tiles come in four shapes: 70×70 (small), 150×150 (medium), 310×150 (wide), and 310×310 (large). The wide tile is not square — a common mistake is exporting a square crop for it, which stretches the artwork.
Common icon mistakes (and how to avoid them)
- Upscaling a small image. If your source is only 256×256, stretching it to 1024×1024 looks blurry. Start with a 1024×1024 master.
- Non-square source images. Use Fill mode to crop from the centre, or Fit mode to pad with transparency. Choose based on your design — a logo with text needs Fit, a photo needs Fill.
- Text in icons. At 16px or 32px, text disappears completely. Use one strong shape and a clear colour.
- Wrong transparency. App Store icons must be fully opaque. Android launcher icons and favicons look best with transparency. Use different exports for different targets.
- Edge-to-edge artwork. Many platforms round or mask the icon, so keep at least 10% padding around your design.
- Not checking on a real device. A 180px icon that looks fine on a desktop monitor can look soft on a Retina phone. Preview on the actual hardware before shipping.
Tips for better icons
- Start with a 1024×1024 PNG. It's the largest size any platform needs, and starting big avoids blurry upscales.
- Keep the design simple and bold. Fine details vanish below 48px.
- Test at 48px and 192px before finalising. If it doesn't read at 48px, simplify it.
- Use a consistent colour palette across light and dark mode if your app supports both.
- If you need a favicon as well, generate the 32×32 with transparency — it looks best in both light and dark browser tabs.