Favicon Formats in 2025: What You Actually Need to Ship

The favicon situation is a mess. It has been a mess for over a decade. You need an ICO file for legacy browsers, a 32x32 PNG for modern browsers, a 180x180 PNG for Apple devices, a 192x192 and 512x512 PNG for Android, and an SVG for browsers that support it. Or do you? The requirements have simplified, and most guidance on the internet is outdated. What you actually need in 2025 The minimal set that covers essentially all browsers and devices: favicon.ico (32x32): For legacy browsers and the browser tab. Place in the root of your site. apple-touch-icon.png (180x180): For iOS home screen bookmarks. favicon.svg: For modern browsers that support SVG favicons. Scales perfectly to any size. That is it. Three files. Add these HTML tags: <link rel="icon" href="/favicon.ico" sizes="32x32"> <link rel="icon" href="/favicon.svg" type="image/svg+xml"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/apple-touch-icon.png"> The SVG favicon is powerful because it can respond to dark mode: <sv