Windows Icon Size Guide (Win 7 ICO Format)

A Quick & Easy guide to Microsoft Windows Icon Size

There is sometimes a little confusion over the different sizes required to create a Windows 7 Application Icon file. This is in some way brought about by the flexibility of the ICO format and its ability to ‘contain’ many image sizes and colour depths but is also not helped by Microsoft’s own quite poor documentation on Windows Icon Size, see here.

Standard Windows Icon Sizes shown in Axialis Icon Workshop

If you want to create an Windows 7 Compliant ‘Application Icon’, to be used as a short-cut, a file type, or embedded in an executable file, it must contain the minimum following icon sizes:

Standard Windows Icon Size for ICO format

• 256 x 256 pixels – 32bit (24bit colour, 8bit transparency)
• 48 x 48 pixels – 32bit (24bit colour, 8bit transparency)
• 32 x 32 pixels – 32bit (24bit colour, 8bit transparency)
• 16 x 16 pixels – 32bit (24bit colour, 8bit transparency)

To allow for backwards compatibility with Windows operating systems of software with a limited colour palette, you can also include the above icon sizes in 8bit (256 colours, 1bit colour transparency) and if you really wish to cover all eventualities in your icon design, 4bit (16 colours, 1bit transparency). This last colour depth is very rarely of use and as a rule I don’t tend to include it unless requested specifically by the client as it just uses up unnecessary space. In fact, more often than not, 32bit ICO files are fine for most projects but I recommend you test in the final application before making this decision.

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Additional Common Windows Icon Sizes

There are other additional Icon sizes supported by Windows Icons but they are rarely used. However, I will list them here for completion.

Extra Icon Sizes

• 128 x 128 pixels
• 96 x 96 pixels
• 180 x 180 pixels
• 72 x 72 pixels
• 64 x 64 pixels
• 24 x 24 pixels

The size most commonly used size on this list is ’24 x 24′ as it is a standard size for menus within Windows 7 and 3rd-party software. When creating ICO files specifically for menus, rather than app icons, 16 x 16, 24 x 24 & 32 x 32 are the three most common sizes used.

Testing your Windows 7 Icon

The easiest way to test the compatibility of your Windows 7 ICO files is in a standard ‘Window’.

Save your ICO files into a folder and then use the ‘View’ drop down to select the view or size of icon you wish to see.

Standard Windows Icon Sizes shown in Axialis Icon Workshop

Windows 7 automatically scales the icons as you move between the sizes you have created. You can test this by moving the slider up and down.

The actual sizes displayed at each of the headings are as follows:

• Extra Large Icons – 256 x 256 pixels
• Large Icons – 96 x 96 pixels (Automatically rendered by Windows from 256 version)
• Medium Icons – 48 x 48 pixels
• Small Icons – 16 x 16 pixels
• List – 16 x 16 pixels
• Details – 16 x 16 pixels
• Tiles – 48 x 48 pixels
• Content – 32 x 32 pixels

Windows Icon Size Oddities

ICO files can also be used as overlays within Windows 7, a prime example is the small curved arrow used as a short-cut symbol on ‘Shortcut’ icons. Windows overlays a transparent ICO file with a small offset graphic within the bottom left corner, on top of the standard Application ICO file. Annotations is another case applying to the bottom right hand side but I have never come across a request from a client to create icons of this description in the 15 or so years I have been an icon designer, so it is not something I would lose any sleep over.

I hope you found this overview useful.

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37 thoughts on “Windows Icon Size Guide (Win 7 ICO Format)”

And because Microsoft documentation on this is rather vague, like you so attentively noted, I found your post re this subject and had a read, low and behold something came alive.

I have some interest in the overlay portion for icons for an app, the problem is that some of these overlays are bound to the notification tray so end up creating icons with the overlay included because documentation is nonsense and trying to make it work is easier and faster including overlays.
I have of course had requests for this type of icon and its the customers job to implement the icons in the application which doesn’t always go as planned.

Clearest of many articles I’ve read. Thank you.

In the Windows Explorer details view how is it that WinZip, for example, gets the full 16×16 treatment but Notepad and my file types get shrunk to 8×8 inside some gratuitous frame? I want my full 16×16 allocation.

Thanks for the reply. I must admit I have not seen the behaviour you mention in Windows 7 or 8.

I wonder if you may have some 3rd party software that is affecting how your icons are displayed?

Can you provide a link to a screenshot?

Estou com duvida sobre o tamanho do ícone da área de notificação do Windows.

Obs: Fiz alguns teste e todos apresentaram que a imagem da barra de tarefas e da área de notificação são do mesmo tamanho: 32×32. Nos testes crie um ícone com varios tamanhos de imagem (16×16 … 48×48, e outros tamanhos nesse intervalo), cada tamanho coloquei uma cor na imagem diferente.

Sendo que na teoria as imagem da barra de tarefas e da área de notificação são de tamanhos diferentes.

Voce sabe me dizer o porque disso?

Desde já agradeço!

Translated from Portuguese:

I have doubts about the size of the icon in the notification area of Windows.
Note: I did some testing and all showed that the image of the taskbar notification area and are the same size: 32 × 32. In tests create an icon with several image sizes (16 × 16 … 48 × 48, and other sizes in this range), each size put a different color in the image.
Since in theory the image of the taskbar notification area and are of different sizes.
You can tell me why that is?
I thank you!

thanks Adam, very helpful article.

i’ve a question too:
i made an icon contains a 96×96 image, but windows shows a resized 256 (or 128) instead when i chose “large icons” view, have you ever experienced omething like this?

you can see the difference

I hope I understand your question correctly.

Windows only displays the 256 x 256 pixel version if you select the ‘extra large’ icon size. I never include a 96 x 96 pixel version as it is an optional size and as you mention Windows scales the 256 x 256 down as required. Including a 96 x 96 size just adds to the file size and unless you have a specific requirement for this size within some application, it shouldn’t be necessary.

I am sorry I missed your reply.

Could you please provide a screen capture to explain what you mean?

aha! thanks for the fat reply 🙂

Well here’s another one more oddity in the way Windows handles overlays. Overlay icons for 256×256 size must not be in the lower left corner of the icon, and must not be already smaller to perfectly ‘overlay’ the bigger sized icon. 256×256 overlay icons must fill up the complete available icon, and also must not be resized. Vista/7/8 do that for you for 256×256 icons. In other words Vista/7/8 take any 256×256 icon and resize it to 92×92, move it to the lower left corner and overlay it. For all other resolutions smaller than 256×256, Vista/7/8 work in the same way as XP, you have to prepare an overlay icon in the lower left corner.

Hi and thanks for the nice guide!

I have a question though. What is the name of the tool you use in the first screenshot?