Download Sample ICO Files (Windows Icon / Favicons)

Download free sample ICO files. The ICO format is unique because it acts as a container for multiple images of different sizes and color depths. It is the standard for Website Favicons and Windows executable icons. STANDARD Favicons & App Icons File Name Dimensions / Specs Size Action favicon_16x16.ico Classic Browser Icon 16×16 pixels. The…

Download free sample ICO files. The ICO format is unique because it acts as a container for multiple images of different sizes and color depths. It is the standard for Website Favicons and Windows executable icons.

STANDARD
Favicons & App Icons

File Name Dimensions / Specs Size Action
favicon_16x16.ico
Classic Browser Icon		 16×16 pixels. The absolute minimum for a website tab icon. 1 KB Download
icon_32x32.ico
Retina Ready		 32×32 pixels. Used for taskbars and high-DPI screens. 4 KB Download
desktop_app.ico
Large Icon		 256×256 pixels. Used for Windows desktop shortcuts. 150 KB Download

QA / DEBUG
Multi-Resolution & Malformed Files

Test Case Description Size Action
Multi-Resolution Pack Best for testing. Contains 16×16, 32×32, 48×48, AND 64×64 inside ONE file. Windows automatically picks the best size. 50 KB Download
Fake ICO (Renamed PNG) A PNG file simply renamed to .ico. Modern browsers handle it, but legacy software (and strict parsers) will throw an error. 5 KB Download
4-bit Legacy Icon Only 16 colors. Very old Windows 95 format. Use to test backward compatibility. 1 KB Download

Technical Specs: What is an ICO?

ICO is not a simple image format; it is a directory structure.

  • The Container: An ICO file starts with a header telling the computer “I contain 3 images”. It then lists the dimensions and offsets for each image.
  • The Images: Inside the container, the images are usually stored as raw BMP data (uncompressed) or, for larger sizes (256px), as PNG data to save space.
  • Why use it? It allows a single file to look crisp on a tiny browser tab (16px) AND on a large desktop shortcut (48px+).

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I still need ICO files for my website?
Yes and No. Modern browsers support PNG favicons (`<link rel=”icon” type=”image/png” …>`). However, strictly speaking, `.ico` is still the only format that works in 100% of browsers (including very old IE versions) and is required if you want the icon to show up correctly in Windows bookmarks.
How do I create a Multi-Resolution ICO?
You cannot just “save as” in Paint. You need specialized software (like GIMP or online converters) that allows you to import multiple layers (16px, 32px, 48px) and pack them into one file.

How to edit ICO files?

Creating a true multi-layer ICO requires specific tools.

  • GIMP: Free and Open Source. Create each size as a separate “Layer”, then Export as .ico. GIMP will ask which layers to include.
  • ImageMagick: The developer way. Run `magick convert image1.png image2.png output.ico` to pack them instantly.
  • Greenfish Icon Editor: A dedicated, lightweight tool specifically designed for pixel-perfect icon editing.

Developer’s Corner: Extracting Icons

Need to get the images OUT of an ICO file? Use Python and the Pillow library to extract each size.

# Python: Extract images from ICO
from PIL import Imageicon = Image.open(“app.ico”)
# Iterate through all sizes in the container
for size in icon.ico.sizes():
sub_img = icon.ico.getimage(size)
sub_img.save(f“extracted_{size[0]}x{size[1]}.png”)

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