- Icon libraries side by side
- Eleven icon libraries to browse
- Which icon library suits your project
- Accessible icons need the right text
- Outline icons or filled icons
- Questions to answer before you commit to an icon library
- Signs your icons need replacing
- My plain advice on choosing an icon library
- Frequently asked questions
The best icon libraries give you a consistent set of icons you can drop into websites, apps and presentations without drawing each one yourself. Some are free and open source, some combine free and pro icons, and one lets you pull from many sets through a single framework. Eleven options follow in no particular order.
Mismatched icons make a website feel less polished than it deserves. One icon has thick lines, the next is filled in, a third has rounded corners, and visitors notice the clash even if they couldn't tell you why. Picking one library and sticking to it fixes that in an afternoon.
The eleven icon libraries below are listed alphabetically and in no particular order, and every description comes from the library's own website, read this week. If you're shaping a whole interface, my piece on what a UI designer brings to a project is worth a look too.
Icon libraries side by side
I checked the free plan column on each tool's own website, as of Oct 2026. Yes means the site names a free plan, a free version, a free allowance or an open source version. Trial only means a time-limited trial. Not stated means the pages I read named neither, even where there's a button inviting you to start for free, so check the vendor's page before you sign up.
| Tool | Type | Good for | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bootstrap Icons | Open source icon library | Sites already built with Bootstrap | Yes |
| Feather | Simple open source icon set | Minimal line icons for quick builds | Yes |
| Font Awesome | Icon library with pro kits | Hosted icon kits for websites | Not stated |
| Heroicons | Hand-crafted SVG icons | Tailwind CSS projects | Not stated |
| Hugeicons | Large free and pro icon library | Polished UI icons in many styles | Yes |
| Iconify | One framework for many icon sets | Mixing several icon sets in one project | Yes |
| Iconoir | Free, open source icon library | Clean line icons across many frameworks | Yes |
| Ionicons | Open source icon pack from Ionic | Web, iOS, Android and desktop apps | Yes |
| Lucide | Community-made icon library | Lightweight icons you import one by one | Not stated |
| Material Symbols | Google's icon set on Google Fonts | Apps that follow Material Design | Yes |
| Remix Icon | Open source system icons | Neutral system icons for commercial work | Yes |
Eleven icon libraries to browse
Bootstrap Icons
Best for: Developers who want a free, open source icon set they can use as SVGs, an SVG sprite or web fonts, with or without the Bootstrap framework.
Feather
Best for: Designers and developers who want a small, simple set of open source line icons with adjustable size, stroke width and colour.
Font Awesome
Best for: Website teams who want a widely used icon library with pro icons, kits and an icon wizard hosted on its own content delivery network.
Heroicons
Best for: Developers building with Tailwind CSS who want hand-crafted SVG icons from the same makers, with React and Vue libraries ready to install.
Hugeicons
Best for: Product designers who want a very large library of free and pro icons in several styles to make an interface feel polished.
Iconify
Best for: Front-end teams who'd rather use one framework to reach every popular open source icon set than install a separate package for each.
Iconoir
Best for: Product teams who want free, open source line icons available as SVG, font, React, React Native, Flutter, Figma and Framer files.
Ionicons
Best for: App developers who want premium-designed open source icons for web, iOS, Android and desktop apps, with SVG support built in.
Lucide
Best for: App builders who want lightweight, consistent icons made by an active community, importing only the icons they use to keep bundles small.
Material Symbols
Best for: Teams who want Google's own open source icon set, served alongside Google Fonts, for apps and websites in a familiar style.
Remix Icon
Best for: Designers and developers who want neutral, open source system symbols that are free for both personal and commercial use.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
Which icon library suits your project
- A site built with Bootstrap: Bootstrap Icons.
- A Tailwind CSS project: Heroicons.
- Apps that follow Material Design: Material Symbols.
- Several icon sets through one framework: Iconify.
- Clean line icons in many formats: Iconoir or Lucide.
- Mobile and desktop apps: Ionicons.
- A very large choice of styles: Hugeicons or Font Awesome.
- Neutral icons for commercial work: Remix Icon.
- A small, simple set for quick builds: Feather.
Accessible icons need the right text
The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative explains that decorative images don't add information to a page, so they should carry a null alt text, written as alt with empty quotes, so screen readers can skip them. Text on a decorative image just adds audible clutter for someone using a screen reader.
Icons that do a job are different. A magnifying glass that opens search, or a bin that deletes something, needs a text label so everyone knows what it does. Check how your chosen library handles labels before you build it into every page.
Outline icons or filled icons
Outline icons feel light and modern, and they suit interfaces with plenty of white space. Filled icons are bolder and easier to read at small sizes, which helps on mobile screens.
Many libraries offer both styles, so a common approach is outline for everyday icons and filled for the selected state in a menu. Whatever you choose, use one stroke width across the whole site.
Questions to answer before you commit to an icon library
- Does it include the icons my site needs today?
- Is the licence clear for commercial use?
- Does it offer a package for the framework I build with?
- Can I change size, stroke and colour easily?
- Is there a design file for my design tool?
- How often are new icons added?
Signs your icons need replacing
- Line weights don't match. Switch to one library.
- Icons blur on high-resolution screens. Use SVGs.
- Buttons have no labels. Add accessible text.
- You can't find an icon you need. Choose a bigger set.
Do you make an icon library or icon set? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
My plain advice on choosing an icon library
Pick one library and use it everywhere, including your slides and social graphics, so your brand looks consistent wherever people meet it. Mixing two sets almost always shows, even when both are well made.
Before you commit, search the library for the ten icons you'll use most and check it has every one. A missing icon now means a mismatched one later. If you're planning a redesign, my notes on how web design has changed over the years give useful context.
Frequently asked questions
What is an icon library?
An icon library is a ready-made set of icons drawn in one consistent style, usually supplied as SVG files, icon fonts or code packages.
Are icon libraries free?
Many are free and open source, and some combine free and pro icons. The free plan column above shows what each library's site says.
Can I use free icons on a commercial website?
Often yes, but it depends on the licence. Read each library's licence page before you use its icons for a business.
Should I use SVG icons or an icon font?
SVG icons are generally easier to style and label, while icon fonts can be simpler to drop into older sites.
Do icons need alt text?
Decorative icons should have empty alt text so screen readers skip them. Icons that act as buttons need a clear text label.
Can I mix icons from different libraries?
You can, but styles rarely match. Sticking to one library keeps your design consistent.
