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May 22, 2023Your website can stand out from others with little details that make all the difference. Something like a WordPress favicon.
A favicon is a site icon in case you are wondering. Remember all those little icons on your browser’s favorite menu? Those are favicons, small images that represent your website visually.
To be recognizable, your website should have a favicon. This small image will represent your WordPress site throughout the web with a powerful message. Favicons are used in a lot of ways: bookmarks, browser tabs, and browser tiles.
Adding a favicon to your WordPress site is something very simple and intuitive, and can be done from the customizer. This way of adding a favicon in WordPress is usually the recommended one. Even so, this article will teach you other ways you might find more useful.
What is exactly a WordPress favicon?
Favicons are an additional way to identify your website. They are used by browsers to make it easier for users to recognize your brand. When you have a favicon correctly installed on your website, it will be used in many different locations by the browsers.
The most common locations are address bars, bookmarks, and browser tabs.
While in WordPress you can identify favicons by “Site Icons”. It's the most correct definition since this icon will represent your website in many ways.
Why bother to add a favicon to your site?
The importance of the favicon is the image of your site. This little icon will reflect your message and site identity. And users also find it easier to navigate between tabs and get to the website they left there. We’ll get into that.
Make your uniqueness shine
A favicon is the perfect way to make your site stand out. It will be recognized in many web browsers, and help users to know which one is your site. In a sea of open tabs, you can be sure your site gets identified immediately. In this matter, for your B2B SaaS company, a well-designed favicon will help to stand out and become instantly recognizable among users in their crowded browser tabs.
Keep a professional look
Since a favicon is such a great help for users to identify your site, having an identifiable favicon is crucial. It defines the identity of your business and stands out from competition.
A more pleasant mobile adventure
This is one of the most important aspects nowadays: a great mobile experience. User’s will be able to add your website to their mobile screen directly, and that’s always a plus.
Why favicons are so important
The favicon is as much important as your company’s logo. It’s part of your branding. When your site doesn’t have one, it’s much easier for people to question its credibility. The reason for that is we are used to seeing them.
A website that has a favicon sends out an image message and makes it more pleasant for the user. When a person wants to find your site among others, spotting your site icon is enough, instead of reading all the text.
Give it a name and save it
Back in the old days, adding a favicon would require you to name all files “favicon.ico”. Then you would place them directly on your root directory. Well, not anymore.
The advances to WordPress now allow you to name your file however you wish, save it in different formats, and save it anywhere you want on your website.
A cool tip: If you usually work with WordPress Customizer to create your site icon, you will have multiple images that can be stored on the media folder.
And how do you build your favicon?
Don’t forget your branding. Your logo should be the perfect site icon. Its size should be at least 512 pixels, all sides equal. Since it represents a square, WordPress will also let you crop a larger image, even if it’s a rectangle.
File format for your favicon
In the beginning, favicon files would always be in the ICO format. The biggest advantage of this format is its support, and the capacity to store many versions of the image.
With the advancements in technology, all the modern file formats such as JPG, GIF, PNG, and SVG are now supported by today’s browsers. The most elected format is PNG: great support, easy to develop, and great for transparency.
Choose your software to create a favicon
You have many options to create your first site icon. Software like Photoshop and GIMP (free!) are great image editors if you want to create a favicon. There’s also an online service to create favicons: The Favicon Generator or Iconizer for example. But there are other favicon generators as well.
To keep your job as simple as possible, you can use the last one to upload an already existing site logo in another format. After uploading, the site will then offer favicons in all sizes and formats. You just have to choose your favorite and add it to your website. And you're done. You just managed to create a favicon.
Size matters
To always display your favicon properly, your WordPress site will need a set of image sizes ready to use and adapt to any case. Luckily, WordPress automatically generates the 4 sizes that are most common. Whenever you add a favicon to your WordPress customizer, you won’t have to stress about it.
Never forget that the image you are uploading has to be at least 512 x 512. WordPress will then create all the other 4 formats from the original one. These are their features:
- Favicon size 32x32px
- App icon for iOS size 180x180px
- Android and Chrome app icon size 192x192px
- Medium size tile for Windows 270x270px
Action: Adding your favicon in WordPress
You have a lot of options for adding a favicon in WordPress. Here’s a brief explanation of each one of them:
Make the customizer your best friend
Available since WordPress 4.3, the customizer is the most helpful tool to add a favicon. If you have it activated in your theme you just have to go to Appearance > Customize in the backend. Once you get there, click on Site Identity.
This is the section that allows you change your site title, its description, and everything else that has to do with your site’s identity. That includes the favicon. Click on the Select File button and upload the chosen site icon file to change your favicon.
Don’t worry if the size is too big: WordPress lets you crop the image to the correct size. If the size is already perfect, just save it. Now you’ll be able to see your favicon alive. Go ahead, save it and publish it!
Favicons for older WordPress (4.2 or below) via Code
You can upload your favicon file to your site’s root directory through FTP. Once you do that, you’ll be able to paste the code directly into your header.php file.
<link rel="icon" href="https://www.muffingroup.com/favicon.png" type="image/x-icon" /> <link rel="shortcut icon" href="https://www.muffingroup.com/favicon.png" type="image/x-icon" />
You just have to replace muffingroup.com with the URL to your site and you should be ready. In case you don’t find your header.pho file, or if your theme doesn’t have one, try using this plugin we have for you. First install and turn on the plugin “Insert Headers and Footers”. After you activate it, you should go to Settings > Insert Headers and Footers, so you can paste the code you found before in the header section. Save it and it’s done!
Discover your theme’s options
If you don’t find a way to change your favicon image through the Customizer, maybe it’s hidden in your theme’s settings. Each theme has a big set of options, allowing you to customize beyond the standard. In order to know if your theme permits you to add your WordPress favicon or not is to check its options.
Adding a site icon using a plugin
- Very Simple Favicon Manager
- Favicon by RealFaviconGenerator
- All In One Favicon
- Heroic Favicon Generator
These plugins support ICO, PNG, GIF files, and Apple Touch Icons. You will aso have the possibility to set different paths for site icons on the frontend and backend.
To do this, you just need to paste the existing favicon paths in the WordPress media library. Or you can use the buttons and upload your files, and then the plugin automatically defines their paths. After everything is set, be sure you save everything!
Although it’s just a tiny image, a site icon is actually part of your site identity and makes it stand out. It’s the kind of little detail that makes your website more professional. If you use a favicon that stands out, you will be recognized among others.
With this article about adding a favicon to WordPress you have also learned why favicons are good for your website. Now you know how to create them with four different ways to add them to your WordPress website
We can thank the most recent improvements of the WordPress platform that make this process so much easier. If you don't have a site icon feature, you can still use a plugin or you can add create your favicon and add it manually.
FAQs about the WordPress favicon
1. What is a favicon in WordPress?
The little picture or icon that appears in the browser tab next to the name of the website is called a favicon. It is a component of branding that makes it simple for users to recognize and remember your website. In WordPress, the favicon typically appears in bookmarks and the browser tab.
2. How do I add a favicon to my WordPress site?
You can manually upload the picture to your site's root directory or use a plugin to add a favicon to your WordPress website. You may set the favicon as your site's favicon in the WordPress admin panel under Appearance > Customize > Site Identity after it has been uploaded.
3. What size should a WordPress favicon be?
WordPress favicons should be 32x32 pixels or 16x16 pixels in size. To ensure compatibility, it's essential to include numerous sizes of your favicon as some browsers might demand them.
4. What file type should I use for my WordPress favicon?
The most frequently accepted format is.ico, which is the suggested file type for a WordPress favicon. You can also use the.gif or.png formats, although not all browsers might support these.
5. Can I use a custom image as my WordPress favicon?
A custom image can be used as your WordPress favicon, yes. For the best compatibility, it's crucial to make sure the image has the proper size and file type.
6. How do I change my WordPress favicon?
Simply upload the new favicon image to the root directory of your website, then set it as the site's favicon in the WordPress admin dashboard's Appearance > Customize > Site Identity section.
7. Why isn't my WordPress favicon showing up?
Your WordPress favicon might not be visible for a number of reasons, such as an inappropriate file size, file type, or file placement. Make sure the favicon is in the root directory of your website, in the appropriate size and format. Delete the cache in your web browser if that helps.
8. Does my WordPress theme affect my favicon?
No, your favicon is unaffected by your WordPress theme. The design or functionality of the theme has no bearing on the favicon, which is a site-wide component.
9. How do I create a favicon for my WordPress site?
You can use a graphics editor, such as Photoshop or GIMP, to generate a favicon for your WordPress website. Making an image in the suggested size and format is the first step. After that, save the image as a.ico file. As an alternative, you can build a favicon using an online tool.
10. Is it necessary to have a favicon on my WordPress site?
Although a favicon is not required for a WordPress website, it can enhance user experience and make your website stand out. Additionally, it aids in branding and recognition, making it simpler for users to recall your website.
If you enjoyed reading this article on WordPress favicon, you should check out this one about how to make fewer http requests.
We also wrote about a few related subjects like
how to change fonts in WordPress,
how to reset WordPress,
how to remove proudly powered by WordPress,
how to use the WordPress do_shortcode,
how to duplicate a page in WordPress and
how to get a WordPress mega menu.
