ICO – Windows Icon
ICO is the Windows icon format, and browsers also use it for favicons. A single .ico file can hold several sizes of the same icon, from 16x16 up to 256x256, so the right one is shown wherever it is needed.
More ICO conversionsDrop your ICO files here
or click to choose ICO files · up to 95MB each
How to convert ICO to PNG
- Choose your files. Click Select File or drag your ICO files into the upload box. You can add many at once.
- Pick the settings. PNG is already selected as the output format. Adjust Quality and Max dimension if you want smaller files.
- Download. Each file appears in the list when it is ready. Download them one by one, or all together with Download all.
Why convert ICO to PNG?
ICO files hold Windows icons and favicons, but you cannot easily edit or reuse them. Converting ICO to PNG gives you a normal picture of the icon to edit, put on a website or use in a design.
When to keep the ICO
Keep the ICO if it is used as a favicon or program icon; browsers and Windows expect that format.
Tips for the best result
- An ICO usually holds several sizes; the largest one is converted, for the sharpest result.
- Transparent backgrounds are kept.
- Quality 100 gives a lossless PNG.
Common problems and fixes
- The PNG is small.
- The icon is converted at its largest stored size. Many old icons only go up to 32 or 48 pixels, and enlarging them makes them blurry.
- The file will not convert.
- The file may not be a real ICO, or may be damaged. Check that it opens as an icon on your computer.
PNG – Portable Network Graphics
PNG stores images with lossless compression and supports full transparency, which makes it the usual choice for logos, screenshots and graphics with sharp edges. The trade-off is size: a photograph saved as PNG is normally far larger than the same photo saved as JPG or WebP.
More PNG conversionsICO vs PNG
| Feature | ICO | PNG |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Windows Icon | Portable Network Graphics |
| Compression | PNG or BMP images inside | Lossless |
| Transparency | Yes | Yes |
| Animation | No | No |
| Introduced | 1985 | 1996 |
| Developed by | Microsoft | PNG Development Group (W3C) |
| Best for | Favicons and Windows icons | Logos, screenshots and graphics with transparency |
Converting ICO to PNG
- PNG keeps transparency and sharp edges. To keep files small, the number of colours is reduced to match your Quality setting.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get every size from the ICO?
Not here: the largest size is converted, which is the one you normally want.
How do I make an ICO from a PNG?
Use PNG to ICO, which builds all standard icon sizes from your picture.
How do I convert ICO to PNG?
Click Select File or drop your ICO file onto the upload box. Pick the quality and maximum size, and the converted PNG appears in the list below with a download button. You can add many files at once and download them together as a ZIP.
Is it really free?
Yes. There is no sign-up and no watermark. To keep the service available for everyone there is a 95MB limit per file and a cap on how many files one connection can process in a short period.
Are my files stored?
Your upload is used only to make the converted file. Images are processed in memory; other files are written to a private temporary folder that is deleted as soon as the conversion finishes. Nothing is kept after the result has been sent back.
Will quality drop?
For images, a little, by design: the image is re-encoded at the Quality you choose (default 75%). Audio and video are re-encoded with high-quality settings; documents keep their text and layout as far as the target format allows. Converting never restores detail that is already missing from the original.
How this works: your file is uploaded over HTTPS and converted on this server with open-source engines (libvips for images, FFmpeg for audio and video, LibreOffice and Pandoc for documents, Calibre for ebooks, Ghostscript and Inkscape for PDF and vector files). Images are processed in memory; other files use a private temporary folder that is deleted as soon as the conversion finishes.