Mac Icon Converter

Convert a PNG or JPG into a real .icns file for macOS, plus the ten-size Xcode asset catalog, in one zip. No Xcode, no iconutil, no Terminal.

Mac Icon Converter: A Real .icns File From Any Image

A real .icns, with all ten sizes packed inside. Upload a square image, download the zip, drop AppIcon.icns into your app.

macOS wants its app icon in two forms: an .icns file for anything that reads the classic format (Finder, older build systems, Electron, custom folder icons), and an AppIcon.appiconset for Xcode. This converter writes both from one PNG or JPG. Online converters for .icns are rare, and several just rename the PNG or send you to install a command-line tool. This one writes the actual chunks.

How to convert an image to .icns

Upload a square image of at least 1024 by 1024 px. PNG with transparency is fine.
Pick a background color if you’d rather flatten the transparency. Leave it empty to keep it.
Run, then download the zip.

What’s in the zip

AppIcon.icns holding the ten images macOS reads: 16, 32, 128, 256 and 512 px, each at 1x and 2x.
AppIcon.appiconset/ with the same ten PNGs and a Contents.json written the way Xcode writes it. Drag the folder into your asset catalog.
The 1024 px square everything was cut from, so you can check the crop.

What an .icns file actually is

An .icns is a container, a bit like a zip without compression. It starts with the four bytes icns and the file’s total length, then a list of chunks. Each chunk is a four-letter type, a length, and a payload. Modern types carry a plain PNG: icp4 is 16 px, icp5 is 32 px, ic07 is 128 px, ic08 is 256 px, ic09 is 512 px, and ic11 through ic14 plus ic10 are the 2x versions from 32 to 1024 px.

That’s why renaming a PNG to .icns doesn’t work: Finder looks for the header and the chunk table, finds neither, and shows the generic document icon. This converter writes every one of the ten chunks from the 1024 px source, so the icon stays sharp in the Dock, in Finder at any zoom, and in the About window.

Tips for a good source

Square-cornered, please. macOS masks the rounded shape itself; a pre-rounded file shows a double curve.
Give the icon a little depth. Mac icons sit on a light Dock, and a soft shadow or gradient inside the artwork reads better than a flat glyph.
Keep the subject inside the middle eighty percent so nothing touches the mask edge.

FAQ

What is an .icns file? Apple’s icon container format. One file holds every size of an icon, so macOS can pick the right one for the Dock, Finder, a Get Info window or the Launchpad grid without scaling.

Why does Finder show a generic icon when I rename my PNG to .icns? Because the file has no icns header and no chunks inside; it’s still a PNG. Convert it here and Finder reads it.

Do I still need Icon Composer? Only for the layered, glass-style icons introduced with macOS Tahoe. A flat 1024 px icon converted here works on every macOS version, including the latest, and it’s what you ship when you don’t want to design layers.

Can I use this for a custom folder icon? Yes. Open the folder’s Get Info window, drag AppIcon.icns onto the small icon in the corner, and Finder swaps it.

I want to design the icon too. Describe it in macOS App Icon Generator, which draws the icon and writes the same .icns in one run.

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