BMP to ICO Converter - Convert BMP to Icon Online Free

How to convert BMP to ICO

Add your BMP files. Drop up to 30 BMP or DIB images into the box, or browse for them. They are read on your device and never uploaded.
Pick the icon sizes. Recommended packs 16, 32, 48, 64, 128 and 256 px into one ICO. Favicon and Windows app are one click away, or type your own sizes.
Fine-tune the look. Crop to square, add padding, round the corners, set a background or the colour depth. Every option starts closed and shows its value at a glance.
Make the ICO and download. Press Make my ICO. The size shown is measured from the real file; one or two icons download directly, more come as a ZIP.

Need a full favicon set with apple-touch-icon and a manifest? Try the Favicon Generator.

Why turn a BMP into an ICO?

Windows uses ICO files for program, folder and shortcut icons.

An ICO holds the same picture at several sizes, so it stays sharp everywhere.

A BMP is just one bitmap at one size. Windows scales it on the fly and small views turn blurry, while an ICO brings a hand-made 16 px version for Explorer and a crisp 256 px one for large icons.

Which icon sizes do you need?

Size	Where it shows up	Preset
16 x 16	Browser tabs, Explorer details view, title bars	All presets
20, 24, 40	Windows at 125% and 150% display scaling	Windows app
32 x 32	Desktop at 100%, taskbar, bookmarks	All presets
48 x 48	Explorer medium icons, Windows site tiles	All presets
64 / 128	Large icons and high-DPI screens	Recommended
256 x 256	Extra large icons, Windows 10 and 11 Start	Recommended, Windows app

Not sure? Keep Recommended - it covers every place Windows and browsers look. Want to check an existing icon? The Icons Analyzer lists every size inside an ICO.

Built to open everywhere

Windows rules followed - sizes below 256 px are 32-bit BMP layers, the 256 px layer is a 32-bit PNG, exactly what Explorer and Photos expect.
Transparency done right - every layer gets a proper AND mask, so old programs show clean edges too.
Clean small sizes - the image is halved step by step down to 16 px instead of squashed in one go.
Any BMP - 1 to 32-bit, RLE compressed, V4/V5 and OS/2 headers. A 32-bit BMP with alpha keeps its transparency.

Got an icon and want the bitmap back? ICO to BMP pulls the layers out again.

Tips for great icons

Start big. A 256 x 256 px BMP or larger gives the sharpest large icon; small sources get softer when enlarged.
Not square? Pick Crop to square to fill the icon, or keep Fit inside for transparent bars.
White box around your logo? BMPs rarely have transparency. Use Solid colour to match your background, or start from a transparent PNG in the PNG to ICO converter.
Need a different size later? The Icon Resizer adds or removes sizes in an existing ICO.

Frequently Asked Questions

Drop your BMP into the box, keep the Recommended sizes or pick a preset, and press Make my ICO.

The icon downloads right away, with every size packed inside one .ico file.

No. The ICO is built in your browser, on your device. Nothing is uploaded, so it also works for private or work images.

At least 16, 32, 48 and 256 px. Recommended adds 64 and 128 px for high-DPI screens, and Windows app adds 20, 24 and 40 px for display scaling.

Yes. Layers below 256 px are 32-bit bitmaps with a mask and the 256 px layer is a 32-bit PNG - the layout Windows Explorer, Photos and Visual Studio expect.

Yes. Pick the Favicon preset (16, 32 and 48 px) and upload favicon.ico to the root of your site. Turn on ICO + PNG per size if you also want separate PNG files.

Yes, at 32-bit. A 32-bit BMP with an alpha channel stays transparent, and Fit inside, padding or a round shape add transparent areas around your image.

Fit inside keeps the whole image and adds transparent bars, Crop to square fills the icon by trimming the long side, and Stretch squeezes it into a square.

Right-click the shortcut, choose Properties, then Change Icon and browse to your .ico. For folders: Properties, Customize, Change Icon.