PNG to ICNS Converter - Make macOS App Icons from PNG, Free

How to convert PNG to ICNS

Add your PNG files. Drop up to 30 PNG files into the box, or browse for them. They are read on your device and never uploaded.
Pick the sizes and shape. Full Retina makes every macOS size from 16 to 1024 px. Pick macOS style for rounded corners and a shadow like Apple's icons.
Check the preview. See your icon in the Dock and in a Finder list, in light and dark mode, before you download.
Make the ICNS and download. Press Make my ICNS. One or two icons download directly, more come as a ZIP.

Want to see every size inside an ICNS? Open it in the ICNS File Viewer. Need the Windows version? Use Image to ICO.

Why PNG is the best start for a Mac icon

PNG keeps transparency, so the shape of your logo or character stays free of a box around it.

Start from a square PNG of at least 1024 x 1024 px. Smaller images work too, but the Retina sizes are enlarged and look softer - the Image Upscaler can help first.

Got a photo with a background you want gone? Run it through the PNG Background Remover before converting.

Which sizes are inside the ICNS?

Size	Retina slot	Where macOS shows it
16 x 16	-	Finder list view, menu bar, Spotlight rows
32 x 32	16 @2x	Finder lists on Retina screens, small sidebar icons
64 x 64	32 @2x	Retina Finder lists and Get Info
128 x 128	-	Finder icon view, Launchpad on older Macs
256 x 256	128 @2x	Dock and Finder on Retina screens
512 x 512	256 @2x	Large Finder icons, Quick Look
1024 x 1024	512 @2x	App Store, Quick Look full size on Retina

Full Retina packs all of them. Up to 512 skips the 1024 px image and makes the file about half the size.

The 16 and 32 px sizes are also written in the classic format older Macs read. Want to check the result? Open it in the ICNS File Viewer.

The macOS style shape

Since Big Sur, Mac app icons sit on a rounded plate with a small margin and a soft shadow. Unlike iPhone, macOS does not round the corners for you.

Pick macOS style and your image is placed on Apple's grid: an 824 px plate on a 1024 px canvas, smooth "squircle" corners and the shadow. The plate is white, or any colour you choose.

Your logo should fill the plate? Use Crop to square. Want breathing room around it? Add a little Padding.

Using the icon on a Mac

Folder or file icon: open the .icns in Preview, press Cmd + A and Cmd + C, then select the folder, press Cmd + I, click the small icon at the top left and press Cmd + V.
Your own app: put the .icns in Contents/Resources and name it in Info.plist under CFBundleIconFile.
Xcode: pick + Xcode set and drag AppIcon.appiconset into Assets.xcassets.
iconutil: pick + .iconset to get the PNG folder Apple's command-line tool expects.

Frequently Asked Questions

Drop your PNG into the box, keep Full Retina or pick a preset, and press Make my ICNS.

The .icns downloads right away with every macOS size inside.

Yes. Transparent areas of your PNG stay transparent at every size, so the icon has no box around it in the Dock.

No. The PNG is read and turned into an ICNS in your browser, on your device. Nothing is uploaded, so it also works with private artwork.

With Full Retina: 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512 and 1024 px, filling all ten macOS slots including the @2x Retina ones. The 16 and 32 px sizes are also stored in the classic format for older Macs.

macOS shows the icon exactly as drawn - it does not round the corners like iPhone does. Pick the macOS style shape to get the rounded plate, margin and shadow of Apple's own icons.

Yes. Choose + Xcode set under Extra files. You get AppIcon.appiconset with every PNG and a Contents.json - drag it into Assets.xcassets.

Yes. Turn on Windows ICO too (or the Mac + Windows preset) and you get a matching .ico with 16 to 256 px next to the ICNS.

No. It works in any modern browser on Windows, Linux, ChromeOS or a Mac.