What are Icon Fonts? Knowledge Base
What is icon font?
Icon fonts (sometimes called symbols fonts) are the ones that use symbols and icons instead of traditional characters like letters and numbers. These icons can be anything from simple shapes and arrows to more complex representations of objects, actions, or concepts. Icon fonts became popular in web design because they allow developers and designers to easily insert scalable vector icons on websites.
What are the advantages of icon fonts?
There is a great variety of traditional fonts that can cover any requirement of the project or design. So why choose icon fonts then? They offer several advantages:
- Icon fonts are vector-based, so they can be scaled up or down without losing quality. This makes them perfect for responsive web design, as icons can adapt to different screen sizes and resolutions.
- Icon fonts are generally smaller in file size compared to image-based icons. The browser downloads and cashes them once, which reduces the total page load time.
- These fonts are easy to use. It is simple to incorporate them into a web project. You can do it using CSS, just like regular text. It gives you flexibility and customization options.
- Icon fonts offer a consistent look and feel since they are created from the same font file. This means that all icons used on a website share the same style and visual language.
However, with the advancement of web technologies, the use of SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) icons got better popularity, but icon fonts are still used in various web projects. Many popular icon font libraries, such as Font Awesome and Material Icons, are still widely used by developers and designers worldwide.
SVG icons or icon fonts?
SVG icons and icon fonts are both popular methods for rendering icons on websites, but they have some key differences. To make a choice between them easier for you, here is a detailed comparison SVG icons to icon fonts:
| Parameter | SVG icons | Icon fonts |
|---|---|---|
| Scalability | Resolution-independent, so can be scaled up or down without losing quality. They look sharp on any screen size or resolution and are perfect for responsive web design. | Icon fonts are also scalable and can be resized without losing quality because they are based on vector graphics. |
| File size | SVG icons are usually smaller in size than raster image formats (like PNG or JPEG), but can still be larger than icon fonts. | Have smaller file sizes, as they are a collection of vector icons packed into a single font file. Once the font is cached by the browser, further use of the icons needs minimal additional loading time. |
| Browser support | Supported by all modern browsers. | Widely supported but might face some compatibility issues in older versions of Internet Explorer. |
| Accessibility | Offer better accessibility, because they can include descriptive text for screen readers using the “aria-label” attribute or a hidden title element. | May face accessibility challenges. They are treated as fonts, so screen readers might not recognize them as icons and so read out individual characters instead. |
| Interactivity | Interactive, making it possible to add hover effects, animations, and other dynamic behavior. | The usage of complex animations or interactions is not supported because of limited interactivity. |
| Customization and styling | Can be easily customized using CSS, so you are able to change colors, apply gradients, or add animations to the icons. | Can also be styled with CSS, but some styling options might be limited. |
As you could notice, both SVG icons and icon fonts have their strengths and weaknesses, but as technology evolves, SVG icons are becoming the preferred choice for many web designers and developers. They are more versatile and accessible. However, icon fonts still have their place, especially when working with existing icon font libraries that provide a wide range of icons.
Сlassification of symbol fonts
There are many ways to classify these fonts relying on different criteria. Here are some common classification categories:
Based on their visual style or design icon fonts can be classified in the next way:
- Minimalist, - Simple and clean icons with a focus on basic shapes and lines.
- Flat, - Icons with a two-dimensional, flat design, often without shadows or gradients.
- Material Design, - Icons following the Google Material Design guidelines, with specific stylistic elements.
- Skeuomorphic, - Icons that resemble real-world objects or textures, with a more realistic appearance.
According to their intended use or theme icon fonts can be classified in the next way:
- Social Media Icons - Icons representing various social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube).
- Communication - Icons for email, chat, messaging, or calls.
- Navigation - These icons are used to indicate menu items, arrows, and other navigation elements.
- E-commerce - Icons related to the shopping process, payment methods, and product categories.
- Reaction - These icons are added to show the reaction to any content (like/dislike).
Icon fonts can be also classified based on their file format and compatibility with different browsers and devices:
- Web-Safe Fonts - Symbol fonts that are widely supported by most browsers and devices.
- SVG Fonts - Icon typefaces that are stored in SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) format, offering more flexibility and scalability.
- Icon font libraries - They are collections of pre-designed icofonts made available by various sources.
According to the extent to which icon fonts can be customized through CSS they can be classified in the next way:
- Icon fonts that can have their colors easily changed using CSS properties.
- Icon fonts that can be scaled up or down without losing quality or pixelation.
- Icon fonts that can be modified to have additional effects, such as shadows or rotations.
- Icon fonts can also be classified based on their licensing terms, ranging from free and open-source to commercial licenses.
Icon typefaces can also be classified according to their size options as some of them come in different sizes or variations to cater to different design needs. You can use small icons for buttons or larger icons for headings.
Where can I use icon fonts?
Symbol fonts look fancy and you may think that there is no big practical use for such typefaces. You may be surprised but they can be used in various contexts and applications across web development and design. Here are some common places where such typefaces are used:
| Place to use icons | Reason to use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Website navigation | Icon fonts are used as visual cues in navigation menus. They can represent different sections or actions, to help users understand and interact with the website. |  |
| Buttons and call-to-action | These fonts can be used on buttons and call-to-action elements to improve user experience. For example, a shopping cart icon on an e-commerce website “Add to Cart” button. |  |
| (UI) design | Icon fonts are widely used in UI design for software applications, mobile apps, and web interfaces as intuitive representations of features, functions, and actions. |  |
| Social media links | They are used to display social media icons to provide links to your company’s social media profiles. |  |
| Header and footer elements | Icons can be placed in headers and footers to symbolize contact information, search bars, email links, etc. |  |
| Feature lists | Here they are used to highlight features, services, or benefits in a visually appealing manner. |  |
| Infographics | Icon fonts can be used in infographics to represent data, and statistics, and to structure information. |  |
How to access and integrate icon fonts into a web project
To have these typefaces in your web project, you will need to follow these steps:
- Choose an icon font library. Go to the library’s website and explore their collection of icons.
- Download the icofont files. Typically, you’ll get the font files in formats like WOFF, WOFF2, TTF, EOT, and SVG. You may also receive a CSS file that contains the icon classes and mapping.
- Link the CSS file to your HTML file. This CSS file contains the styles and mapping that associate the icon classes with the corresponding characters in the font file. Place the link tag inside the head section of your HTML document.
- Include icons in your HTML to display the desired icons. Add the class name(s) to an HTML element where you want the icon to appear.
Syntax:
1<link rel="stylesheet" href="path/to/icon-font-library.css">- (Optional) Check the library’s documentation to see if and how you can customize the icons to match your design preferences.
Syntax:
1<i class="icon-font icon-envelope"></i>- Test your website with devices and browsers to ensure the icons display correctly and that the CSS and font files load properly. Also test if your icon fonts are responsive and scale appropriately on various screen sizes and resolutions.
If you follow these steps carefully, you should be able to access and integrate icon fonts into your web project successfully.
Accessibility and SEO considerations
When using icon fonts on your website, it’s essential to consider Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to ensure that your content and icons are properly indexed by search engines and accessible to users. Here are some points of such an issue:
- Use semantic HTML elements to incorporate icon fonts. Avoid using them purely for decorative purposes. It is better to use appropriate HTML elements like
<i>or<span>and provide descriptive and relevant text content inside these elements to convey the meaning of the icon. - For icon fonts used in
<i>or<span>elements, add descriptive alternative text using the “alt” attribute. This helps screen readers and search engines understand the purpose and meaning of the icon.
Syntax:
1<i class="fa fa-envelope" aria-hidden="true" alt="Envelope icon - Contact us"></i>- Use ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) attributes to enhance accessibility for screen readers and assistive technologies. Use the “aria-label” attribute to provide a label for the icon that complements the alternative text.
Syntax:
1<i class="fa fa-search" aria-hidden="true" aria-label="Search"></i>- Ensure that the icon font files load efficiently and don’t slow down your website’s performance. Use appropriate font formats (e.g., WOFF2) that are supported by modern browsers and optimize the font file size to reduce loading times.
- Implement responsive design practices so that your icon fonts scale appropriately and remain clear and legible on both desktop and mobile platforms.
- Consider using icon sprites to reduce HTTP requests and improve loading times. It allows combining multiple icons into a single image file, and then using CSS background positioning to display the desired icon.
- Optimize your CSS to eliminate unused icon classes. Minify your CSS files to reduce their size and enhance website loading speed.
- Include your icon font files in your website’s XML sitemap. Then search engines can discover and index them.
By following these SEO practices, you can make your symbol fonts more accessible and improve website performance while maintaining good visibility in search engine results.
Resources and tools to work with icon fonts
Working with icon fonts requires specific resources and tools to create, customize, and implement them effectively. Let’s take a look at some valuable resources and tools you can use:
- Font Awesome, - a popular icofont library that offers a vast collection of scalable vector icons. It provides CSS and web font files that you can easily integrate into your projects.
- Google Fonts - the resource that is primarily known for its text fonts, but also offers a selection of icon fonts that you can use in your projects.
- IcoMoon, - is a web app that allows you to customize and create your own icon fonts by selecting from multiple icon packs or uploading your SVG icons. With it you can download only the icons you need, reducing the font file size.
- Fontello also enables you to build custom icon fonts by choosing icons from various icon sets.
- Fancy Text Generator. The cross-platform app allows creation of lines of text wrapped with icons, so you can then use them in your social media as statuses, or in bio info.
- Fontastic, - a tool that allows you to create custom icofonts by selecting icons from different sources or uploading your own SVG files. It also generates CSS and font files for your icons.
- Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape - are powerful tools to create or modify icons before converting them into an icon font.
- GitHub Icon Repositories - is a valuable resource for finding open-source icon sets and icon font projects. Search for “icon font” or “icon pack” to find repositories that offer ready-to-use icon fonts for free.
- CSS text generator, - a cross-platform app to help you work with fonts within CSS and HTML. It creates the code, which you then can use to implement fonts on your website.
When using icon fonts, it is important to remember about accessibility. Make sure that you provide proper alternative text and ARIA attributes for screen readers to make your icons inclusive and accessible to all users.
Conclusion
Icon fonts have played a significant role in enhancing the visual appeal and user experience of websites, particularly in areas such as navigation, buttons, and user interface design. They offer numerous advantages, including easy customization, small file sizes, and compatibility with a wide range of devices and browsers.
However, as technology evolves, new and more accessible alternatives have emerged. Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) icons and icon libraries, became popular as they give benefits in terms of responsiveness, search engine optimization, and screen reader compatibility.