Icon

When to use

• Next to a label, to help people recognise it faster.
• On its own in a crowded control such as a toolbar, when there is no room for words.
• For a meaning people already know, such as a cross for close or a magnifying glass for search.

When not to use

• For an idea with no common symbol. People have to learn a new icon, and most will not.
• Instead of a label when a label would fit. Words are clearer than icons.
• As decoration next to every item in a list. It adds clutter and makes the list slower to scan.

Guidance