Icon Composer

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Icon Composer lets you create multi-layered icons out of Liquid Glass from a single design file.

Posts under Icon Composer tag

67 Posts

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App icon not showing in TestFlight and App Store Connect, but visible on device
Hi everyone, we are currently facing an issue with one of our apps regarding the new icon requirements in iOS 26. • We created the app icon using Apple’s Icon Composer. • On the device, everything works perfectly: the app icon is shown on the home screen, and it can also be customized with the new iOS 26 features (colors, transparency, etc.). • However, in TestFlight the app icon is not displayed at all (in the TestFlight app on the device). • In App Store Connect, the icon is also not shown in the overview for the app. Interestingly, within the list of TestFlight builds in App Store Connect the icon is visible. What we have tried so far: • Created an archive and manually uploaded it to App Store Connect → no icon in TestFlight. • Took the working Icon Composer asset from another app target where everything works correctly, deleted the old one in this project, and copied the working asset into the problematic target. → Same behavior: visible on the device, but still missing in TestFlight and App Store Connect overview. In contrast, in another app (using the same workflow and also Icon Composer), everything works perfectly: the icon shows up on the device, in TestFlight, and in App Store Connect. Has anyone experienced a similar situation? Is there something specific that needs to be set in App Store Connect (e.g. Marketing Icon / Branding section), or could this be related to the new iOS 26 icon handling? Any help or hints would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
13
7
1.5k
Oct ’25
AppIcon not showing in MacAppstore and Testflight in Tahoe
We’ve been using the new Icon Composer–generated app icons for our existing universal bundle (iOS + Mac Catalyst) app. The icons work perfectly for iOS on the App Store. On macOS Tahoe (macOS 26), however, the App Store listing doesn’t display the app icon — it just shows placeholder while downloading. After the app is installed, the icon displays fine everywhere (Dock, Finder, Launchpad, etc.). Setup: using .iconset generated via Icon Composer, bundled with .png inside the .icon file. On older macOS App Stores, the app icon shows as expected. On Tahoe App Store only, the issue appears. Could this be because the App Store expects .svg variants inside the .icon file for proper display in the Store? Or is there any updated requirement for Mac App Store metadata icons vs. bundled app icons? Any guidance would be much appreciated.
3
1
476
Sep ’25
Programmatically overriding Liquid Glass dock icon?
Hello, I recently updated my app’s icon to use the new Liquid Glass style by adding an .icon file created with Icon Composer to my project. Previously, I had two image sets (light and dark versions of the app icon), and I’d implemented a settings option that let users either manually select their preferred icon, or let the app automatically switch between light/dark based on the system appearance. Is there a way to achieve the same behavior with the new Liquid Glass .icon file?Specifically, can I programmatically override the system-selected Liquid Glass dock icon and force a particular variant? Thank you.
0
1
165
Sep ’25
How to make web shortcut icons mode-adaptive like native app icons?
Hello everyone, I'm very impressed with the Liquid Glass design introduced in iOS 26, especially how native app icons automatically adapt to the system's display mode (dark or light). This brings me to a question: Is it possible to make a website shortcut icon created via Safari's "Add to Home Screen" feature adapt to Dark Mode in the same way? For native apps, we can use tools like Icon Composer and asset catalogs (Assets.xcassets) to provide different icons for each mode. It would be a huge improvement for web clips if we could achieve the same with existing web technologies like apple-touch-icon or the Web App Manifest. If anyone has figured out a way to do this, I would greatly appreciate it if you could share your knowledge. Thanks in advance! 日本語の原文: iOS 26から導入されたLiquid Glassデザインについて。 ネイティブアプリのアイコンがシステムの表示モード(ダークモード/ライトモード)に合わせて自動で最適化されるようになりました。 そこで疑問に思ったのですが、Safariから「ホーム画面に追加」機能を使って作成するWebサイトのショートカットアイコンは、ネイティブアプリと同じようにダークモードに対応できないのでしょうか? ネイティブアプリの場合は、Icon Composerなどのツールでアセットカタログ(Assets.xcassets)を使い、モードごとのアイコンを用意できますよね。 Web側でも、apple-touch-iconやWeb App Manifestといった既存の仕組みを使って、アイコンを動的に切り替えられるようになると、Webクリップの使い勝手がさらに向上すると思うのですが もし、すでに何らかの方法で対応されている方がいらっしゃれば、ぜひその知見を共有していただけると嬉しいです。
0
0
677
Sep ’25
Liquid Glass icons appear differently in Dock
I just played around on macOS with the new icons created by Icon Composer, and I noticed that the Dock displays programmatically set icons differently. Try this: Make sure you have the Mail app in your Dock. Set the icon appearance to "Tinted/Light" and set a dark (black) background for the Desktop. Run this code: let image = NSWorkspace.shared.icon(forFile: "/System/Applications/Mail.app") if image.isValid { NSApp.applicationIconImage = image } You'll get something like this: When the icon appearance is set to "Default" or "Dark," everything works as expected, and the "Clear/Dark" and "Tinted/Dark" modes seem to work as well. It seems like the Dock uses a special blend mode depending on the selected background, but this does not seem to be the case if the icon is set programmatically. I filed feedback FB20291186.
0
2
934
Sep ’25
Validation Failed when using Icon Composer App Icon
I am trying to validate my update for my app to be ready for iOS 26 with the new Icon Composer .icon file. Everywhere I read says that the old AppIcon in the assets folder wouldnt be used and to just drop the .icon file in the project navigator and link it properly. I do that and its still asking for a .png file; I add the 1024x1024 .png file and its still not working. I am very lost and dont know where to go from here I have both the .icon and .png app icons in there. My app deployment target is at iOS 26, Xcode Project format 16.3 (I dont see 26 so assuming 16.3 is the highest). I feel I have done all the things, and advice? Thanks in advance!
2
0
307
Sep ’25
🔥 Xcode 26 RC – visionOS App Icon Created with Icon Composer Appears Empty
App Icon created with Icon Composer is empty for visionOS app We are developing a universal app, and the app’s icon was created using Icon Composer. Xcode 26, RC visionOS 26 and visionOS 2.5 App Icons on macOS, iOS, and iPadOS are correct We have archived the app for macOS and iOS and successfully uploaded it to the App Store. This strongly suggests that the App Icon configuration in our project settings is correct for these platforms. App Icon issue on visionOS However, the visionOS app icon is not working as expected: When testing on the Vision Pro simulator (versions 2.x and 26.0), the app icon appears empty. When archiving and submitting to the App Store, the process fails with the following error: The app’s Info.plist file is missing the CFBundleIcons.CFBundlePrimaryIcon key for the visionOS App Icon. This suggests that the project’s App Icon settings may not be correctly applied for visionOS builds. Request for assistance We are preparing to release our app, one of the first to support Liquid Glass, and would greatly appreciate guidance on how to resolve this issue with the visionOS app icon. FB20184218
1
0
618
Sep ’25
Icon Composer's minimum window size is too big for smaller MacBook video modes
I've filed a FB already through standard channels (FB ID: FB19032008) but I'll post it here in case it may get some attention from others experiencing similar issues. On macOS 26 Beta 5 and Xcode 26 Beta 5 (and earlier revisions afaik) Icon Composer specifies a minimum window size that greatly exceeds the bounds of the 1280x800/832pt video modes available on 13in MacBooks, and which also is too large for the default 1440x900 video mode on non-notched 13in MacBook Air/Pro models as this causes a default-size 64pt dock to occlude the window. I've attached screenshots depicting this behaviour in the two above described cases. Best solution seems like reducing min window size to something that will fit reasonably in a 1280x800pt viewport including the dock and menu bar (e.g. 1000x600 or something).
2
0
158
Aug ’25
Invalid large app icon with Xcode 26 beta 6
I’m having a bit of trouble uploading my new icon to the App Store Connect. I created it entirely with Icon Composer, but it keeps throwing an error saying it’s an “Invalid large app icon.” The error message says that the large app icon in the asset catalog can’t be transparent or have an alpha channel. I only have one AppIcon in the asset catalog, and I’ve checked the “single size” option, which is set to 1024x1024 for any, dark, or tinted size. In the past, when I used the previous icon with the iOS 18 SDK, I didn’t have any issues uploading it. However, when I created the new icon with Icon Composer and compiled it with Xcode Beta, it broke. I’m a bit confused because the error message suggests that removing transparency is the solution, but the whole point of Icon Composer is to make the icon transparent for the new liquid glass design. I don’t want to remove the cool look that my new transparent icon has. Could you please help me out? I’d really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch!
2
1
540
Aug ’25
iPhone app Liquid Glass icon on iPad not respecting icon display mode
Hi, I'm updating my iPhone app (iPhone only) to be ready with iOS 26. I'm building my app using Xcode 26.0 beta 6 (17A5305f) and testing it on an iPad running iPadOS 26 (23A5326a). I found an issue with my new app icon updated using Icon Composer and I was able to find the issue. An iPhone only app running on iPadOS 26 doesn't use the provided app icon. It always displays the "standard" light icon. I just added iPad in Supported Destinations and the app icon now respect light/dark/translucent/tinted modes on the Home Screen. I submitted feedback FB19768667
1
0
474
Aug ’25
Icon Composer for visionOS and tvOS
As of right now Icon Composer does not support creating app icons for visionOS and tvOS. It appears that only system apps can provide glass icons for those platforms. How should developers handle this? In extreme cases, the flat icon on those platforms will look wildly different from their glass counterparts. From what I have seen visionOS and tvOS also do not apply any automatic treatment like on iOS where legacy icons get a glass effect. So, third party app icons are just going to look out of place for (hopefully just) a year on those platforms? What is the recommended approach here? You could obviously fake the effect, but I feel like that would be worse.
0
2
363
Aug ’25
Automatic App Icon Style Change in iOS 26
After updating from iOS 18 to iOS 26, our app icon appears to have automatically received the new 'Liquid Glass' effect. We confirmed that this change occurred without us releasing a new app update. My questions are: Is this a system behavior where iOS 26 automatically applies the new icon style to existing apps? If so, is it possible for a developer to control or customize this effect? I am also wondering if there are any methods other than using Icon Composer.
1
0
331
Aug ’25
App icon not showing in TestFlight and App Store Connect, but visible on device
Hi everyone, we are currently facing an issue with one of our apps regarding the new icon requirements in iOS 26. • We created the app icon using Apple’s Icon Composer. • On the device, everything works perfectly: the app icon is shown on the home screen, and it can also be customized with the new iOS 26 features (colors, transparency, etc.). • However, in TestFlight the app icon is not displayed at all (in the TestFlight app on the device). • In App Store Connect, the icon is also not shown in the overview for the app. Interestingly, within the list of TestFlight builds in App Store Connect the icon is visible. What we have tried so far: • Created an archive and manually uploaded it to App Store Connect → no icon in TestFlight. • Took the working Icon Composer asset from another app target where everything works correctly, deleted the old one in this project, and copied the working asset into the problematic target. → Same behavior: visible on the device, but still missing in TestFlight and App Store Connect overview. In contrast, in another app (using the same workflow and also Icon Composer), everything works perfectly: the icon shows up on the device, in TestFlight, and in App Store Connect. Has anyone experienced a similar situation? Is there something specific that needs to be set in App Store Connect (e.g. Marketing Icon / Branding section), or could this be related to the new iOS 26 icon handling? Any help or hints would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Replies
13
Boosts
7
Views
1.5k
Activity
Oct ’25
AppIcon not showing in MacAppstore and Testflight in Tahoe
We’ve been using the new Icon Composer–generated app icons for our existing universal bundle (iOS + Mac Catalyst) app. The icons work perfectly for iOS on the App Store. On macOS Tahoe (macOS 26), however, the App Store listing doesn’t display the app icon — it just shows placeholder while downloading. After the app is installed, the icon displays fine everywhere (Dock, Finder, Launchpad, etc.). Setup: using .iconset generated via Icon Composer, bundled with .png inside the .icon file. On older macOS App Stores, the app icon shows as expected. On Tahoe App Store only, the issue appears. Could this be because the App Store expects .svg variants inside the .icon file for proper display in the Store? Or is there any updated requirement for Mac App Store metadata icons vs. bundled app icons? Any guidance would be much appreciated.
Replies
3
Boosts
1
Views
476
Activity
Sep ’25
Access .icon files in Swift or Objective-C
Is there a way to access an Icon Composer .icon file in Swift or Objective-C? Any way to get this in an NSImage object that I can display in an image view? Thanks.
Replies
11
Boosts
2
Views
913
Activity
Sep ’25
Programmatically overriding Liquid Glass dock icon?
Hello, I recently updated my app’s icon to use the new Liquid Glass style by adding an .icon file created with Icon Composer to my project. Previously, I had two image sets (light and dark versions of the app icon), and I’d implemented a settings option that let users either manually select their preferred icon, or let the app automatically switch between light/dark based on the system appearance. Is there a way to achieve the same behavior with the new Liquid Glass .icon file?Specifically, can I programmatically override the system-selected Liquid Glass dock icon and force a particular variant? Thank you.
Replies
0
Boosts
1
Views
165
Activity
Sep ’25
How to make web shortcut icons mode-adaptive like native app icons?
Hello everyone, I'm very impressed with the Liquid Glass design introduced in iOS 26, especially how native app icons automatically adapt to the system's display mode (dark or light). This brings me to a question: Is it possible to make a website shortcut icon created via Safari's "Add to Home Screen" feature adapt to Dark Mode in the same way? For native apps, we can use tools like Icon Composer and asset catalogs (Assets.xcassets) to provide different icons for each mode. It would be a huge improvement for web clips if we could achieve the same with existing web technologies like apple-touch-icon or the Web App Manifest. If anyone has figured out a way to do this, I would greatly appreciate it if you could share your knowledge. Thanks in advance! 日本語の原文: iOS 26から導入されたLiquid Glassデザインについて。 ネイティブアプリのアイコンがシステムの表示モード(ダークモード/ライトモード)に合わせて自動で最適化されるようになりました。 そこで疑問に思ったのですが、Safariから「ホーム画面に追加」機能を使って作成するWebサイトのショートカットアイコンは、ネイティブアプリと同じようにダークモードに対応できないのでしょうか? ネイティブアプリの場合は、Icon Composerなどのツールでアセットカタログ(Assets.xcassets)を使い、モードごとのアイコンを用意できますよね。 Web側でも、apple-touch-iconやWeb App Manifestといった既存の仕組みを使って、アイコンを動的に切り替えられるようになると、Webクリップの使い勝手がさらに向上すると思うのですが もし、すでに何らかの方法で対応されている方がいらっしゃれば、ぜひその知見を共有していただけると嬉しいです。
Replies
0
Boosts
0
Views
677
Activity
Sep ’25
Liquid Glass icons appear differently in Dock
I just played around on macOS with the new icons created by Icon Composer, and I noticed that the Dock displays programmatically set icons differently. Try this: Make sure you have the Mail app in your Dock. Set the icon appearance to "Tinted/Light" and set a dark (black) background for the Desktop. Run this code: let image = NSWorkspace.shared.icon(forFile: "/System/Applications/Mail.app") if image.isValid { NSApp.applicationIconImage = image } You'll get something like this: When the icon appearance is set to "Default" or "Dark," everything works as expected, and the "Clear/Dark" and "Tinted/Dark" modes seem to work as well. It seems like the Dock uses a special blend mode depending on the selected background, but this does not seem to be the case if the icon is set programmatically. I filed feedback FB20291186.
Replies
0
Boosts
2
Views
934
Activity
Sep ’25
Can't figure out how to use an icon composer icon for a tauri app
Title basically explains what my issue is, from what I understand the only way to set an icon in an tauri app is using a icns file, I could be wrong but I don't know how to get macos theme changing stuff to work with it because of the icns file.
Replies
1
Boosts
0
Views
144
Activity
Sep ’25
Xcode 26 RC: Failed to generate flattened icon stack for icon named
I am getting this warning when compiling: Failed to generate flattened icon stack for icon named ... Is it safe to ignore it? Is there a way to fix it? Thank you.
Replies
1
Boosts
1
Views
282
Activity
Sep ’25
Configuring your app to use alternate app icons sample code
A new version of the Configuring your app to use alternate app icons sample code is available for download. The sample uses Icon Composer files and supports iOS 18 or later.
Replies
0
Boosts
0
Views
266
Activity
Sep ’25
Validation Failed when using Icon Composer App Icon
I am trying to validate my update for my app to be ready for iOS 26 with the new Icon Composer .icon file. Everywhere I read says that the old AppIcon in the assets folder wouldnt be used and to just drop the .icon file in the project navigator and link it properly. I do that and its still asking for a .png file; I add the 1024x1024 .png file and its still not working. I am very lost and dont know where to go from here I have both the .icon and .png app icons in there. My app deployment target is at iOS 26, Xcode Project format 16.3 (I dont see 26 so assuming 16.3 is the highest). I feel I have done all the things, and advice? Thanks in advance!
Replies
2
Boosts
0
Views
307
Activity
Sep ’25
🔥 Xcode 26 RC – visionOS App Icon Created with Icon Composer Appears Empty
App Icon created with Icon Composer is empty for visionOS app We are developing a universal app, and the app’s icon was created using Icon Composer. Xcode 26, RC visionOS 26 and visionOS 2.5 App Icons on macOS, iOS, and iPadOS are correct We have archived the app for macOS and iOS and successfully uploaded it to the App Store. This strongly suggests that the App Icon configuration in our project settings is correct for these platforms. App Icon issue on visionOS However, the visionOS app icon is not working as expected: When testing on the Vision Pro simulator (versions 2.x and 26.0), the app icon appears empty. When archiving and submitting to the App Store, the process fails with the following error: The app’s Info.plist file is missing the CFBundleIcons.CFBundlePrimaryIcon key for the visionOS App Icon. This suggests that the project’s App Icon settings may not be correctly applied for visionOS builds. Request for assistance We are preparing to release our app, one of the first to support Liquid Glass, and would greatly appreciate guidance on how to resolve this issue with the visionOS app icon. FB20184218
Replies
1
Boosts
0
Views
618
Activity
Sep ’25
Icon Composer and macOS compatibility
If I use the new beta Icon Composer to make a .icon file for a macOS app, will it work for any macOS versions before 26? If not, can one build with both the .icon and the older asset collection icon?
Replies
0
Boosts
1
Views
372
Activity
Sep ’25
Device fails to render icons as they appear in Icon Composer
This app icon features multiple layers with the blend mode set to Screen. iOS fails to render these despite looking perfectly fine in Icon Composer. This is unacceptable. How can a designer build an icon if they can't rely on it being displayed like the preview on a device? Filed as FB20052048 with the .icon file attached.
Replies
0
Boosts
1
Views
250
Activity
Sep ’25
Icon composer exporting with border
Hi Guys, I noticed that with Icon Composer when you export the icon it does not export a square image, is there any way of doing it or that's how it is now? Checking the icon on the iPhone something doesn't seem right...
Replies
1
Boosts
1
Views
583
Activity
Sep ’25
Icon Composer's minimum window size is too big for smaller MacBook video modes
I've filed a FB already through standard channels (FB ID: FB19032008) but I'll post it here in case it may get some attention from others experiencing similar issues. On macOS 26 Beta 5 and Xcode 26 Beta 5 (and earlier revisions afaik) Icon Composer specifies a minimum window size that greatly exceeds the bounds of the 1280x800/832pt video modes available on 13in MacBooks, and which also is too large for the default 1440x900 video mode on non-notched 13in MacBook Air/Pro models as this causes a default-size 64pt dock to occlude the window. I've attached screenshots depicting this behaviour in the two above described cases. Best solution seems like reducing min window size to something that will fit reasonably in a 1280x800pt viewport including the dock and menu bar (e.g. 1000x600 or something).
Replies
2
Boosts
0
Views
158
Activity
Aug ’25
Invalid large app icon with Xcode 26 beta 6
I’m having a bit of trouble uploading my new icon to the App Store Connect. I created it entirely with Icon Composer, but it keeps throwing an error saying it’s an “Invalid large app icon.” The error message says that the large app icon in the asset catalog can’t be transparent or have an alpha channel. I only have one AppIcon in the asset catalog, and I’ve checked the “single size” option, which is set to 1024x1024 for any, dark, or tinted size. In the past, when I used the previous icon with the iOS 18 SDK, I didn’t have any issues uploading it. However, when I created the new icon with Icon Composer and compiled it with Xcode Beta, it broke. I’m a bit confused because the error message suggests that removing transparency is the solution, but the whole point of Icon Composer is to make the icon transparent for the new liquid glass design. I don’t want to remove the cool look that my new transparent icon has. Could you please help me out? I’d really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch!
Replies
2
Boosts
1
Views
540
Activity
Aug ’25
iOS26 Liquid Glass icon + use old icon on iOS18
Hi, Is it possible to use the iOS26 Liquid Glass icon on iOS 26 (built with Icon Composer), and use the old icon on iOS18 devices? I imported the icon file into my Xcode project and it seems to use the new icon on iOS18 (and earlier) devices as well. Thanks.
Replies
1
Boosts
0
Views
462
Activity
Aug ’25
iPhone app Liquid Glass icon on iPad not respecting icon display mode
Hi, I'm updating my iPhone app (iPhone only) to be ready with iOS 26. I'm building my app using Xcode 26.0 beta 6 (17A5305f) and testing it on an iPad running iPadOS 26 (23A5326a). I found an issue with my new app icon updated using Icon Composer and I was able to find the issue. An iPhone only app running on iPadOS 26 doesn't use the provided app icon. It always displays the "standard" light icon. I just added iPad in Supported Destinations and the app icon now respect light/dark/translucent/tinted modes on the Home Screen. I submitted feedback FB19768667
Replies
1
Boosts
0
Views
474
Activity
Aug ’25
Icon Composer for visionOS and tvOS
As of right now Icon Composer does not support creating app icons for visionOS and tvOS. It appears that only system apps can provide glass icons for those platforms. How should developers handle this? In extreme cases, the flat icon on those platforms will look wildly different from their glass counterparts. From what I have seen visionOS and tvOS also do not apply any automatic treatment like on iOS where legacy icons get a glass effect. So, third party app icons are just going to look out of place for (hopefully just) a year on those platforms? What is the recommended approach here? You could obviously fake the effect, but I feel like that would be worse.
Replies
0
Boosts
2
Views
363
Activity
Aug ’25
Automatic App Icon Style Change in iOS 26
After updating from iOS 18 to iOS 26, our app icon appears to have automatically received the new 'Liquid Glass' effect. We confirmed that this change occurred without us releasing a new app update. My questions are: Is this a system behavior where iOS 26 automatically applies the new icon style to existing apps? If so, is it possible for a developer to control or customize this effect? I am also wondering if there are any methods other than using Icon Composer.
Replies
1
Boosts
0
Views
331
Activity
Aug ’25