How to design a cohesive icon set

A cohesive icon set is a system, not a pile of drawings. Lock a handful of rules up front and every new icon will slot in looking like it belongs.

Decide the rules first

• Grid — e.g. 24×24 with 2px padding.
• Style — outline or filled, and one stroke width.
• Corners — a consistent corner radius for joints and terminals.
• Angles — restrict to 45°/90° where possible.
• Metaphors — reuse the same visual language (a document is always the same rectangle).

Draw the hard ones first

Start with your most complex icons (settings, share, analytics). If your rules survive those, the easy icons follow effortlessly. If they don't, adjust the rules before you have 50 icons to redo.

Review together and name well

Lay every icon out in a grid at real size and hunt for outliers. Then adopt a clear, predictable naming convention so the set stays searchable as it grows.

Frequently asked questions