Links do more than move people between pages. The HTML rel attribute describes the relationship between your page and another resource. The value icon means: supplies an icon for the website or application.
What icon means
Supplies an icon for the website or application.
Write it as rel="icon" on an appropriate <a> or <link> element. Not every relationship is defined for both: the correct element depends on the link type.
Example markup
<!-- Relationship: icon -->
<link rel="icon" href="favicon.png" type="image/png" sizes="32x32">What the browser does
This example uses <link>, which normally belongs in the document head and describes a resource relationship without adding a visible clickable link.
Browser and device support for icon formats and sizes varies.
The icon file must exist and have a supported format. Many devices use more than one icon size.
If the token is a resource-loading hint, it may improve a particular loading path, but the browser is free to make its own decision. Measure with the Network panel rather than adding hints to every resource.
When to choose this token
Use icon only when the relationship is genuinely true for that destination. If it describes a web resource, make sure that resource exists and serves the right content. For an external URL, do not confuse a relationship hint with permission, security or a redirect.
Small practice task
Create a simple test page with the example. Inspect the resulting element in Developer Tools. Change the target to another sensible file or URL, then explain whether the visible page, a network request, or only the relationship metadata changed.
Common Beginner Mistakes
- Browser and device support for icon formats and sizes varies.
- Assuming
rel="icon"has the same effect on every kind of HTML link. - Adding a relationship token when the destination does not have that relationship.
Key Takeaways
iconmeans supplies an icon for the website or application.- Browser and device support for icon formats and sizes varies.
- Choose a valid link element and test what the browser actually does.