Best Free WP7 Icons (PNG & ICO) — Ready for Your Mobile UI
Building a polished Windows Phone 7 (WP7) app starts with a clean, consistent interface — and icons are central to that. This guide lists top-quality free WP7 icon sets, explains file formats (PNG vs ICO), and shows quick tips for integrating icons into your mobile UI.
Why WP7-style icons?
- Metro aesthetic: Flat, bold shapes and clear glyphs improve legibility on small screens.
- Consistency: Matching icon families create a cohesive app experience.
- Performance: Appropriately sized PNGs and ICOs are lightweight and fast to load.
Best free WP7 icon sets
Below are five notable free collections that work well for WP7-style apps. Each offers PNGs and/or ICOs, varied glyph coverage, and licensing suitable for many projects (check individual licenses before commercial use).
-
WP7 Icon Pack (Metro UI)
- Clean glyphs, multiple sizes (32–256 px), PNG and ICO exports available.
- Ideal for system and navigation icons.
-
Modern Metro Icons
- Minimal, single-color glyphs optimized for contrast and legibility.
- Comes in PNG at common WP7 sizes; ICO provided for desktop compatibility.
-
Flat Mobile UI Icons
- Includes app, action, and media icons with simple outlines and fills.
- PNGs with transparent backgrounds; scalable vectors sometimes included.
-
Essential Glyphs Collection
- Focused on core actions (share, settings, search, back) in WP7 style.
- Small file sizes, crisp at low resolutions.
-
Free Iconset — WP7 Ready
- Broad coverage (commerce, social, communication) with consistent stroke weight.
- Offers PNG and ICO; often bundled with PSD/AI sources for customization.
PNG vs ICO — which to use?
- PNG
- Best for in-app assets and cross-platform use.
- Supports transparency and multiple resolutions (provide 99%, 72 dpi variants).
- Easy to scale with modern app toolchains.
- ICO
- Traditional Windows icon container; holds multiple sizes/formats in one file.
- Useful for app tiles, shortcuts, or where a single file is required by the platform.
- Less common for runtime UI — prefer PNGs for flexible UI design.
Recommended WP7 icon sizes
- Small UI elements: 24 × 24 px
- Toolbar/navigation: 30 × 30 px
- App tiles/icons: 62 × 62 px, 173 × 173 px (tile variations depend on OS version)
- Provide 1x and 2x (high-DPI) versions where possible.
Quick integration tips
- Keep a single color palette: Use white or a single accent color for glyphs against