Homepages with no icon link by platform (top 1M, Sept 2026)
| Platform | No icon link | Homepages |
|---|---|---|
| Wix | 0.1% | 892 |
| Squarespace | 0.4% | 513 |
| Webflow | 0.5% | 2,500 |
| WordPress | 6.4% | 113,804 |
| Shopify | 7.7% | 47,012 |
| Other/custom | 16.0% | 618,129 |
| All | 14.1% | 782,850 |
Source: PageSpeed Matters, HTTP Archive, Sept 2026. Icon link includes apple-touch-icon.
Summary
The favicon is the small icon in the browser tab, in bookmarks and next to your site in Google search results. Sites declare it with an icon link in the page head. We checked how many popular homepages skip that step, and what happens when they do.
14.1% of top 1M homepages (110,056 of 782,850) declare no icon link. That does not mean they have no favicon. Browsers fall back to requesting /favicon.ico from the site root, and nearly every one of those homepages still gets an icon that way.
What we measured
We looked at HTTP Archive's Sept 2026 mobile crawl of the top 1M sites by Chrome traffic. An icon link is any link element whose rel contains "icon", which includes apple-touch-icon. A favicon request is any request whose URL contains "favicon". For the fallback check we also counted any file served with an icon file type.
The favicon-request figure depends on file names. Some platforms serve icons under other names, so they look like they never request a favicon when they do. For that reason we compare platforms on the icon-link measure only.
One in seven homepages declares no icon link
110,056 of 782,850 top 1M homepages (14.1%) declare no icon link in their HTML. 194,145 (24.8%) never request a file named favicon, though that second figure counts file names, not icons.
The most popular sites are only slightly better. 11.1% of 7,500 Top 10K homepages declare no icon link, against 14.0% of 67,281 Top 100K homepages and 14.1% of 708,042 homepages in the rest of the top 1M. A missing icon link is a small detail that even large sites skip.
14.1%
Share of 782,850 top 1M homepages that declare no icon link in their HTML. Nearly all still get a favicon by fallback.
Nearly all of them still get a favicon
Almost every homepage without an icon link still ends up with an icon. Only 1,500 of the 110,056 (1.4%) loaded no favicon or icon-type file at all. The rest most likely rely on the browser's fallback request for /favicon.ico at the site root.
That fallback works, but it gives you less control. You cannot set a high-resolution or SVG icon, a separate icon for home screens, or a dark-mode variant without declaring them in the page head.
Hosted platforms add the icon link for you
Platforms that build the page head for you rarely miss the icon link. Only 0.1% of 892 Wix homepages, 0.4% of 513 Squarespace homepages and 0.5% of 2,500 Webflow homepages lack one.
The share rises where site owners have more control. 6.4% of 113,804 WordPress homepages and 7.7% of 47,012 Shopify homepages declare no icon link, likely because the site icon or theme favicon setting was never filled in. Other or custom sites are highest at 16.0% of 618,129, since nothing adds the tag unless a developer does.
Inner pages look much the same
Inner pages follow the same pattern as homepages. 11.9% of 618,568 inner pages declare no icon link, and 23.8% never request a file named favicon. Sites usually share one page head template across every page, so a missing icon link on the homepage tends to repeat everywhere.
What this means for your site
A missing icon link is unlikely to hurt anyone, but it is one of the easiest maintenance fixes there is, and it gives you control over how your brand shows in tabs, bookmarks and search.
- View your page source and look for a link element with rel="icon" in the head.
- On WordPress, set a Site Icon in your site settings. On Shopify, add a favicon in the theme settings.
- On a custom site, add an icon link to the shared head template, plus an apple-touch-icon for home screens.
- Keep a /favicon.ico at the site root as well, so older tools and browsers still find one.
Sources
- HTTP Archive crawl of the top 1M sites by Chrome traffic, September 2026, mobile
- Google Search Central, define a favicon to show in search results: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/favicon-in-search
Embed this research
Paste this on your site to embed the chart. It links back to the source automatically.
<iframe id="psm-favicon-statistics" src="https://www.pagespeedmatters.com/embed/data-studies/favicon-statistics" width="100%" height="600" style="width:100%;border:1px solid #E2E3E1;border-radius:12px" loading="lazy" title="Favicon Statistics 2026: 14.1% of Top 1M Sites Declare No Icon - PageSpeed Matters"></iframe>
<script>window.addEventListener("message",function(e){if(e&&e.data&&e.data.psmEmbed==="favicon-statistics"&&e.data.height){var f=document.getElementById("psm-favicon-statistics");if(f){f.style.height=e.data.height+"px";}}});</script>
<p style="font:14px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif">Source: <a href="https://www.pagespeedmatters.com/resources/data-studies/favicon-statistics">Favicon Statistics 2026: 14.1% of Top 1M Sites Declare No Icon - PageSpeed Matters</a></p>
Frequently asked questions
How many websites have no favicon?
Very few. 14.1% of top 1M homepages declare no icon link, but only 1,500 of those 110,056 homepages (1.4%) loaded no favicon or icon-type file at all. The rest get one through the browser's fallback.
What happens if a website has no favicon link?
Browsers request /favicon.ico from the site root and use that if it exists. You lose control over high-resolution, SVG and home screen icons, which need to be declared in the page head.
Which platforms are most likely to be missing a favicon link?
Other or custom sites, at 16.0% of 618,129 homepages. 7.7% of Shopify and 6.4% of WordPress homepages lack one, against 0.5% or less on Webflow, Squarespace and Wix.
How do I add a favicon to my site?
Add a link element with rel="icon" to your page head, or use your platform's setting: Site Icon on WordPress, or the favicon option in Shopify's theme settings. Keep a /favicon.ico at the root as a fallback.
A missing icon link takes minutes to fix and gives you control over how your site appears in tabs, bookmarks and search results. Need help with this? See our website maintenance services.