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How to Show and Hide Favicons in Safari Favorites Bar

In Safari 17 and macOS Sonoma, Apple has introduced support for displaying favicons in the Favorites bar. Keep reading to learn why favicons can be useful, and how you can disable them if they aren't for you.

Favicons can usually be found next to anything in a browser's interface that identifies a website. This can include bookmarks, tabs, history results, and search bars.

In Safari 17, if you have the Favorites Bar enabled ( View -> Show Favorites Bar in Safari's menu bar) the favicon for each site will appear beside its title, allowing you to more easily spot it in the bar.

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Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

How do I change Safari favorites page icons on OS X from generic letter to logo icons of the sites?

I was stuck and found the answer here:

https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/294606/how-to-get-icons-in-safari-favo rites-aka-favicons-to-display-correctly/294633#294633?newreg=b79e2ebf339d46dea14 e41701f6c71b7

thought I would share it with the community. It's a workaround. Solution I prefer was provided by xdavidliu.

Posted on Sep 18, 2018 10:51 AM

Posted on Sep 18, 2018 11:58 AM

The answer I provided above is basically as follows:

1. Go to safari bookmarks bar on top and look at what and look at what the icon currently looks like (It will be a small icon.) remember what it looks like.

2. Go to finder on the top menu bar select Go>Go to folder and type:

~/Library/Safari/Touch Icons Cache/Images/

3. Browse through the icons until you find the one you identified above. Replace with same named png. Be sure the size is 144x144.

4. Restart Safari.

Similar questions

• How to change Safari favorites page icons on OS X from generic letter to logo icons of the sites? I've followed the instructions from a previous post. However, the correct icons are in the folder, but they still show up as generic letters on the favorites menu on a new tab. Anyone else experiencing this? https://discussions.apple.com/thread/8541205?answerId=33887775022#33887775022 2728 1
• any way to change icon in safari favorites on mac Hi Is there any way to change the default icons on the favourites page in Safari? I have a load all looking identical other than the name obviously. cheers Dafydd 2550 2
• Safari 16.3 not showing icons from extensions and favicons macOS Big Sur Hi, yesterday I got an update for both, Safari and macOS Big Sur, I applied the updates in my iMac late 2014 and when I opened Safari noticed that the icons from the favorite section where gone... I did not took it too serious because it can happen, and normally it should be a thing of re open the website and the icon would load again, well not this time... Please note that only the icons are missing, the extensions works as intended, so it is a different reason that when both the icon and extension are gone. Anyway, I had no luck with both issues. What I've tried: Cleaning up Safari's cache from dev options. Deleting the Favicons cache files from: "/Users/Username/Library/Safari/Favicon Cache". Rebooting. Checking out if the issues happened with Guest account (it did). The issues persists in Safe Mode as well.... Is anyone experiencing this issues? 1706 12

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Sep 18, 2018 11:58 AM in response to surigo98

Safari Favorites Icons Missing? 7 Ways to Get Them Back

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Safari favorites icons, or favicons, are a celebrated convenience that allows you to quickly see the website you want in history, bookmarks, or tabs. Unfortunately, these favicons tend to appear incorrectly or go missing. This article shows you how to get back missing favorite icons on your Mac.  

If you notice that your Safari favorites icons are missing , clearing your cache and restarting Safari is the fastest way to get them back . There is another alternative way of opening the affected website in a private Safari window; I will look at it in detail later in the article.

How to Find Safari Favorites Icons Missing? 

• Method 1: Clear Safari favorites icons cache 

Method 2: Use Safari Private Window

Method 3: create new user, method 4: verify your preferences, method 5: restore items from time machine, method 6: download updates.

• Method 7: Use the safe mode        

In Conclusion

If the favorites icons are missing in Safari on your Mac, try going to “Safari” > “Preferences” > “Tabs” and check the box next to “Show website icons in tabs.” If this doesn’t solve the issue, try resetting the Safari browser by going to “Safari” > “Reset Safari” and selecting the appropriate options. If the issue persists, try restarting your Mac or updating the operating system.

How to bring back Safari Favorites Icons

When Apple first introduced the favicon feature on Safari, most people unsurprisingly jumped on it enthusiastically. The convenience of quickly locating your favorite website on a tab or bookmark list was too good to pass up. Precious seconds are saved by that little image appearing in the history list of the Safari browser, while not seeing it can put some people off whatever they are doing on the internet. Even though the Safari favorites icon appears distorted or missing, we’re here to tell you that you can quickly recover the icon by following a few simple steps on your MacBook. 

Method 1: Clear Safari favorites icons cache  

Clearing the Safari favorites icons cache and starting over is the universal way of solving the problem of incorrect and missing favicons on your computer. Follow the steps below to get your favorite icons back. 

• Shut or quit Safari.
• Go to Finder on your Mac.  
• Next, click on Go, then select Go To Folder on the visible menu.
• A pop-up menu will appear, and you will need to type in/Library/Safari/Favicon Cache/ 
• Once you’ve typed that in, you need to click on Go.
• You must send all the items in the folder on your screen to Trash. Pressing the Command and the A key simultaneously selects all the files in the folder, then you can drag them to the trash. You can also right-click the files and select Move To Trash on the menu that appears on the screen. 
• Empty the entire trash or delete the items from the favicon cache folder only. The simplest way to empty your trash is by right-clicking the trash icon on your dock and selecting Empty Trash. 
• Open your Safari browser again and visit your saved sites. 

The incorrect or distorted images should appear correctly. The favicon cache rebuilds itself as you visit your saved sites. However, in rare cases, some alternatives might help. I’ll now look at some of the methods that you can use. Feel free to try them all, as none take a long time to complete.

Also Read: How to Fix Finder Not Responding on Mac

There is no guarantee that this alternative method will work, but it is worth a try if clearing the favicon cache is not working or if you prefer not to use it. Safari has a private window that does not store browsing history, and you can use this feature to try and refresh your favicons.

• Right-click on Safari in the Dock
• Select New Private Window
• Visit the site with the incorrect or missing favicons
• Close Private Window

The favicons should return to normal working conditions after this. You can try these further steps in the Private Window.

• Select Preferences and click on Privacy on the Safari menu
• Click on Manage Website Data, and a list of sites will appear
• Choose the site that is causing issues and click on Remove
• Click on Done to finish the process
• Go back to the non-private window and open the website again.

Your Mac should be able to rebuild the favicon cache on its own. If you know your way around the device, you can manually make another favicon cache folder, but this is not a recommended route. It is better to contact the Apple Support center.    

If you continue having issues with favicons, create a new user on your Mac. This method has worked for others on the Apple Community Forum , where users try to help each other solve various challenges with Mac. One user managed to retrieve all the missing favicons using this method. 

• Select System Preferences (System Settings on macOS Ventura and above) on your menu and click Users & Groups
• Click on Add at the bottom of the dialogue box.   
• Choose the type of user, preferably the Administrator. 
• Enter the name of the new user and a password.
• Click on Add User.

The first time you open Safari under the new user profile, favicons should all work perfectly. \

Also Read: How to Change Admin Name on Mac

The Mac has a preference setting that allows tabs to display icons when you’re on Safari. Check that your preferences are set correctly by following these simple steps. 

• Open Safari 
• Click on Safari in the menu bar
• Select Preferences 
• Click on Tabs, and a list of preferences will show up
• Tick the box allowing website icons to be shown. 

The image below shows the box that you should tick. You can try doing this a couple of times while restarting your device. Try this method several times, restarting your device each time. 

If you use Time Machine to backup files, then you can use it to retrieve files and items. The good thing about Time Machine is that it works with almost all Mac apps. Here is a reminder of how to open Time Machine and retrieve files and items. 

• Click on the Time Machine icon. If the icon is not there, go to System Preferences (System Settings on macOS Ventura and above) and click Time Machine on the Apple menu.
• Click on Show Time Machine in the menu bar to browse backups and local snapshots.
• Use the arrows to look through your missing files and items. When you see the files you need, click Restore. 

You can restore all the files at once or one by one. When restored, the files return to the original folder. Remember, you need to have already set your device to back up to the Time Machine for this method to work perfectly.   

Also Read: How to Turn off Time Machine on a Mac

Your Safari favorites icons missing challenge can also be solved by updating your device. The macOS Catalina 10.15.7 Combo update fixes issues that prevent files from syncing with iCloud and resolves graphics. You can download this update and see if the problem is solved. 

Follow these steps to download software updates on your Mac. 

• Open the Apple menu and choose System Preferences (System Settings on macOS Ventura and above).
• Click on Software Update.
• Open the Software Update preferences for the Safari folder.

You can also find a list of available updates in the Apple Store or set your device to check for software updates in the System Preferences (System Settings on macOS Ventura and above) automatically. However, for this particular issue of missing favicons, the Catalina 10.15.7 Combo update should be able to help. 

Method 7: Use the safe mode         

One way of solving issues on your Mac is to restart it in safe mode. The safe mode allows your device to start and run with limited functionality as you try and solve specific issues. You must determine if your device uses Apple silicon, then follow these steps. 

• Shut down your Mac device.
• Turn on your Mac and hold the power tab until the startup options window appears.
• Choose the startup disk. 
• Click the Continue in Safe Mode tab while holding down the shift key.
• Log in, and if asked to, do it again.

If your device uses the Intel processor, follow the instructions below.

• Turn on the Mac
• Press and hold the shift key immediately
• Release the shift key when the login window appears
• Login as per instruction

All the methods mentioned here should help retrieve missing or distorted favicons. If you continue having issues after everything I have touched on here, you may need to reinstall your macOS to ensure that all the third-party apps are up to date. 

Also Read: Best Mac OS Version

Always keep your Mac device updated, as this helps solve issues before they arise. Clearing your favicon cache is the simplest and fastest way of retrieving your missing favicon. If it does not work, you should get joy from the other methods mentioned above. As a last resort, reinstall the operating system. None of your data is removed by reinstalling macOS. Click on the Reinstall macOS tab in the Utilities window and follow the instructions to complete the process. 

Do not close the lid on your Mac until the reinstallation process is finished. Your device will load all the latest software updates and be as good as new. Besides everything I have covered here, you can also contact Apple support and get help.   

Favicons provide a convenient way of quickly identifying websites on tabs, bookmark lists, and browser history. For those using the internet for work, favicons save valuable time and energy since you do not have to type the first few letters of sites to get where you want to be.

Ujjwal is a tech enthusiast with a special interest in everything Apple! He manages and writes on MacMyths.com where sharing anything and everything related to Apple devices and services is his daily thing to do.

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Safari User Guide

• Get started
• Go to a website
• Get highlights
• Bookmark webpages to revisit
• See your favorite websites
• Use tabs for webpages
• Hide distractions when browsing
• Apple Pay in Safari
• Apple Pay in third-party browsers
• Autofill credit card info
• Keep a Reading List
• Hide distractions when reading
• Translate a webpage
• Hide distractions when watching videos
• Download items from the web
• Add passes to Wallet
• Save part or all of a webpage
• Print or create a PDF of a webpage
• Interact with text in a picture
• Change your homepage
• Customize a start page
• Create a profile
• Block pop-ups
• Make Safari your default web browser
• Hide your email address
• Manage cookies
• Clear your browsing history
• Browse privately
• Prevent cross-site tracking
• See who tried to track you
• Change Safari settings
• Keyboard and other shortcuts

View your Favorites in Safari on Mac

Do any of the following:

View your Favorites from the Smart Search field: Click in the Smart Search field to see your Favorites in the start page view, then click the icon of the website you want to visit. The start page view goes away if you start typing, and it doesn’t appear if you click the field while you’re viewing the start page.

You can also see your favorite websites when you open new tabs. If you don’t see your Favorites in new tabs, see Change General settings .

Show the Favorites bar: Choose View > Show Favorites Bar. A bar with your favorite websites appears below the toolbar.

Go to a favorite website: Click in the Smart Search field, then click a website below Favorites, or click a website in the Favorites bar.

How to refresh website favicons in Safari on Mac

Are some website icons missing or showing incorrectly in Safari? Learn how to refresh Safari favicons on your Mac to force the browser to fetch the new icons and display everything correctly.

A favicon is the small website logo you see in your browser tab. The ability to see favicons for websites in Safari is convenient. It lets you spot the site you want at a glance by seeing just the icon on your tab, in your bookmark list, and in your history.

But have you ever noticed favicons that go missing or are incorrect, showing the wrong icon? You can “refresh” the website favicons in Safari on Mac in just a few steps, and we’ll show you how.

Also see: How to hide or show website icons in Safari Favorites Bar

Delete Safari’s favicon cache

If you’re experiencing favicons that aren’t right, maybe they have icons for different websites; clearing the cache and starting over is a good option.

1) Close and quit Safari . You can do this by clicking Safari from the top menu bar and choosing Quit Safari .

2) Using Finder, click Go > Go to Folder from the menu bar

3) Enter ~/Library/Safari/Favicon Cache/ in the pop-up window and go to this location.

4) Select all items in the cache folder and move them to the Trash . You can select all with the keyboard shortcut Command + A and then drag them to your Trash or right-click and pick Move to Trash.

5) Empty your Trash or delete those items from it. (For help with both options, check out our tutorial on How to Empty Trash on Mac .)

6) Open Safari .

The Safari favicon cache folder will rebuild itself as you visit websites. And you’ll need to visit the sites you have saved for the favicons to appear. But those that were incorrect or missing should show up correctly.

Related : How to skip the Trash and delete files on Mac immediately

Alternative option

If you’d rather try something else, there is one other option that may or may not work.

Open the website with the incorrect favicon in a private window in Safari. You can do this easily by right-clicking Safari in your Dock and selecting New Private Window or selecting File > New Private Window from the menu bar.

Visit the website in the private window, and when you return to your non-private Safari, the favicon may be correct.

The suggestion comes from the Apple Community Forum . This method did not work for the user with the question, nor did it work for me; however, it’s worth a try if you’d like.

Enabling favicons in Safari

As a reminder, you can enable favicons in Safari on older versions of macOS by following these simple steps.

1) With Safari open, click Safari > Preferences from the menu bar.

2) Select the Tabs tab.

3) Check the box for Show website icons in tabs to enable favicons.

Hopefully, either rebuilding the Safari favicon cache or opening a specific site in a private window works for you. And if you have another method to refresh favicons in Safari that works for you, please share it in the comments below!

Useful Safari tips:

• 11 tips to customize and personalize Safari on iPhone and iPad
• How to pin tabs in Safari on iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• How and why to update Safari, Chrome, and other web browsers on iPhone and Mac
• How to open multiple websites at once on Mac

How To : This Hidden Setting Gives Safari's Favorites Bar Better-Looking Shortcuts to Your Most-Used Bookmarks

Apple has a new way to tidy up your favorite bookmarks in Safari , making them easier to access than ever before. This new feature saves space, allowing you to quickly see more of your favorites at the same time.

While you can quickly access any of your iCloud-synced favorite bookmarks in Safari from your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, the newest Safari feature is for macOS and iPadOS only since it's all about the Favorites Bar. The bookmarks bar has been available in Safari on macOS for a while but has only become an iPad option since iPadOS 17 .

To show the Favorites Bar on macOS, go to View –> Show Favorites in Safari's menu bar. On iPadOS, go to Settings –> Safari and toggle on "Show Favorites Bar."

• Don't Miss: Create Safari Profiles to Separate Browsing Activity for Personal, Work, and Other Topics on Your iPhone or iPad

Since the initial release of macOS 14 Sonoma and iPadOS 17, Safari 17 has included an option to hide favicons, or website icons, from bookmarks in the Favorites Bar. It also affects folder icons and works with Safari 17 on the older macOS versions.

With the feature, favicons will still appear on tabs, history results, and Safari's Start Page on macOS and iPadOS, as well as in the list that pops up after you click the "Show more bookmarks" icon (>>) at the end of the Favorites Bar on macOS. However, it will increase the number of favorites you see on the Favorites Bar as a whole.

In the Safari 17.4 update for macOS, released March 7, two days after it became available on iPadOS 17 , there's an even better way to save space in the Favorites Bar. Instead of removing the icons, you can remove the text, freeing up even more room for additional bookmarks to show at once in the bar. Let's see how it all works below, but make sure you're running Safari 17.4 first.

• Don't Miss: 30 New Features and Changes for Your iPhone on iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4

Jump to a Section

Option 1: show/hide titles per bookmark on mac, option 2: show/hide titles per bookmark on ipad, option 3: show/hide all titles or icons on mac, option 4: show/hide all titles or icons on ipad.

To show only the icon of a specific webpage in your Favorites Bar on macOS, right-click or Control-click the bookmark in the bar and deselect "Show Title." Only the webpage's icon will show. However, if the bookmark gets pushed off into the hidden "Show more bookmarks" list, its name will still appear next to its icon.

To return the name, right-click or Control-click the bookmark in the bar and select "Show Title."

Before Safari 17.4, the only option was "Show Icons," which applied to the whole Favorites Bar. This option showed only the title of bookmarks for everything visible in the bar. There was no option to show only website icons.

To show only the icon of a specific webpage in your Favorites Bar on iPadOS, long-press or tap and hold the bookmark in the bar, tap "Edit," toggle off "Show Title," and hit "Save."

Only the webpage's icon will show. However, if the bookmark gets pushed off into the hidden "More" list (•••), its name will still appear next to a bookmark icon (favicons don't appear in this list).

To bring the name back, long-press or tap and hold the bookmark in the bar, tap "Edit," toggle on "Show Title," and hit "Save."

This was not possible prior to iPadOS 17.4.

If you want to change how the bookmarks and folders look in the Favorites Bar on macOS en masse, right-click or Control-click the Favorites Bar but not a bookmark or folder directly.

To keep the default settings on the Favorites Bar, make sure "Show Icons and Text" is selected. This is also how things appear in the hidden "Show more bookmarks" list. If you choose any of the other options, you won't be able to show or hide titles for individual webpages.

To show only website icons on the Favorites Bar, select "Show Icons Only." Folder names will still appear next to folder icons since you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them otherwise. And if the webpage's symbol gets pushed to the hidden "Show more bookmarks" list, its name will still appear next to its icon.

To show only text on the Favorites Bar, select "Show Text Only." All website and folder icons will disappear, and only bookmark titles and folder names will remain. Folders will be distinguishable by the chevron symbol next to them.

If the bookmark's or folder's name ends up in the hidden "Show more bookmarks" list, its icon will still appear next to its title.

Your only option before Safari 17.4 was "Show Icons." There was no option to show only website icons.

To change how the bookmarks and folders look in the entire Favorites Bar on iPadOS, go to Settings –> Safari –> Favorites Bar Appearance. The default option is "Show Icons and Text." If you choose any of the other options, you won't be able to show or hide titles for individual webpages.

To show only website icons on the Favorites Bar, select "Show Icons Only." Folder names will still appear next to folder icons since you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them otherwise. And if the webpage's symbol gets pushed to the hidden "More" list, its name will still appear next to a bookmark icon.

To show only text on the Favorites Bar, select "Show Text Only." All website and folder icons will disappear, and only bookmark titles and folder names will remain. Folders will be distinguishable by the chevron symbol next to them. This text-only setting was available for Safari on iPad before iPadOS 17.4 by disabling the "Show Icons in Favorites Bar" switch in Settings –> Safari.

If the bookmark's or folder's name ends up in the hidden "More" list, a bookmark or folder icon will still appear next to its title.

Just updated your iPhone to iOS 18? You'll find a ton of hot new features for some of your most-used Apple apps. Dive in and see for yourself:

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