icon-design

Icon Design

Select the right icon for the job. Maps concepts to icons, provides templates, prevents common mistakes.

Quick Reference (Top 20 Concepts)

Concept	Lucide	Heroicons	Phosphor
Award/Quality	Trophy	trophy	Trophy
Price/Value	Tag	tag	Tag
Location	MapPin	map-pin	MapPin
Expertise	GraduationCap	academic-cap	GraduationCap
Support	MessageCircle	chat-bubble-left-right	ChatCircle
Security	Shield	shield-check	Shield
Speed	Zap	bolt	Lightning
Phone	Phone	phone	Phone
Email	Mail	envelope	Envelope
User/Profile	User	user	User
Team	Users	user-group	Users
Settings	Settings	cog-6-tooth	Gear
Home	Home	home	House
Search	Search	magnifying-glass	MagnifyingGlass
Check/Success	Check	check	Check
Close/Cancel	X	x-mark	X
Menu	Menu	bars-3	List
Calendar	Calendar	calendar	Calendar
Clock/Time	Clock	clock	Clock
Heart/Favourite	Heart	heart	Heart

Library Selection

Library	Best For	Package
Lucide	General use, React projects	lucide-react
Heroicons	Tailwind projects, minimal style	@heroicons/react
Phosphor	Weight variations needed	@phosphor-icons/react

Default recommendation: Lucide (1,400+ icons, excellent React integration)

See references/library-comparison.md for detailed comparison.

Icon Style Rules

Sizing

Context	Tailwind Class	Pixels
Inline with text	w-4 h-4 or w-5 h-5	16-20px
Feature cards	w-8 h-8	32px
Hero sections	w-10 h-10 or w-12 h-12	40-48px
Large decorative	w-16 h-16	64px

Consistency Rules

1. Never mix styles - Use all outline OR all solid in a section
2. Never use emoji - Use proper icon components (tree-shakeable)
3. Use currentColor - Icons inherit text color via stroke="currentColor"
4. Semantic colours - Use text-primary, not text-blue-500

Tree-Shaking (Critical)

Dynamic icon selection breaks tree-shaking. Use explicit maps:

// BAD - all icons bundled
import * as Icons from 'lucide-react'
const Icon = Icons[iconName]  // Tree-shaken away!

// GOOD - explicit map
import { Home, Users, Settings, type LucideIcon } from 'lucide-react'
const ICON_MAP: Record<string, LucideIcon> = { Home, Users, Settings }
const Icon = ICON_MAP[iconName]

Selection Process

1. Identify the concept - What does the label/title communicate?
2. Check semantic mapping - See references/semantic-mapping.md
3. Choose library - Lucide (default), Heroicons (Tailwind), Phosphor (weights)
4. Apply template - See references/icon-templates.md
5. Verify consistency - Same style, same size in section

Decision Tree

When unsure which icon:

Is it about recognition/awards? → Trophy, Star, Award
Is it about money/price? → Tag, DollarSign, CreditCard
Is it about location? → MapPin, Globe, Map
Is it about people/team? → Users, UserGroup, User
Is it about communication? → MessageCircle, Phone, Mail
Is it about safety/trust? → Shield, Lock, ShieldCheck
Is it about speed/time? → Zap, Clock, Timer
Is it trade-specific? → Check semantic-mapping.md
Still unsure? → CheckCircle (generic positive) or Sparkles (generic feature)

Resources

• references/semantic-mapping.md - Full concept→icon tables by category
• references/icon-templates.md - React/HTML patterns with Tailwind
• references/library-comparison.md - Lucide vs Heroicons vs Phosphor
• references/migration-guide.md - FA/Material → modern equivalents
• rules/icon-design.md - Correction rules for projects