Expo · SDK 58

How to Set the App Icon in Expo (SDK 58)

Q: Do I need a separate Android adaptive icon?

Recommended. Without android.adaptiveIcon, Android draws your square icon inside its own mask and may crop it.

Q: How do I support iOS dark and tinted icons?

Give ios.icon an object with light, dark and tinted paths, or point it at a .icon file.

Short answer

Put a 1024×1024 PNG at assets/images/icon.png and set "icon" in app.json. For Android, add android.adaptiveIcon with a foreground image and a background color. The icon is part of the native build, so rebuild to see it. Expo Go never shows your icon on the home screen.

Checked against Expo: Splash screen and app icon and Expo app config reference in October 2026.

Files you need

File	Size	Rule
`icon.png`	1024×1024 PNG	iOS: fill the whole square. No rounded corners, no transparent pixels.
`adaptive-icon.png` (foreground)	1024×1024 PNG	Logo inside the middle 66/108 (about 61%). Transparent around it.
`monochrome-icon.png` (optional)	Same as the foreground	One-color version for Android 13+ themed icons
`ios-dark.png`, `ios-tinted.png` (optional)	1024×1024 PNG	Dark: transparent background. Tinted: grayscale.

app.json

{
  "expo": {
    "icon": "./assets/images/icon.png",
    "ios": {
      "icon": {
        "light": "./assets/images/icon.png",
        "dark": "./assets/images/ios-dark.png",
        "tinted": "./assets/images/ios-tinted.png"
      }
    },
    "android": {
      "adaptiveIcon": {
        "foregroundImage": "./assets/images/adaptive-icon.png",
        "monochromeImage": "./assets/images/monochrome-icon.png",
        "backgroundColor": "#1E40AF"
      }
    }
  }
}

Key	What it does
`icon`	Default icon for every platform. 1024×1024 PNG.
`ios.icon`	A PNG path, an object with `light` / `dark` / `tinted`, or a `.icon` file from Icon Composer (SDK 54+).
`android.adaptiveIcon.foregroundImage`	The logo layer on the home screen
`android.adaptiveIcon.backgroundColor`	6-character hex. Defaults to `#FFFFFF`.
`android.adaptiveIcon.backgroundImage`	Overrides `backgroundColor`. Same size as the foreground.
`android.adaptiveIcon.monochromeImage`	Used when the user turns on themed icons (Android 13+)
`android.icon`	For Android versions without adaptive icons

Using Icon Composer for iOS

app.json

{
  "expo": {
    "ios": { "icon": "./assets/app.icon" }
  }
}

Icon Composer's .icon file carries the dark and tinted looks itself, so you don't add separate variants.

Rebuild

bash

npx expo prebuild --clean
npx expo run:android
npx expo run:ios

Or make a new EAS build. Without Prebuild or EAS Build, changes to the icon in app.json have no effect.

Expo app icon not updating: fixes

You see	Why	Fix
Expo's icon on the home screen	That is the Expo Go app, not yours	Make a development or release build
The old icon after changing app.json	The icon is native; JS reloads don't change it	`npx expo prebuild --clean`, rebuild, reinstall
Adaptive icon cut off	Logo reaches outside the safe zone	Keep it in the middle 66/108 of the foreground
White square behind the logo on Android	`backgroundColor` defaults to `#FFFFFF`	Set `android.adaptiveIcon.backgroundColor`
Rounded corners look doubled on iOS	The PNG already has rounded corners	Use a full square; iOS applies the mask
Dark mode icon ignored	No `dark` entry in `ios.icon`	Add `ios.icon.dark`, or use a `.icon` file

FAQ

What size is the Expo app icon?

1024×1024 PNG. Expo makes the smaller sizes at build time.

Why doesn't Expo Go show my app icon?

Expo Go is its own app with its own icon. Your icon shows only inside Expo Go's project list and in your own builds.

Do I need a separate Android adaptive icon?

Recommended. Without android.adaptiveIcon, Android draws your square icon inside its own mask and may crop it.

Can the iOS icon have a transparent background?

No. The light icon must fill the whole square. Only the dark variant uses transparency.

How do I support iOS dark and tinted icons?

Give ios.icon an object with light, dark and tinted paths, or point it at a .icon file.