feather-icons vs material-icons vs react-icons
Icon Libraries for Web Development
feather-iconsmaterial-iconsreact-iconsSimilar Packages:

Icon Libraries for Web Development

Icon libraries are collections of scalable vector icons that can be easily integrated into web applications. They provide developers with a set of pre-designed icons that can enhance user interfaces, improve usability, and convey information visually. The choice of an icon library can significantly impact the design consistency, ease of use, and overall aesthetic of a web application. Each of these libraries offers unique features, styles, and integration capabilities, catering to different design philosophies and project requirements.

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feather-icons161,28725,840625 kB5082 years agoMIT
material-icons03612.23 MB13a year agoApache-2.0
react-icons012,51186.2 MB234a year agoMIT

Feature Comparison: feather-icons vs material-icons vs react-icons

Design Philosophy

  • feather-icons:

    Feather Icons embraces a minimalist design philosophy, focusing on simplicity and clarity. The icons are designed with a consistent stroke width and a clean aesthetic, making them suitable for modern web applications that prioritize a sleek and unobtrusive user interface.

  • material-icons:

    Material Icons are designed according to Google's Material Design principles, which emphasize depth, motion, and visual hierarchy. The icons are bold and expressive, providing a clear visual language that enhances usability and accessibility in applications that follow Material Design guidelines.

  • react-icons:

    React Icons provides a flexible approach, allowing developers to choose icons from various libraries like Font Awesome, Material Icons, and more. This versatility enables developers to mix and match icons based on the design needs of their application, promoting a more personalized and diverse visual experience.

Customization

  • feather-icons:

    Feather Icons are highly customizable, allowing developers to easily change the size, color, and stroke width of the icons using CSS. This flexibility makes it easy to adapt the icons to fit the specific design requirements of a project without losing their clean aesthetic.

  • material-icons:

    Material Icons offer limited customization options, primarily focusing on predefined styles and sizes. While they can be styled using CSS, the icons are designed to maintain a consistent look and feel, which may restrict extensive customization but ensures design coherence across applications.

  • react-icons:

    React Icons allows for easy customization of icons through React props. Developers can adjust size, color, and other properties directly in their components, making it convenient to integrate icons that match the application's design without additional overhead.

Integration

  • feather-icons:

    Feather Icons can be easily integrated into any web project by including the SVG files or using a CDN. They are lightweight and do not require any additional dependencies, making them a straightforward choice for developers looking for simplicity in integration.

  • material-icons:

    Material Icons can be integrated via Google Fonts or by downloading the icon set. They are optimized for performance and can be used seamlessly in projects that follow Material Design, ensuring that the icons load efficiently and maintain high quality.

  • react-icons:

    React Icons is specifically designed for React applications, allowing for straightforward integration through npm. Developers can import icons directly into their components, making it easy to manage and utilize a wide range of icons from different libraries without complex setup.

Performance

  • feather-icons:

    Feather Icons are lightweight and optimized for performance, ensuring that they do not significantly impact the loading time of web applications. Their SVG format allows for scalability without loss of quality, making them ideal for responsive designs.

  • material-icons:

    Material Icons are also optimized for performance, with a focus on efficient loading and rendering. They are available in various formats, including SVG and icon fonts, allowing developers to choose the best option for their project's performance needs.

  • react-icons:

    React Icons provides a performance advantage by allowing developers to import only the icons they need, reducing the overall bundle size. This selective import capability ensures that applications remain performant while still having access to a vast array of icons.

Community and Support

  • feather-icons:

    Feather Icons has a growing community and is well-documented, making it easy for developers to find resources and support. The simplicity of the icons and their usage contributes to a positive developer experience.

  • material-icons:

    Material Icons benefit from strong community support and extensive documentation provided by Google. This ensures that developers have access to a wealth of resources, examples, and best practices for implementing Material Design in their applications.

  • react-icons:

    React Icons has a vibrant community due to its integration with React. The library is actively maintained, and developers can find numerous tutorials, examples, and support from the React ecosystem, making it a reliable choice for React projects.

How to Choose: feather-icons vs material-icons vs react-icons

  • feather-icons:

    Choose Feather Icons if you prefer a minimalist design aesthetic with a focus on simplicity and clarity. This library is ideal for projects that require lightweight, easily customizable icons that can seamlessly blend into modern UI designs.

  • material-icons:

    Choose Material Icons if you are developing applications that adhere to Google's Material Design guidelines. This library provides a comprehensive set of icons that are consistent with Material Design principles, making it suitable for applications that prioritize a cohesive user experience and visual hierarchy.

  • react-icons:

    Choose React Icons if you are working within a React environment and need a versatile solution that allows you to easily import icons from various icon libraries. This package provides a unified interface for using icons from multiple sources, making it ideal for projects that require flexibility and a wide range of icon options.

README for feather-icons

Feather

Coverage npm downloads npm version CDNJS version

What is Feather?

Feather is a collection of simply beautiful open-source icons. Each icon is designed on a 24x24 grid with an emphasis on simplicity, consistency, and flexibility.

https://feathericons.com

npm install feather-icons

Table of contents

Quick start

Start with this CodePen Template to begin prototyping with Feather in the browser.

Or copy and paste the following code snippet into a blank html file.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
  <title></title>
  <script src="https://unpkg.com/feather-icons"></script>
  <body>
    <!-- example icon -->
    <i data-feather="circle"></i>

    <script>
      feather.replace();
    </script>
  </body>
</html>

Usage

At its core, Feather is a collection of SVG files. This means that you can use Feather icons in all the same ways you can use SVGs (e.g. img, background-image, inline, object, embed, iframe). Here's a helpful article detailing the many ways SVGs can be used on the web: SVG on the Web – Implementation Options

The following are additional ways you can use Feather.

Client-side JavaScript

1. Install

[!NOTE] If you intend to use Feather with a CDN, you can skip this installation step.

Install with npm.

npm install feather-icons --save

Or just copy feather.js or feather.min.js into your project directory. You don't need both feather.js and feather.min.js.

2. Include

Include feather.js or feather.min.js with a <script> tag:

<script src="path/to/dist/feather.js"></script>

[!NOTE] > feather.js and feather.min.js are located in the dist directory of the npm package.

Or load the script from a CDN provider:

<!-- choose one -->
<script src="https://unpkg.com/feather-icons"></script>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/feather-icons/dist/feather.min.js"></script>

After including the script, feather will be available as a global variable.

3. Use

To use an icon on your page, add a data-feather attribute with the icon name to an element:

<i data-feather="circle"></i>

See the complete list of icons at feathericons.com.

4. Replace

Call the feather.replace() method:

<script>
  feather.replace();
</script>

All elements that have a data-feather attribute will be replaced with SVG markup corresponding to their data-feather attribute value. See the API Reference for more information about feather.replace().

Node

1. Install

Install with npm:

npm install feather-icons --save

2. Require

const feather = require('feather-icons');

3. Use

feather.icons.x;
// {
//    name: 'x',
//    contents: '<line ... /><line ... />`,
//    tags: ['cancel', 'close', 'delete', 'remove'],
//    attrs: {
//      class: 'feather feather-x',
//      xmlns: 'http://www.w3.org/2000/svg',
//      width: 24,
//      height: 24,
//      viewBox: '0 0 24 24',
//      fill: 'none',
//      stroke: 'currentColor',
//      'stroke-width': 2,
//      'stroke-linecap': 'round',
//      'stroke-linejoin': 'round',
//    },
//    toSvg: [Function],
// }

feather.icons.x.toSvg();
// <svg class="feather feather-x" ...><line ... /><line ... /></svg>

feather.icons.x.toSvg({ class: 'foo bar', 'stroke-width': 1, color: 'red' });
// <svg class="feather feather-x foo bar" stroke-width="1" color="red" ...><line ... /><line ... /></svg>

See the API Reference for more information about the available properties and methods of the feather object.

SVG sprite

1. Install

[!NOTE] If you intend to use Feather with a CDN, you can skip this installation step.

Install with npm.

npm install feather-icons --save

Or just copy feather-sprite.svg into your project directory.

2. Use

Include an icon on your page with the following markup:

<svg
  width="24"
  height="24"
  fill="none"
  stroke="currentColor"
  stroke-width="2"
  stroke-linecap="round"
  stroke-linejoin="round"
>
  <use href="path/to/feather-sprite.svg#circle" />
</svg>

[!NOTE] > circle in the above example can be replaced with any valid icon name. See the complete list of icon names at feathericons.com.

However, this markup can be simplified using a simple CSS class to avoid repetition of SVG attributes between icons:

.feather {
  width: 24px;
  height: 24px;
  stroke: currentColor;
  stroke-width: 2;
  stroke-linecap: round;
  stroke-linejoin: round;
  fill: none;
}
<svg class="feather">
  <use href="path/to/dist/feather-sprite.svg#circle" />
</svg>

Figma

Feather is available as a Figma component library. To use the components, log in to your Figma account and duplicate the file to your drafts.

API reference

feather.icons

An object with data about every icon.

Usage

feather.icons.x;
// {
//    name: 'x',
//    contents: '<line ... /><line ... />',
//    tags: ['cancel', 'close', 'delete', 'remove'],
//    attrs: {
//      class: 'feather feather-x',
//      xmlns: 'http://www.w3.org/2000/svg',
//      width: 24,
//      height: 24,
//      viewBox: '0 0 24 24',
//      fill: 'none',
//      stroke: 'currentColor',
//      'stroke-width': 2,
//      'stroke-linecap': 'round',
//      'stroke-linejoin': 'round',
//    },
//    toSvg: [Function],
// }

feather.icons.x.toString();
// '<line ... /><line ... />'

[!NOTE] > x in the above example can be replaced with any valid icon name. See the complete list of icon names at feathericons.com. Icons with multi-word names (e.g. arrow-right) cannot be accessed using dot notation (e.g. feather.icons.x). Instead, use bracket notation (e.g. feather.icons['arrow-right']).

View Source


feather.icons[name].toSvg([attrs])

Returns an SVG string.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
attrs (optional)ObjectKey-value pairs in the attrs object will be mapped to HTML attributes on the <svg> tag (e.g. { foo: 'bar' } maps to foo="bar"). All default attributes on the <svg> tag can be overridden with the attrs object.

[!NOTE] You might find these SVG attributes helpful for manipulating icons:

Usage

feather.icons.circle.toSvg();
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

feather.icons.circle.toSvg({ 'stroke-width': 1 });
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

feather.icons.circle.toSvg({ class: 'foo bar' });
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle foo bar" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

View Source


feather.replace([attrs])

Replaces all elements that have a data-feather attribute with SVG markup corresponding to the element's data-feather attribute value.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
attrs (optional)ObjectKey-value pairs in the attrs object will be mapped to HTML attributes on the <svg> tag (e.g. { foo: 'bar' } maps to foo="bar"). All default attributes on the <svg> tag can be overridden with the attrs object.

Usage

[!IMPORTANT] > feather.replace() only works in a browser environment.

Simple usage:

<i data-feather="circle"></i>
<!--
<i> will be replaced with:
<svg class="feather feather-circle" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>
-->

<script>
  feather.replace();
</script>

You can pass feather.replace() an attrs object:

<i data-feather="circle"></i>
<!--
<i> will be replaced with:
<svg class="feather feather-circle foo bar" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>
-->

<script>
  feather.replace({ class: 'foo bar', 'stroke-width': 1 });
</script>

All attributes on the placeholder element (i.e. <i>) will be copied to the <svg> tag:

<i data-feather="circle" id="my-circle" class="foo bar" stroke-width="1"></i>
<!--
<i> will be replaced with:
<svg id="my-circle" class="feather feather-circle foo bar" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>
-->

<script>
  feather.replace();
</script>

View Source


feather.toSvg(name, [attrs]) (DEPRECATED)

[!WARNING] > feather.toSvg() is deprecated. Please use feather.icons[name].toSvg() instead.

Returns an SVG string.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
namestringIcon name
attrs (optional)ObjectKey-value pairs in the attrs object will be mapped to HTML attributes on the <svg> tag (e.g. { foo: 'bar' } maps to foo="bar"). All default attributes on the <svg> tag can be overridden with the attrs object.

Usage

feather.toSvg('circle');
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

feather.toSvg('circle', { 'stroke-width': 1 });
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="1" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

feather.toSvg('circle', { class: 'foo bar' });
// '<svg class="feather feather-circle foo bar" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"><circle cx="12" cy="12" r="10"></circle></svg>'

View Source

Contributing

For more info on how to contribute please see the contribution guidelines.

Caught a mistake or want to contribute to the documentation? Edit this page on Github

Related projects

License

Feather is licensed under the MIT License.