Favicon checker: why your favicon is not showing in Google

Check a site

Or paste the page source

Why a favicon does not show in Google

1. No favicon link in the home page. Google reads the <link rel="icon"> tag on the home page of the host. Without it only a lucky /favicon.ico is tried.
2. The icon file does not load for a crawler. A 404, a login or bot-check page, or a redirect to an HTML page. The checker shows the status and type it got.
3. robots.txt blocks it. Google's help says the favicon file must be crawlable by both Googlebot and Googlebot-Image. A Disallow on the folder holding the icon (/wp-content/, /assets/) is a common reason, and a site in a Google support thread found exactly this.
4. Wrong size or shape. Google's guidelines ask for a square icon whose side is a multiple of 48 px (48, 96, 144...); SVG has no size rule. A 16×16 file works in a tab but may not be chosen for search.
5. The tag is added by JavaScript. A crawler reads the HTML first. If your page builder adds the icon in the browser, the first fetch may not see it. The checker reads the same raw HTML.
6. Several different icons. Google shows one favicon per host. If your pages point to different files, which one it picks is not in your hands.
7. Waiting. Google refreshes favicons slowly after a fix: people report days to several weeks, and it is not guaranteed to show one at all. Request a re-crawl of the home page in Search Console after fixing.

The tags to add

Put these in the <head> of your home page. Try the example checks this broken one (a single PNG with no size hint):

<title>My shop</title>
<link rel="icon" href="/favicon.png">

<link rel="icon" href="/favicon.ico" sizes="48x48">
<link rel="icon" href="/icon.svg" type="image/svg+xml">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/apple-touch-icon.png">

On WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, Shopify or Webflow the favicon is a setting (site icon / site identity), not code; upload a square 512×512 PNG there. The checker above still tells you what ends up on the page.

More than the favicon

A missing favicon is one of about a dozen things the free Site Check measures in a real browser: broken links, mobile layout, speed, accessibility, share previews, structured data.

Want the fixes ready to paste? The Fix Kit is 9 USD, made for your site from its own free report, downloaded at once.

Related tool: Link preview checker (share image not showing).