An icon is an icon, right? Well, not so much. There are a lot of different kinds of icons out there, and understanding what each type is and what they’re suitable for is the first step in using them in your designs.

Web icons are small graphical representations used on websites and web applications to enhance user experience, convey information, and provide visual cues. There are various types of web icons commonly used in web design.

Here are some popular types:

Standard Icons: These are commonly used icons that represent familiar concepts or actions, such as a magnifying glass for search, a trash bin for delete, or a floppy disk for save.

Social Media Icons: These icons represent popular social media platforms, allowing users to share or connect with a website or web application through social media channels. Examples include the Facebook 'f' logo, Twitter bird, or Instagram camera.

Colored icons are just that — colored. They can either have a solid color or gradient color scheme, and can make icons appear less formal and more playful. The downside to colored icons is that they can be more challenging to integrate into a product’s aesthetic and can even distract users from meaningful content

Navigation Icons: These icons are used to indicate different sections or pages of a website or web application. They provide visual cues to help users navigate through the content. Common navigation icons include a home symbol, menu bars, or arrows for previous and next.

File Type Icons: These icons are used to represent specific file types, such as PDF, Word document, Excel spreadsheet, or image formats like JPG or PNG. They help users quickly identify and interact with different file types.

Action Icons: These icons represent specific actions or functionalities within a website or web application. Examples include icons for play, pause, stop, refresh, download, upload, or share.

Communication Icons: These icons are used to represent communication-related features, such as email, chat, messaging, or notifications. They can be in the form of an envelope, speech bubble, or bell.

Menu Icons: These icons represent the menu or navigation toggle, typically used on mobile or responsive websites. Examples include a hamburger icon (three stacked horizontal lines), a grid icon, or a menu icon with three horizontal lines.

Alert Icons: These icons are used to convey warnings, notifications, or alerts. Examples include an exclamation mark, a bell icon, or a caution sign.

Media Icons: These icons represent media-related features, such as music, video, or photo galleries. They can include icons for play, pause, volume control, full-screen mode, or camera.

E-commerce Icons: These icons are commonly used in online stores or e-commerce websites to represent actions like add to cart, wishlist, checkout, or payment methods such as credit cards or PayPal.

UI Control Icons: These icons are used to indicate various user interface controls and interactions, such as expand/collapse, settings, toggle switches, checkboxes, radio buttons, or sliders.

Miscellaneous Icons: This category includes icons that don't fit into the above classifications but serve specific purposes within a website or web application. Examples can include icons for FAQs, help, user profiles, location, or privacy policies.

Lastly,

Icons are an important part of creating a visually interesting UX design, but they can also greatly add to the usability of a website or other digital product. Consider how the different types of icons might work within your design, taking into account the overall style as well as the sizes at which the icons will be used.