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What the globe next to your site name means
The globe is Google's generic icon, shown when it isn't using one from your site. The small icon next to your site name in the results is your favicon. Google can show it when your site has one that meets its guidelines, but it warns that a favicon isn't guaranteed.
The name beside it is the site name. Google generates it automatically from your home page and from references to your site across the web. To suggest the name you prefer, Google says to add WebSite structured data to the home page.
Where Google looks for your favicon
Google only looks for the icon on your home page. The page needs a link tag in its header, with icon as the rel value, pointing to the file. Google also accepts shortcut icon and apple-touch-icon, the icon designed for iOS. The file can live on your own site or on another server, such as a CDN.
Google supports one favicon per hostname. A subdomain like shop.example.com can have its own icon. A subdirectory like example.com/shop can't, so it uses the home page icon. If your online shop or blog runs on a subdomain, check it separately.
Googlebot has to be able to crawl the home page and follow any redirects to the page where the icon is declared, and Googlebot-Image has to be able to crawl the icon file. If robots.txt or any other rule blocks them, Google won't show the icon. If the whole home page is blocked, it's worth checking whether your business can be found and understood.
Why does Google show a globe instead of my logo?
It means Google isn't using any icon from your site. Your home page may not declare one, robots.txt may block the page or the file, or the image may not be square or in a supported format. Check those points and request indexing of the home page. Even then, Google says a favicon isn't guaranteed.
What size and format Google needs for a favicon
The icon must be square and at least 8 by 8 pixels. Google recommends going larger than 48 by 48 pixels so it looks good on different surfaces. Supported formats are BMP, GIF, ICO, PNG, JPEG, PPM and TIFF.
SVG and WebP are not on the list. If your site only declares its icon in one of those formats, add a PNG or ICO version as well. If you've read that the icon has to be a multiple of 48 pixels, Google's current page doesn't ask for that.
Google also asks for an icon that represents your brand, so people can spot your site as they scan the results. A horizontal logo with the full name is hard to read in such a small square. A clinic or restaurant with a long name needs a reduced version of the logo, such as the symbol or the initial, that fits the brand system.
Seeing a globe or your old logo next to your name? Leave your details and we'll check what your icon is missing.
Let's take a lookWhy Google still shows your old logo
When you change the icon, Google has to recrawl the home page and process the new information. Google says crawling can take anywhere from several days to several weeks, depending on how often its systems decide the content needs refreshing. Imagine a Girona restaurant that has just rebranded. Until Google recrawls its home page, the old logo may keep showing in the results.
Before you wait, check that the home page already points to the new file, that no tag for the old one remains in the theme or a plugin, and that the icon URL doesn't change with every tweak, because Google asks for a stable one. Then you can request indexing of the home page with the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console.
How long does Google take to show a new favicon?
Google says crawling can take anywhere from several days to several weeks. First check that the home page already points to the new file. Then you can request indexing of the home page with the URL Inspection tool in Search Console. Until Google recrawls it, the old icon may keep appearing in results.
Your favicon and your structured data logo are separate
Organization structured data is another place where you can tell Google about your logo. It can help Google understand which logo you want it to show, for example in search results and knowledge panels. Google recommends adding it to your home page or to a single page about your organisation, such as the about page.
That logo has its own requirements. It must be at least 112 by 112 pixels, its URL must be crawlable and indexable, and the file format must be supported by Google Images. It also has to look right on a plain white background. So it makes sense to prepare the square icon and the full logo at the same time.
Can my online shop have a different favicon from my main site?
It depends on where the shop lives. Google supports one favicon per hostname. If the shop is on a subdomain such as shop.example.com, it can have its own. If it sits in a folder such as example.com/shop, Google uses the home page icon. Check how your site is set up before designing two icons.
What to prepare and what to ask your designer and web team
Ask whoever designs your brand for the reduced version in a square, tested at small sizes, plus the full logo in high resolution. Ask whoever runs your website to go through each point on the list below and add Organization structured data.
If your site runs on WordPress, the site icon has been set under General Settings since version 6.5. The official documentation asks for a square image of at least 512 pixels on each side and recommends PNG. If you are commissioning a web design project, put the icon on the list of deliverables.
- The home page declares the icon with rel icon.
- robots.txt doesn't block the home page or the icon.
- The icon is square, larger than 48 by 48 pixels and in a supported format.
- The icon URL stays the same.
- The Organization logo is at least 112 by 112 pixels.
- Indexing of the home page has been requested.
