Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Material Icons VS Flat Icons

Compare Material Icons VS Flat Icons and see what are their differences

Material Icons logo Material Icons

Google Fonts now supports icons

Flat Icons logo Flat Icons

20,000 unique, customizable icons with free lifetime updates
  • Material Icons Landing page
    Landing page //
    2024-05-22
  • Flat Icons Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-01

Material Icons features and specs

  • Extensive Collection
    Material Icons offer a comprehensive set of over 2,000 icons, covering a wide range of use cases and design needs.
  • Consistency
    The icons are designed following Google's Material Design guidelines, ensuring visual and functional consistency across different platforms and applications.
  • Scalability
    Being vector-based, these icons can be scaled to any size without losing quality, making them versatile for various screen resolutions.
  • Ease of Integration
    Material Icons are easy to integrate into projects through the use of the Google Fonts API, CSS, or direct downloading and inclusion in codebases.
  • Customizability
    Icons can be customized in terms of color, size, and other styles to fit the specific needs of a project.
  • Free and Open Source
    Material Icons are free to use under the Apache License 2.0, making them accessible for both personal and commercial projects.

Possible disadvantages of Material Icons

  • Steep Learning Curve
    For designers not familiar with Material Design, there may be a learning curve to understanding and effectively implementing the design principles.
  • Design Limitations
    While Material Icons are highly versatile, their design is rooted in Material Design principles, which may not fit every brand or aesthetic.
  • Performance Overhead
    Including a large number of icons through the Google Fonts API can result in additional HTTP requests, potentially affecting page load times.
  • Less Unique
    Given their popularity, Material Icons are widely used, which may lead to a lack of uniqueness in the design of applications using them.
  • Inconsistent Updates
    While Google does update the icon set, updates can be infrequent or may not include all needed icons for newer features or design trends.

Flat Icons features and specs

  • High Quality
    Flat Icons offers high-quality, professionally designed icons that can enhance the visual appeal of projects.
  • Scalability
    The icons are vector-based, meaning they can be scaled to any size without losing quality.
  • Consistency
    The icons are designed with a consistent style, which helps maintain a cohesive look across different elements of a project.
  • Variety
    The bundle includes a wide range of icons covering various themes and categories, making it versatile for different projects.
  • Ease of Use
    The icons are available in multiple formats (SVG, PNG, etc.), making it easy to integrate them into different applications and platforms.

Possible disadvantages of Flat Icons

  • Cost
    The bundle is not free, which might be a drawback for individuals or small teams with limited budgets.
  • Overhead
    The large number of icons could be overwhelming, leading to increased time spent on selecting the right icons for specific needs.
  • Customization Limitations
    While the icons are high-quality, they might not perfectly match the unique branding elements of some projects, requiring additional customization by the user.
  • Style Constraints
    The flat design style may not be suitable for all projects, especially those requiring a more detailed or three-dimensional look.
  • Learning Curve
    For beginners, there may be a small learning curve to effectively incorporate these icons into their projects, particularly if they are not familiar with vector graphics.

Material Icons videos

NOU - Icon Pack Review Material Icons Best Icon Pack

Flat Icons videos

YAFI Yet Another Flat Icons Pack Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Material Icons and Flat Icons)
Web Icons
39 39%
61% 61
Design Tools
49 49%
51% 51
Vector Icons
22 22%
78% 78
Photos & Graphics
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Material Icons and Flat Icons

Material Icons Reviews

10 Best Fontello Alternatives 2021
Fontello doesn’t have this capability so this makes Material Icons the more superior tool. Also, the Material Icons font catalog supports over 135 languages—a feature most of its rivals including Fontello cannot do.
Top FontAwesome alternatives to use on your websites
If you are familiar with Google Fonts already, then you will be familiar with Google's Material Icons. You can include Material Icons in the exact same way that you would include a Google Font family on your webpage.

Flat Icons Reviews

We have no reviews of Flat Icons yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Material Icons seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 67 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Material Icons mentions (67)

  • Best Icon Font Libraries for Developers
    By adding Material Design Icons to your project, you can have a clean and professional look that is in line with current design standards. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Best Flutter Icon Libraries in 2025
    It is a collection of icons provided by Google Fonts, available on their website. This set is the go-to for developers who want to maintain consistency with Google’s Material Design principles. With a wide range of icons, this library is perfect for creating a polished, cohesive app interface. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • The Best 100 Free UI/UX Resources for Every Designer & Developer
    Material Icons Fonts.google.com/icons Google’s open-source icon set for Material Design. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • ✨10 Stunning Icon Libraries to Check Out (That Are Free and Open-Source) 🚀
    Website: Material Symbols GitHub Repo: GitHub Repo. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Ask HN: Which SVG icon library are you using and why?
    Https://fonts.google.com/icons My preference for new projects is currently swaying towards Google's Material library as its just so easy and fast to use. Nevertheless Fontawesome has been a staple for me for the last several years! - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
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Flat Icons mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Flat Icons yet. Tracking of Flat Icons recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Material Icons and Flat Icons, you can also consider the following products

Feather Icons - Simply beautiful open source icons

Font Awesome - Font Awesome makes it easy to add vector icons and social logos to your website. And version 5 is redesigned and built from the ground up!

IconStore - Free icon packs by first-class designers

Heroicons - Beautiful, free SVG icons from the makers of Tailwind CSS.

Fluent Icons by Icons8 - Colorful and stylish icons for your projects

Bootstrap Icons - Official open source SVG icon library for Bootstrap