Overview

The Noun Project is a searchable library of human-made icons and stock photos, built for people who need visual assets across design, office and software workflows. It is strongest for teams that value a large, varied catalog and in-app access; occasional users should weigh attribution and licensing before relying on the free account.

Key features

Nearly 10 million icons in multiple styles give designers a broad pool to search beyond a fixed interface-symbol set. PNG and SVG downloads cover common design needs, while the Mac app adds PDF export. In Figma, AI-enhanced search, style matching and filters for solid or line icons and line weight help narrow the catalog to a consistent look.

Plugins and apps connect the library to PowerPoint and Word, Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign, Google Slides and Docs, and Mac workflows. That breadth can reduce switching between an asset library and the work itself. The Office add-in requires Microsoft Office 365 on PC, Mac or web; the Mac app requires macOS Mojave 10.14.6 or higher and comes with 100 starter icons.

The Icon API provides REST access to the collection for software products, with a focus on growth-stage and enterprise clients. Noun Studio supports custom icon edits and generation. Images edited or generated there remain private to the account, and creators earn royalties when their icons serve as references for downloaded generated icons.

Pricing

The free account is free and allows PNG and SVG downloads, but free-use icons require attribution and downloads do not include the paid commercial-license benefit. That makes it useful for evaluating the catalog or for work where attribution and licensing terms fit, but less suitable for commercial use that needs the included royalty-free license.

Noun Pro costs 39.96 USD per year, equivalent to $3.33/month billed annually. It includes unlimited PNG and SVG downloads, royalty-free commercial licenses, no attribution, plugins and editor access, plus an icon sets and photos add-on. For regular commercial work, the licensing and unlimited downloads are meaningful advantages over the free account.

Noun Team costs 80.04 USD per year, or $6.67/month billed annually, and includes Pro benefits, consolidated billing and priority support. Additional seats cost $3.33/mo per seat, with discounts for teams of 10 or more. It is the more appropriate paid choice when a group needs shared billing and support; solo users do not need to pay for team-specific benefits.

The Icon API trial is free for a billed 30-day free trial and provides API access to the icon collection. Noun Studio credit packs cost 8.99 USD once for 900 credits, described as about 45 edits or generations, with custom edits and generation and royalty-free commercial licenses. Pro subscribers save 10% and get free SVG conversion. The pack suits occasional bespoke asset work, while the per-pack credit allowance makes it distinct from Pro's unlimited icon downloads.

Platforms

The Noun Project supports API, macOS, web and Windows. Its plugin coverage spans creative and office tools, though the specific Office 365 and macOS version requirements matter when selecting an app workflow.

Who it's for

Choose it if you regularly source icons or photos across creative and office applications, need multiple icon styles, or want REST access for a software product. It is less compelling for users who need only a small, fixed icon set, or who want free commercial downloads without attribution.

Pros and cons

Pros: A library of nearly 10 million icons and stock photos offers substantial breadth for varied creative work.
Pros: PNG and SVG downloads, Mac PDF export, and broad plugin coverage fit multiple workflows.
Pros: Pro combines unlimited downloads with royalty-free commercial licenses and removes attribution.
Cons: Free-use downloads require attribution and lack the paid commercial-license benefit, limiting their fit for commercial projects.
Cons: The Mac app and Office add-in have platform requirements that may rule out some setups.
Cons: API access is presented as a 30-day trial, with no continuing price stated.

Alternatives

Compare icon libraries if you want to weigh a broader set of options. Choose Font Awesome instead if its free plan's 2,163 icons, one kit and 10,000 pageviews fit your needs. Lordicon is an alternative when you specifically want animated icons: its free plan includes 9,700 icons, one collection, unlimited exports and a commercial license, with attribution required. For an open-source set of 480+ icons under an MIT license, consider Eva Icons.

Hugeicons offers a free set of 6,000+ Stroke Rounded icons and design and developer plugins; its Pro plan is 99.00 USD per year. Material Symbols may be a better fit when a free Apache License 2.0 library of over 2,500 glyphs in SVG, PNG and font formats is enough. Material Design Icons is another free, open-source option under Apache 2.0, with brand and logo icons excluded and being removed.

Boxicons is worth comparing if you want a web-focused library with a Pro plan at 39.00 USD per year for a single user, including commercial projects, web fonts, plugins and packages. Iconoir is a free, open-source option for web and iOS, with optional donations.

Verdict

The Noun Project is a strong choice for designers and teams that need a large icon and photo catalog integrated into the apps they already use, or developers who need API access. Its paid plans make the commercial-use terms clearer and unlock unlimited downloads, but readers seeking a free commercial library or a narrowly focused icon set should look elsewhere.

	Octicons	The Noun Project
Free plan		Yes
Free trial	No	Yes
Paid from		$3.33/mo
Platforms	Web	api, macOS, Web, Windows
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Icon formats	SVG, CSS, JavaScript, React, Ruby	PNG, SVG
Style coverage	multiple	multiple
Commercial use	Yes	Yes
API access	Yes	Yes
Paid from		3.33 /mo
Icons included		10,000,000
Figma plugin		Yes

Octicons vs The Noun Project

Octicons

The Noun Project