How to Change the Folder Icon on a Mac

Did you know that you can change the folder icon on Mac? OK, the process is similar to how you change the color of folder icons. But yes, by following a few simple steps, you can create customized folder icons to personalize your Mac. You can easily organize your Mac's folders in different colors or themes to increase productivity.

You can use a custom image for the folder icon, such as any image stored on your device or download anything from the web. So, are you ready to transform your Mac into a new incarnation? Let's get started.

In this post, we've covered a simple step-by-step guide on how to change Mac's folder icons in a few simple steps.

HOW TO CHANGE THE FOLDER ICON ON A MAC

How to change folder icon on Mac?

The image of the folder icon should ideally be in .ICN format so that you can simply drag the file to change the folder icon. But yes, you can also use PNG or JPG files to customize folder icons on Mac. Here's what you need to do:

Open the image file on your Mac that you need to use as a folder icon. To do this, you can simply double-tap the file. Alternatively, you can use the Mac Preview app to load the image file.

Once the image file opens on the screen, tap Edit> Copy. This will copy the image file to your Mac's clipboard.

Now browse to your Mac's library and select the folder whose icon you need to change. Select the folder and then tap File> Get Info.

In the "Get Info" window, you'll see a small folder icon in the top left corner. Right?

Tap the icon and then select Edit> Paste

And that's it! Just after you hit the Paste button, the folder icon will be automatically replaced with your previously copied image on the clipboard.

How to customize all folder icons at once?

If you want to change the Mac's folder icon individually for each specific folder, that's fine, but what if you want to use a simple image for all your Mac's folders? Yes, you can too.

However, the process of changing the default folder icon on Mac is a bit complicated and you may have to dig deeper into the settings. Here's what you need to do:

Before you start, you need to disable "System Integrity Protection" The default folder icon on your Mac is stored in a "protected area". And so, only after you disable System Integrity Protection will you be able to customize or access it.

Load your Mac in recovery mode. Press Command + R key combination when booting to load Mac in recovery mode.

Once your device is restarted, open Mac's Terminal app.

In the terminal window, copy and paste the following command to disable system integrity protection:

After disabling System Integrity Protection, reboot your device.

Now go to this position:

/System/Library/CoreServices/CoreTypes.bundle/Contents/Resources

Once you've navigated to this location, look for the "GenericFolderIcon.icns" file.

Here comes the interesting part. Choose a custom image that you need to use as a folder icon on Mac. To change the folder icon on Mac, replace the GenericFolderIcon.icns file with your custom image file. Use the same file name for the new custom file.

After changing the folder icon on your Mac, be sure to enable System Integrity Protection.

Boot your Mac into recovery mode. Turn on the terminal and then run the following command to enable System Integrity Protection.

Conclusion

So friends here was a step-by-step guide on how to change the folder icon on Mac. You can either change the folder icon for individual folders or use the same custom image for all folders to your liking.

About Debmalya Datta

Welcome to our blog “CYBER SUGGEST“. Debmalya Datta is a professional Blogger, Developer, Social Media Influencer, Digital Marketer and Entrepreneur. He loves doing work which makes him happy, that’s why he choose Blogging and Educate people. You will love exploring educational stuff on our blog. Live your dreams as much as you can. Be a SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTER