How to Refresh Bookmark Favicons in Microsoft Edge on Windows 10

Microsoft Edge calls saved bookmarks Favorites. If a favorite shows a missing, stale, or unrelated icon, open the exact page saved in the favorite first. If that does not update it, clear Edge's cached images and files. For persistent problems, you can rebuild the profile's favicon cache as a last resort. These steps refresh site icons without deleting the favorite itself. Microsoft's Edge favicon troubleshooting guidance covers the same cache behavior.

Why an Edge favorite can show the wrong icon

Edge looks for a favicon associated with the exact page URL, then may fall back to an icon cached for the same website host. That fallback can show the wrong image when a site uses different icons on different pages, such as a page and a PDF. The browser may also display a generic letter if it has not downloaded an icon yet. Edge does not provide a built-in Refresh Icon command for an individual favorite, so refreshing the relevant cache is the practical fix.

1. Reopen the favorite's exact page

First, identify the URL saved in the affected favorite. Open it from the Favorites bar or press Ctrl+Shift+O to open Favorites and select it there. If the icon still looks wrong, copy the favorite's URL and paste it into the address bar. Use that same page, not just the site's home page: Edge may cache icons by exact URL. Let the page finish loading, then check the Favorites bar or menu again. Close and reopen Edge if the icon does not change immediately.

2. Clear only cached images and files

If revisiting the page does not help, clear Edge's cached image files. In the address bar, open edge://settings/privacy. Under Clear browsing data, select Choose what to clear. Set the time range to All time for a full cache refresh, then select only Cached images and files and choose Clear now. Leave browsing history, cookies, passwords, and other data unchecked. This removes cached page images, so some sites may load those images more slowly the next time you visit. It does not remove your Favorites when those other categories remain unchecked. After clearing, open the same saved URL again and give Edge time to fetch its icon.

3. Rebuild the favicon cache if the icon is still wrong

Use this step only if the first two methods fail. Before changing profile files, you can make an HTML backup: open Settings and more > Favorites, select More options above the favorites list, and choose Export favorites. Microsoft's favorites backup guide documents this option.

1. In Edge, open edge://version and note the Profile path. This identifies the profile currently in use; it may not be the Default profile if you use multiple profiles.
2. Close every Edge window. Make sure Edge has fully exited before touching its profile files.
3. Open File Explorer, paste the Profile path into its address bar, and press Enter. On a standard Windows 10 setup, the path ends in Microsoft\Edge\User Data\Default.
4. Delete only the files named Favicons and Favicons-journal, if present. Do not delete the Bookmarks file or the profile folder.
5. Start Edge again and visit the saved page. Edge will rebuild its favicon data as sites load; icons may appear as generic letters until they are downloaded again.

These file names and the restart sequence come from Microsoft's manual favicon-cache instructions. If your Profile path is customized, use the path shown by edge://version rather than assuming the Default folder.

Check the result and avoid outdated utilities

After Edge has reopened the site, look at the same favorite again. If the icon is still a generic letter, the website may not provide a favicon at that URL. If it changes to another site's icon, the site may serve different favicons on different pages; open the exact page saved in the favorite and repeat the cache refresh if necessary. If you have multiple Edge profiles, confirm that you are checking the same profile shown on edge://version.

Older versions of this advice recommend the Manage Edge Favorites utility, also known as EdgeManage, for a one-click refresh or custom icon. Its developer now states that the program works only with legacy Edge and is not compatible with Chromium-based Edge. Do not follow its old menu instructions for the current browser. The developer's compatibility note explains the limitation.

Sources

• Microsoft Learn: Fix Edge saved site icons changing on the New Tab page
• Microsoft Edge: Back up Favorites
• EdgeManage developer: compatibility information