What happens when you convert ICO to CUR
- The image is decoded and written as a Windows cursor with its hotspot in the top-left corner.
- Cursors are small: the image is scaled to fit the size you choose, 32 by 32 pixels by default, with the hotspot (the clicking point) at the top-left corner.
How to convert ICO to CUR online
- Press "Choose ICO files" and select one or more files, or drag them onto the box. You can add files of any size your device can hold in memory.
- Adjust the settings if you need to. The output is lossless, so there is no quality setting to worry about.
- Press "Convert to CUR". Images convert in a second or two each.
- Save each CUR with its download button. Close the tab and every trace of the files is gone from memory.
Why convert ICO to CUR?
ICO files usually come from website favicons and Windows program icons. People convert them to CUR because CUR is the format Windows and web pages use for custom mouse pointers.
In short, ICO is good at what it was made for, and CUR is the more practical choice when the file has to open, upload or print somewhere else. ICO shown by browsers as a favicon; opening one directly depends on the viewer, while CUR used by Windows as a mouse pointer; browsers accept it in the CSS cursor property.
How to convert ICO to CUR on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android
On Windows
Open this page in Chrome, Edge or Firefox, drag your ICO files in from File Explorer, and press Convert. Each CUR is saved to your Downloads folder.
On a Mac
Safari, Chrome and Firefox all work. Drag the ICO files from Finder onto the drop zone and the CUR files land in Downloads.
On iPhone and iPad
Open the page in Safari and tap Choose ICO files. You can pick from Photos or from the Files app. The converted CUR appears in Files, in the Downloads folder; to put it in your photo library, open it there, tap Share and choose Save Image.
On Android
Open the page in Chrome, tap Choose ICO files and pick them from Files or your gallery. The CUR is saved to the Download folder, where any file manager can find it.
Best settings for ICO to CUR
Windows uses 32 by 32 pixel cursors at normal display scaling and 48 or 64 pixels on high-resolution screens. Start from an image with a transparent background, so only the pointer shape shows, and keep the tip of the pointer in the top-left corner, because that is where the hotspot is placed.
ICO vs CUR: the differences
| ICO | CUR | |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Windows icon | Windows cursor |
| Type | image | image |
| Created by | Microsoft | Microsoft |
| First released | 1985 | 1985 |
| Compression | Lossless | Lossless |
| Transparency | Yes | Yes |
| Animation | No | No |
| Vector or raster | Raster | Raster |
| Colour | up to 32-bit colour with alpha, at most 256 by 256 pixels | up to 32-bit colour with alpha, usually 32 by 32 or 48 by 48 pixels |
| In a browser | shown by browsers as a favicon; opening one directly depends on the viewer | used by Windows as a mouse pointer; browsers accept it in the CSS cursor property |
| Common uses | website favicons and Windows program icons | custom mouse pointers for Windows and for websites |
| MIME type | image/x-icon | image/x-win-bitmap |
About ICO and CUR files
What is an ICO file?
An ICO file is a small container that can hold several sizes of the same icon, and since Windows Vista each size may be stored as an embedded PNG. The largest size an ICO can hold is 256 by 256 pixels.
What is a CUR file?
A CUR file is built like an ICO icon, with one addition: a hotspot, the exact pixel that does the clicking. Windows reads cursors from CUR files, and web pages can use them through the CSS cursor property.
ICO to CUR not working? Common problems
- Colours look slightly different. Browsers convert images to the standard sRGB colour space when they decode them, so wide-gamut and CMYK images can shift a little.
- A phone photo comes out upright even though it looked sideways elsewhere. That is correct: the rotation stored in the photo is applied during conversion, so the CUR is always the right way up.
- The file is bigger than expected. It depends on the settings. At the defaults, the CUR usually comes out close in size to the ICO; lower the quality for a smaller file.
Convert ICO to CUR from the command line
If you work in a terminal, ImageMagick converts ICO to CUR in one line:
magick input.ico output.curTo convert every ICO in a folder at once, use magick mogrify -format cur *.ico. The converter on this page does the same job without installing anything.
ICO to CUR converter FAQ
Will I lose quality converting ICO to CUR?
No. CUR is written losslessly, so the result matches the ICO exactly.
Why is the CUR a different size from the ICO?
It depends on the settings. At the defaults, the CUR usually comes out close in size to the ICO; lower the quality for a smaller file.
Are my ICO files uploaded anywhere?
No. The conversion runs inside this browser tab using your browser's own image decoder, so your files stay on your device. You can disconnect from the internet after the page has loaded and it still works.
Can I convert several ICO files to CUR at once?
Yes. Select or drop as many files as you like; they are converted one after another and each gets its own download button.
How do I open a CUR file?
CUR used by Windows as a mouse pointer; browsers accept it in the CSS cursor property. CUR is common for custom mouse pointers for Windows and for websites.
Is this ICO to CUR converter free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, no watermark and no limit on how many files you convert. The site is paid for by advertising, and because conversions run on your device there is no server cost per file.
Can I convert ICO to CUR on my phone?
Yes. The converter works in Safari on iPhone and iPad and in Chrome on Android. Converted files are saved to the Downloads folder.