Brandwave

Material Symbols vs Noun Project:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Noun Project had more branded searches than Material Symbols among icon libraries worldwide. Noun Project had about 246,000 branded searches, while Material Symbols had 14,800. Noun Project made up 14.2% of all icon library searches we track, and Material Symbols accounted for 0.85%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about icon libraries, Material Symbols appeared in four of the five answers and Noun Project in one. Material Symbols was mentioned before Noun Project in four out of five answers.

Among icon libraries worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Noun Project, about 17 searches for every 1 for Material Symbols

Noun Project 246K searchesMaterial Symbols 14.8K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Material Symbols, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Noun Project in 1

Material Symbols in 4 of 5Noun Project in 1 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Material Symbols, named ahead of Noun Project in 4 of 5 answers

Material Symbols first in 4Noun Project first in 1

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Top icon libraries in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Material Symbols was mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Noun Project was mentioned in one out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Material Symbols was listed before Noun Project in four out of five answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. Lucide1st
  2. Phosphor Icons2nd
  3. Heroicons3rd
  4. Material Symbols4th
  5. Tabler Icons5th
  6. Font Awesome6th
  7. Flaticon7th
  8. Iconoir8th
  9. Noun Project9th
  10. Iconify10th

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Lucide4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Phosphor Icons4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Heroicons4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Material Symbols4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Font Awesome3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Iconoir3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Tabler Icons2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Flaticon1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Noun Project1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Iconify1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about icon libraries

5 answers

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.

Is Material Symbols or Noun Project more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Material Symbols and Noun Project by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten icon libraries we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Material Symbols and Noun Project among icon libraries worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Noun Project, Material Symbols. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthFlaticonFont AwesomeNoun ProjectLucideIconifyPhosphor IconsTabler IconsHeroiconsMaterial SymbolsIconoir
Oct 202559.4%17.8%11.9%3.6%2%1.1%1.3%2%0.72%0.26%
Nov 202559.6%17.9%12%3.6%2%1.1%1.1%2%0.59%0.21%
Dec 202559.7%18%9.8%4.4%2.4%1.3%1.3%2%0.72%0.22%
Jan 202657.8%17.4%11.6%4.3%2.3%1.6%1.6%2.3%0.86%0.21%
Feb 202658.2%17.5%11.7%4.3%2.4%1.6%1.3%1.9%0.86%0.21%
Mar 202655.4%16.7%13.7%5%2.2%2.2%1.5%2.2%0.82%0.24%
Apr 202657%17.2%11.5%5.1%2.3%2.3%1.5%1.9%0.85%0.25%
May 202659.3%14.6%12%5.4%2.4%2%1.6%1.6%0.88%0.21%
Jun 202659.3%14.6%12%5.4%2.4%2%1.6%1.6%0.88%0.21%
Jul 202655.5%16.7%11.2%6.1%2.7%2.7%1.8%1.8%1%0.3%
Aug 202658.2%14.3%11.7%6.4%2.4%2.4%1.9%1.6%0.86%0.31%
Sep 202657.7%14.2%14.2%5.2%2.3%2.3%1.6%1.3%0.85%0.25%

How has the Material Symbols and Noun Project comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for icon libraries worldwide in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Noun Project gained share of searches among icon libraries worldwide, from 11.7% to 14.2%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Material Symbols worldwide fell 18.2% over 12 measured months, from 18.1K to 14.8K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Material Symbols’ and Noun Project’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Material Symbols

1 branded search term

  • material symbols

Noun Project

1 branded search term

  • noun project

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among icon libraries

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