The use of icons is getting big in modern web design. Icons are being employed to enhance the user experience, allowing for better visual recognition of elements on a page. Today’s icons are extremely stylized, far from old-school clip art of the past. If it is well designed, an icon can make a great visual impression as well as enhance the look of your site design. An effective icon will give a clear meaning to the user and allow them to easily spot what they need faster than from standalone text. Though icons are great for usability, too many icons can distract the user and get confusing. Today’s focus is on using icons more sparingly and giving the icons you do use higher-value locations. Fewer, more effective icons command attention and will be more appealing to the user. Check out the examples below of excellent uses of modern icons:

FreelanceSwitch

AshWebStudio

Curb Innovative

Artificial Studio

EnviroSpeakTV

Dishizzle

Macrabbit

Media Temple

SMS Parking