Google explains the design decisions behind its new icon looks

Some of your favorite Google apps and services have been getting a new look lately. Late last month, we caught wind of a big new redesign coming for the icons associated with many Google products, leaning hard into the color-gradient aesthetic we first saw the company experiment with over a year ago. In the weeks since, those changes have been hitting more and more users, and we saw Google featuring many of these icons at I/O 2026 last week. While you may have thought they were as good as official already, today Google finally gets around to formally introducing them.

All told, 14 Google Workspace products are picking up new icons: Gmail, Calendar, Chat, Meet, Drive, Docs, Slides, Sheets, Vids, Keep, Forms, Voice, Sites, and Tasks. According to the company, the redesigned icons are meant to “drive consistency and cohesion across our product suite” while still offering “a more distinct identity” for each app.

While many of the redesigns keep the same basic look for their icons and largely focus on new coloring, others are very much looking to reinvent themselves. Google Sheets, for instance, drops its “page” icon in favor of a more abstract design that really zooms in on some spreadsheet cells. Others seem much more conflicted about just how much they want to change — Google Meet takes on a bold new yellow color but can’t seem to shake its old-timey camera design

If you’re still not seeing these new looks in all the places you’re expecting to, don’t worry, as even though Google says it got the ball rolling on wide deployment last week, we’re looking at an “extended” rollout timetable, and it may take well into June before everyone’s got the new icons.

What do you think about the new set? Are these positive changes for Google’s brand identity? Did you like things better the old way? Scroll back up to our poll and let us know what you think. And just remember, even if these aren’t for you, Pixel users can always just go full disco with their icons. Who doesn’t love having options?