Where Are the Social Media Logos Stored in WordPress?

Where are the social media logos stored in WordPress? When you are building a professional WordPress site, social media integration plays the most important role. Social media icons and logos are click-through routes to your online presence that ask people to follow, share, or engage with your company. But have you ever wondered: Where are social media logos actually being housed in WordPress?

In this article, we will be discussing how WordPress handles social media icons, where they are typically placed, and how you can manage, customize, or override them based on the tools or themes you use.

Whether you are a beginner or a developer, understanding how WordPress handles such visual elements will allow you to optimize your site’s design, performance, and branding.

Before diving into social media logos specifically, it’s important to understand the general way WordPress stores files:

• Media Library: Any image you upload (including icons or logos) is stored in the WordPress Media Library.
• File Structure: These files are saved on your server in the wp-content/uploads folder, organized by year and month.
• Database References: WordPress stores the image metadata (title, alt text, URL, etc.) in the database.

This foundational method applies to any images—including social media logos—unless overridden by plugins, themes, or page builders.

Depending on how your site was built, social media icons can be stored in different locations or referenced dynamically. Here are the common scenarios:

1. Icons in WordPress Themes

Many themes come with built-in social media icons. These are often stored as:

• Font icons (like Font Awesome or Ionicons)
• SVG files stored in theme folders (usually /wp-content/themes/your-theme/assets/icons/)
• PNG/JPG images placed in a theme’s image folder

How to Locate:

• Use FTP or File Manager to explore your active theme folder.
• Navigate to the assets, img, or images subfolders.
• Search for files named facebook.svg, twitter.png, linkedin.svg, etc.

How They’re Used:

• Hardcoded in theme files like header.php, footer.php, or sidebar.php
• Dynamically loaded via theme options or customizer settings

2. Icons via Plugins

Social media plugins often bundle their own icon sets. Some popular examples:

• Simple Social Icons
• Smash Balloon Social Media Feed
• Social Warfare

These plugins may:

• Use font icon libraries (e.g., Font Awesome)
• Store images inside plugin directories
• Load assets via CDNs for speed and optimization

How to Locate:

• Visit /wp-content/plugins/plugin-name/
• Look for folders like /images/, /assets/icons/, or /includes/fonts/

Example:

/wp-content/plugins/simple-social-icons/images/facebook.svg

3. Icons Added via Page Builders (Elementor, Divi, etc.)

Modern page builders like Elementor, WPBakery, or Divi offer drag-and-drop social icons. These are often sourced from:

• Font libraries (like Font Awesome)
• Media uploads (custom icons you upload)

Elementor Example:

• Icons are embedded using Font Awesome by default.
• You can override them by uploading custom SVG or PNG icons.

How to Locate:

• Check Elementor’s Icon Library.
• For custom uploads, check the Media Library or wp-content/uploads/

4. Custom Code (Hardcoded Icons)

In custom themes or bespoke development, social media icons might be hardcoded directly into template files using <img>tags or SVGs.

Where They’re Stored:

• In the theme folder, often under /images/, /icons/, or /assets/

Example Code:

<a href=”https://twitter.com/yourprofile”>

  <img src=”/wp-content/themes/mytheme/assets/icons/twitter.svg” alt=”Twitter”>

</a>

Some themes and plugins rely entirely on Font Awesome or similar libraries to display social media icons. In these cases:

• Icons are not image files. They are vector-based characters delivered through CSS.
• You can identify them by tags like <i class=”fab fa-facebook”></i>.

Pros:

• Fast and lightweight
• Scalable without losing quality
• Easy to style with CSS

Cons:

• Limited customization
• Dependent on loading external font libraries (can affect performance)

SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) icons are becoming increasingly popular due to their sharp quality and tiny file size.

Why Use SVGs?

• Smaller in size than PNGs or JPGs
• Retina-friendly
• Easily styled with CSS
• Inline SVGs can reduce HTTP requests

How to Upload SVGs in WordPress:

By default, WordPress blocks SVG uploads. To enable:

1. Install a plugin like Safe SVG or SVG Support.
2. Upload your social media SVG files to the Media Library.
3. Use them in widgets, headers, or page builder sections.

Want to use branded or differently styled social media logos? Here’s how:

1. Upload Your Own Icons

1. Go to Media > Add New and upload your custom icons.
2. Copy the file URLs.
3. Replace default icons in your theme or builder with these new URLs.

2. Override with Custom CSS

If icons are using a background image or font icon, you can override them with custom CSS.

.social-icons .facebook {

  background-image: url(‘your-uploaded-facebook-icon.png’);

  background-size: contain;

}

3. Use a Custom HTML Widget

If your theme allows it, add a Custom HTML block with <img> tags pointing to your icons.

<a href=”https://facebook.com”>

  <img src=”/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/facebook-custom.png” alt=”Facebook”>

</a>

• Font Awesome Plugin: Easily manage icons without coding.
• Simple Social Icons: Customize icon colors, size, and alignment.
• Elementor or Divi: Drag-and-drop interface for full control.
• Custom Icons Plugin: Upload your own icon set.

• Optimize file sizes for faster loading
• Use SVGs where possible for scalability
• Consistent design: Stick to one style (flat, outline, filled)
• Alt text: Use descriptive alt tags for accessibility and SEO
• Update icons to match branding changes (especially for platforms like X/Twitter)

Social media icons may be a small part of your site, but they’re a critical part of branding, UX, and performance. In WordPress, those icons are pulled from one of several sources—your theme, plugins, page builders, or custom upload—and having control over where they’re located gives you the power of customization and management in your hands.

If you wish to replace default icons with trendy SVGs, locate a plugin’s asset folder, or just ensure all is working well, this tutorial has given you the map to achieve just that.

Next time you’re messing around with the header or footer of your site, you’ll know where social media logos live—and how to make them shine.