• What is svg-to-ts?
• Who is this for?
• Why you should use svg-to-ts
• Step by step guide on how to create your icon library
  • Video tutorials
  • Written tutorial
• How to use svg-to-ts
  • Usage
    • Binaries
    • Configuration
    • Passing arguments to the binary
    • Configure svg-to-ts over package.json
    • Configuration file
      • Using a custom path
  • ConversionTypes
    • 1. Converting to a single object (conversionType==='object')
      • Available options:
      • Example usage
      • Sample output
    • 2. Multiple constants - Treeshakable and typesafe with one file (conversionType==='constants')
      • Available options:
      • Example usage
      • Sample ouput
    • 3. Tree shakable and optimized for lazy loading (conversionType==='files')
      • Available options:
      • Example usage
      • Sample output
• SVGO - SVG optimization
• Starter project
• Angular builder
• FAQ
  • Which approach should I use
  • Is it possilbe to create a standalone library?
  • Can I use the icons to generate a type?
• Contributors ✨

What is svg-to-ts?

svg-to-ts is a helper tool that converts your SVG icons to TypeScript or TSX. svg-to-ts can convert SVGs to either one TypeScript / TSX file with exported constants, multiple TypeScript files or even compiled JavaScript files with according TS declaration files. Furthermore, it generates all typings in form of interfaces and types.

The generated output can then be used in combination with a iconregistry to create a tree shakable icon library. (More informations...)

Who is this for?

svg-to-ts is designed for autors of component libraries, icon libraries and SPA authors. Our examples and tutorials are made with Angular, however svg-to-ts can also be used with other frameworks such as React or vanilla TypeScript / JavaScript.

Why you should use svg-to-ts

• svg-to-ts helps you provide icons in a tree shakable and performant way.
• You get free step to step guides in form of blog posts, that walk you through the process of creating your own tree shakable icon library
• svg-to-ts optimizes your SVG icons under the hood
• svg-to-ts automatically generates types and interfaces for your icons to improve typesafety
• svg-to-ts was developed based on the experiences of providin an icon library for a large enterprise.
• svg-to-ts offers the possibility to generate TSX files (react components).
• offers three different conversion modes ('object', 'constants' and 'files')
• each method is highly configurable to supports multiple use cases.

Step by step guide on how to create your icon library

We created multiple tutorials to show you how you can use svg-to-ts in the best way. We have two step by step guides. A video course and a blog post. Both cover the same content. Feel free to choose the format you prefer.

Video tutorials

Written tutorial

This blog post guides you through the process of building your own icon library with svg-to-ts.

How to use svg-to-ts

svg-to-ts is a command line tool, it can either be used directly in your terminal or via npm script.

Usage

Binaries

svg-to-ts provides three different binaries.

• svg-to-ts-object
• svg-to-ts-constants
• svg-to-ts-files

You can either run those binaries with npx

npx -p svg-to-ts svg-to-ts-object

or you can add a new script in your package.json.

"name": "my-icon-library",
"version": "3.4.0",
"scripts": {
  "generate-icons": "svg-to-ts"
}

Configuration

When executing a binary svg-to-ts automatically applies some defaults. However, you have multiple ways to configure svg-to-ts. To get a list of available options you can either execute the binary of your choice with the --help argument or you can find all the available options for your conversion type here in the docs:

• 1. Converting to a single object (conversionType==='object')
• 2. Multiple constants - Treeshakable and typesafe with one file (conversionType==='constants')
• 3. Tree shakable and optimized for lazy loading (conversionType==='files')

Once you found your configurations you have the following possibilities to configure svg-to-ts:

• Passing arguments to the binary
• Adding a configuration object in the package.json
• Adding a .svg-to-tsrc file (javascript, json , yaml or yml) in the root of your project or a path of you choice.

Passing arguments to the binary

When choosing this option you directly pass the arguments to your binary.

svg-to-ts-files -s './inputfiles/*.svg' --compileSources true --additionalModelOutputPath ./additional

A complete list of the available arguments can be found by using the --help argument.

svg-to-ts-files --help

When you start using svg-to-ts in bigger projects, configuration may get more sophisticated. At this point command line arguments are hard to read.

Configure svg-to-ts over package.json

To configure svg-to-ts over package.json you can add a svg-to-ts key in your package.json and use the config options. Once you run svg-to-ts those configurations will be picked up. The config object can eiter be an object or an array containing multiple configurations.

{
  "name": "my-icon-library",
  "version": "3.4.0",
  "scripts": {
    "generate-icons": "svg-to-ts"
  },
  "svg-to-ts": {
    "srcFiles": ["./projects/dinosaur-icons/icons/**/*.svg"],
    "outputDirectory": "./projects/dinosaur-icons/icons",
    "interfaceName": "DinosaurIcon",
    "typeName": "dinosaurIcon",
    "prefix": "dinosaurIcon",
    "svgoConfig": {
      "plugins": ["cleanupAttrs"]
    },
    "fileName": "dinosaur-icon.model",
    "additionalModelOutputPath": "./projects/dinosaur-icons/src/lib",
    "compileSources": true
  }
}

Configuration file

To configure svg-to-ts over a .rc file you can add a .svg-to-tsrc file in the root of your project and use the config options. Once you run svg-to-ts those configurations will be picked up.

{
  "srcFiles": ["./projects/dinosaur-icons/icons/**/*.svg"],
  "outputDirectory": "./projects/dinosaur-icons/icons",
  "interfaceName": "DinosaurIcon",
  "typeName": "dinosaurIcon",
  "prefix": "dinosaurIcon",
  "fileName": "dinosaur-icon.model",
  "svgoConfig": {
    "plugins": ["cleanupAttrs"]
  },
  "additionalModelOutputPath": "./projects/dinosaur-icons/src/lib",
  "compileSources": true
}

An alternative for bigger projects is to use a JavaScript-based configuration file. The main advantage here is there you can create dynamic configurations, but also use plain-old JavaScript objects, allowing you to add comments, etc. This is useful for more complex configurations where comments can clarify why options are defined in a certain way.

JS configurations must be defined as a CommonJS module. Whenever you want to use a JS configuration file your rc file has to end with .js.

Here's an example:

const svgToTsConfig = {
  srcFiles: ['./libs/web-icons/icons/**/*.svg'],
  outputDirectory: './libs/web-icons/src/lib',
  interfaceName: 'MyIcon',
  typeName: 'MyIconName',
  generateType: true,
  modelFileName: 'whatever-icon.model',
  additionalModelOutputPath: './libs/web-icons/src/lib',
  iconsFolderName: 'generated',
  delimiter: 'SNAKE',
  barrelFileName: 'generated-icons-barrel',
  svgoConfig: {
    plugins: ['cleanupAttrs']
  },
  compileSources: false
};

module.exports = svgToTsConfig;

Using a custom path

In case you want to put your configuration under a custom path, you can use the --config property to specify a path your configuration. For example svg-to-ts --config ./myconfig.json.

ConversionTypes

svg-to-ts offers three different kinds of conversion types; Converting your icons to a single object, converting your icons to constants or converting your icons to single files. Each approach is designed to solve a specific kind of problem. You can switch between approaches by passing conversionType property (object, constants or files).

1. Converting to a single object (conversionType==='object')

In this scenario the SVG icons are converted to a single object. It's an approach that is suitable if your icon registry accepts an object with the filename as key and the svg data as the value.

Available options:

--version	type	default	description
fileName	string	my-icons	file name of the generated file
tsx	boolean	false	Generate TSX file which can be used as React components out of the box
delimiter	CAMEL, KEBAB, SNAKE, UPPER, NONE	CAMEL	delimiter which is used to generate the types and name properties
svgoConfig	null or config object	check help command - to large to display	by default we search for a svgo.config.js file in the root or an inline configuration object
srcFiles	string	"/*.svg"	input files matching the given filename pattern
outputDirectory	string	"./dist"	name of the output directory
objectName	string	default - export	name of the exported const - if nothing is set - default export will be used
verbose	boolean	false	defines if the log should contain additional information. Can be useful for debugging
generateType	boolean	true	defines if a type should be generated
typeName	string	MyIconType	name of the type to be used when generateType is set to true
namePrefix	string		prefix to be used for the name property included in the generated constant

Example usage

Let's say we have the following four svg files in a inputfiles folder.

• expressionless.svg
• full.svg
• laughing.svg
• smiling-face.svg

We can now run svg-to-ts-object -s ./inputfiles -o ./dist and we end up with the following file in our dist folder.

Sample output

export default {
  expressionLess: '<svg xmlns="http://ww...',
  full: '<svg xmlns="http://...',
  laughing: '<svg xmlns="http://ww...',
  smilingFace: '<svg xmlns="http://www....'
} as { [key in MyIconType]: string };

export type MyIconType = 'expressionLess' | 'full' | 'laughing' | 'smilingFace';

2. Multiple constants - Treeshakable and typesafe with one file (conversionType==='constants')

This approach converts your svg icons into multiple constants in the same file so that they can be used in combination with an icon registry. It furthermore also generates all necssary types. We wrote a step to step guide that explains this approach further and helps you create an icon library with this approach. Find out more in this blogpost

Only the icons included in the consuming SPA also end up in the final bundle of the SPA.

Available options:

--version	type	default	description
tsx	boolean	false	Generate TSX file which can be used as React components out of the box
generateType	boolean	false	defines if a type should be generated
typeName	string	myIcons	name of the type to be used when generateType is set to true
generateTypeObject	boolean	false	generate type object
generateEnum	boolean	false	generate enum object
prefix	string	myIcon	prefix for the generated svg constants
namePrefix	string		prefix to be used for the name property included in the generated constant
interfaceName	string	MyIcon	name for the generated interface
fileName	string	my-icons	file name of the generated file
enumName	string	MyIcons	name for the generated enum
delimiter	CAMEL, KEBAB, SNAKE, UPPER, NONE	SNAKE	delimiter which is used to generate the types and name properties
svgoConfig	string or config object	check help command - to large to display	a path to your svgoConfiguration JSON file or an inline configuration object
srcFiles	string	"/*.svg"	input files matching the given filename pattern
outputDirectory	string	"./dist"	name of the output directory
exportCompleteIconSet	boolean	true	exports a complete icon set
completeIconSetName	string	completeIconSet	Default name of the exported variable
verbose	boolean	false	defines if the log should contain additional information. Can be useful for debugging

Example usage

Let's say we have the following four svg files in a inputfiles folder.

• expressionless.svg
• full.svg
• laughing.svg
• smiling-face.svg

We can now run svg-to-ts-constants -s ./inputfiles -o ./dist and we end up with the following file in our dist folder.

Sample output

export const myIconExpressionLess: {
  name: 'expression_less',
  data: string
} = {
  name: 'expression_less',
  data: `<svg xmlns="http://...`
};
export const myIconFull: {
  name: 'full',
  data: string
} = {
  name: 'full',
  data: `<svg xmlns="http://www...`
};
export const myIconLaughing: {
  name: 'laughing',
  data: string
} = {
  name: 'laughing',
  data: `<svg xmlns="http://www.w...`
};
export const myIconSmilingFace: {
  name: 'smiling_face',
  data: string
} = {
  name: 'smiling_face',
  data: `<svg xmlns="http://www.w3...`
};
/* ⚠️ Do not edit this file - this file is generated by svg-to-ts*/

export type myIcons = 'expression_less' | 'full' | 'laughing' | 'smiling_face';
export interface MyIcon {
  name: myIcons;
  data: string;
}

3. Tree shakable and optimized for lazy loading (conversionType==='files')

This is the most sophisticated approach and also the approach that doesn't only support tree shaking but also supports code splitting which is especially usefull in scenarios where you are using lazy loading.

(Previously, this was the optimizeForLazyLoading option but it has been removed in version 4.3.0.)

Here's a step by step guide on how to create an icon library that is optimized for tree shaking

Often, having the SVGs in a single file is enough. However, if you are in a more complex environment with bigger business applications, you may want to make the icons even more tree shakable.

In Angular, for example, having all icons in a single file shakes out the icons that are not used. However, icons always end up together in a chunk. The conversionOption = files allows you to configure svg-to-ts that icons are generated in a way that they can even be split to lazy loaded chunks. Means not only the amount of the icons in the chunk gets reduced, but also, where they end up. Means, an icon that is only used in a lazy loaded Angular feature module, will only end up there.

Available options:

--version	type	default	description
barrelFileName	string	index	name of the generated type
tsx	boolean	false	Generate TSX file which can be used as React components out of the box
generateType	boolean	false	defines if a type should be generated
typeName	string	myIcons	name of the type to be used when generateType is set to true
generateTypeObject	boolean	false	generate type object
generateEnum	boolean	false	generate enum object
exportCompleteIconSet	boolean	false	Specifies if the complete icon set should be exported or not (can be very handy for showcases)
completeIconSetName	string	completeIconSet	Name of the generated complete icon set (only effective if exportCompleteIconSet is set to true)
prefix	string	myIcon	prefix for the generated svg constants
namePrefix	string		prefix to be used for the name property included in the generated constant
interfaceName	string	MyIcon	name for the generated interface
modelFileName	string	my-icons	file name of the generated file
enumName	string	MyIcons	name for the generated enum
delimiter	CAMEL, KEBAB, SNAKE, UPPER, NONE	SNAKE	delimiter which is used to generate the types and name properties
srcFiles	string	"/*.svg"	input files matching the given filename pattern
svgoConfig	null or config object	check help command - to large to display	by default we search for a svgo.config.js file in the root or an inline configuration object
outputDirectory	string	"./dist"	name of the output directory
additionalModelOutputPath	string	null	if a path is specified we will generate an additional file containing interface and type to this path - can be useful to improve type safety
iconsFolderName	string	"build"	name of the folder we will build the TypeScript files to
compileSources	boolean	false	If set to false, we generate a TypeScript file for each SVG. If set to true we will allready compile those TypeScript files and generate JavaScript files and declaration files
compilationOutput	ESM, UMD, ESM_AND_UMD	ESM	Sets the compilation output. This depends on your target audience. Some consumers require, ESM some UMD. You can choose the correct one or even compile to both.
verbose	boolean	false	defines if the log should contain additional information. Can be useful for debugging

Generating UMD and ESM bundles

When you choose to generate UMD and ESM bundles the generated output will end up in a folder named cjs and esm. In order to correctly access those folders you have to add a exports map to the package.json of your library.

  "main": "./umd/index.js",
  "module": "./esm/index.mjs",
  "exports": {
    ".": {
      "import": "./esm/index.mjs",
      "require": "./umd/index.js"
    }
  }

Example usage

Let's say we have the following four svg files in a inputfiles folder.

• artist.svg
• birthday.svg
• chef.svg
• sleep.svg
• space.svg

We can now run svg-to-ts-files -s ./inputfiles -o ./dist and we end up with the following file in our dist folder.

Sample output

SVGO - SVG optimization

Under the hood we use the svgo project to optimize the svg icons. To configure SVGO you can add a svgo.config.js file to your root. Check out the official svgo page for further docs about the configuration.

Note: If you dont pass any options, svgo will apply some default options (more)

Starter project

If you want to build a standalone icon library we recommend you to checkout the svg-icon-lib-starter project on GitHub. This project allows you to build an astonishing framework-agnostic SVG icon library with ease. Out of the box icon optimization, build process, and icon showcase. 🚀

Angular builder

In case you are working with Angular and prefer the usage of a builder we recommend you to check out our offical Angular builder.

FAQ

Which approach should I use

This depends on your use case. If you have a simple application, it's probably enought to go with the single file or even a object. If you build a framework that is used by multiple teams, then you should probably go with the fully tree shakable scenario (generating multiple files).

Is it possilbe to create a standalone library?

Yes, it is. The current configurations also allow you to put your icon registry inside the component library and the icons in a dedicated npm package. This has the following advantages:

• Icons can be used with different registries
• Simplified build process
• Icons can be released independent of the component library
• No need to let svg-to-ts compile the icons - just set the compile flag to false.

Can I use the icons to generate a type?

If you have a method that decides which icon should be returned its useful to add a return type. To do so you can take advantage of the name subset helper generated by svg-to-ts. The name of the helper will be dynamically generated depending upon the value provided for the interfaceName property. An interfaceName of MyIcon will generate a helper called MyIconNameSubset as shown in the following example.

import {IconNameSubset, myIconSmile, myIconLaugh} from 'my-icon-lib';

type emojiIcons = MyIconNameSubset<[typeof myIconSmile, typeof myIconLaugh]>;

// resulting type is equal to type = 'smile' | 'laugh';

myMethod(): emojiIcons {
  // do stuff here
}

Contributors ✨

Thanks goes to these wonderful people (emoji key):

Kevin Kreuzer 💻 🎨 📖 🤔 🚇 🚧 ⚠️	Shahar Kazaz 💻 📖 🤔 🚧 ⚠️	Felipe Plets 💻 📖 🤔 🚧 ⚠️	Raphael Ochsenbein 💻 📖 🤔 🚧 ⚠️	Guillaume M 💻 📖 🤔 🚧 ⚠️	Jaime Velay Valor 💻	Glenn Greibesland 💻
MrP 📖	Sebastien Dubois 📖	Andrew Polhill 💻 🐛 📖 🤔	Joshua Vinters 📖	Matthäus G. Chajdas 📖	Julian Kimmig 💻	Fernando Montoya 📖
Alexey Evenkov 💻	nmastereal 💻	Katya Pavlenko 💻 📖 🤔	Liran Tal 📖	Ikko Ashimine 📖	Theo Tonge 💻 📖 ⚠️	Kasper Christensen 📖
Antonio 📖	weihsma 💻 📖	Tomas Trajan 💻	Cory Lewis 📖	Logan Cool 🐛	Justin Dietz 🐛 💻 🤔 ⚠️	Tomer953 📖

This project follows the all-contributors specification. Contributions of any kind welcome!