Skip to content

OPML to ICO Converter

FileFlip converts OPML to ICO entirely inside your browser, using Pandoc, MuPDF and ImageMagick compiled to WebAssembly. The file is never uploaded to a server: it is read off your disk, converted on your own machine, and saved back by the browser. That means no file-size limit, no queue and no account.

Convert OPML to

How do I convert an OPML file to ICO?#

  1. Drop your OPML file onto the converter at the top of this page, or click it to pick one from your computer. You can add as many as you like.
  2. Leave the target set to ICO and the conversion starts on its own. FileFlip downloads 79.9 MB of WebAssembly the first time and nothing after that, then runs Pandoc, MuPDF and ImageMagick on your own machine.
  3. Save the ICO file. Your browser writes it straight to your downloads folder, because there was never a server holding it.

Does converting OPML to ICO lose quality?#

Yes, in the sense that text stops being text. Each OPML page is rendered to pixels and handed to ICO, so the result looks right and can no longer be selected, searched, or reflowed.

Is it safe to convert OPML files online?#

Yes, because nothing is uploaded. FileFlip converts OPML files inside the browser tab you already have open, using WebAssembly builds of the same engines a desktop converter would install. Your file is read from your own disk into the page's memory, and no request carrying it is ever made.

You do not have to take that on trust. Open your browser's network panel, run a conversion, and you will see the engine come down and your file go nowhere. There is no upload, no server-side copy, no retention window, and no account tied to what you converted.

How FileFlip works lists every engine, its version and its download size, and shows how to check for yourself that nothing leaves your machine.

What OPML to ICO actually does to the file#

Converting OPML to ICO runs on Pandoc, MuPDF and ImageMagick, downloads 79.9 MB of WebAssembly the first time and nothing after that, renders each page to pixels, keeps page layout, and drops selectable text and transparency.

EnginePandoc, MuPDF and ImageMagick
Conversion path3 steps: OPML → HTML → PNG → ICO
Downloaded to your browser79.9 MB, once, then cached by your browser
QualityText becomes pixels
You get backOne image per page, zipped when the source has several
Where it runsIn a background worker, so the page stays responsive

What survives the conversion

What is in the fileThis conversionWhy
Selectable textDroppedThe target format has nowhere to put it.
Page layoutKeptCarried through into the converted file.
TransparencyDroppedThe target format has nowhere to put it.

Worth knowing before you start:

  • pages render at twice their point size in opaque RGB, roughly 144 DPI, with no transparency
  • reflowable input is laid out on a fixed 595x842pt page at 11pt before anything else happens
  • the file passes through HTML on the way, so anything HTML cannot express does not survive

What is an OPML file?#

An OPML file is an XML document made of nested outline elements, most often used to move a list of RSS and Atom feed subscriptions from one feed reader to another.

Use OPML to move a list of feed subscriptions between RSS readers, or to export a hierarchical outline from an outliner app.

Convert OPML into a document format like HTML or Markdown when the outline itself, not the feed subscriptions, needs to be read as a document.

What is an ICO file?#

An ICO file packs several copies of the same picture, each a different pixel size and color depth, into one Windows icon container so the operating system can pick whichever copy fits the taskbar, the desktop, or a File Explorer thumbnail.

Use ICO for Windows application icons, desktop shortcuts, and website favicons, where the operating system or browser needs to choose the right size automatically.

Convert ICO to PNG when the image needs to be edited freely, resized to a size the icon doesn't already contain, or used anywhere other than Windows or a browser favicon.

OPML to ICO questions people ask#

What is an OPML file?

An OPML file is an XML document that stores a nested outline, most commonly a list of RSS and Atom feed subscriptions. Feed readers use it to export a subscription list from one app and import it into another.

What do I use an OPML file for?

The main use of an OPML file today is moving feed subscriptions between RSS readers like Feedly, Inoreader or NetNewsWire, so switching apps does not mean resubscribing to every feed by hand. UserLand Software originally designed OPML for general hierarchical outlines, not just feeds.

Can I edit an OPML file by hand?

Yes, an OPML file is plain XML text, so it opens and edits in any text editor. Each subscription or outline entry appears as an outline element with attributes like a title and, for feeds, the feed's URL.

What is an ICO file?

An ICO file is the icon format Windows uses for application icons, desktop shortcuts, and browser favicons. Rather than holding a single picture, it bundles multiple versions of the same image at different pixel sizes and color depths so the system can display whichever one fits the context.