Table of Contents
If you Enable SVG Thumbnail Preview in Windows in Windows 11, you see a preview from the thumbnail when you choose a PNG, JPEG, or other image file format. It’s a useful feature that makes it easy to find photos and put them in order, especially if you’ve transferred a lot of photos from your phone or camera to your computer.
Windows 11 can preview thumbnails for most types of image files except SVG File . If you don’t already know, it is an image format for 2D graphics that is based on XML and supports animation and interaction.
If you choose an SVG file in File Explorer, you won’t see a preview like you do with PNG and JPEG files. Instead, you’ll just see a regular thumbnail. In plain English, you will see an app icon next to the file you want to open. Take a look at the screenshot below to see what’s going on:
How to Enable SVG Thumbnail Preview in Windows 11
- Download a free utility called PowerToys from GitHub and install it.
- Once it is installed, launch it and open its Settings.
- Select “General” tab in the left sidebar. Click on “Restart as administrator” button under “Administrator mode”.
- Once PowerToys restarts, open its Settings again.
- Click on “File Explorer add-ons” in left panel.
- Under “Preview Pane”, toggle the switch to on for “Enable SVG (.svg) preview” option. Similarly, toggle to switch to on for “Enable SVG (.svg) thumbnails” under “Icon Preview”.
- Restart your Windows 11 computer. Once it reboots, launch PowerToys and confirm it is running by checking its icon in the taskbar.
What is an SVG File?
An XML-based text file describes the shapes, colors, and text in an SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) file. Vector-editing software makes it easy to change SVG files because they are highly scalable, can be resized without losing quality, and can be resized easily without losing quality.
So, they are useful for making images and logos for web design that are dynamic and responsive. They can also be used to make web-based apps, animations, and interactive graphics.
FAQ
To see SVG thumbnails in File Explorer, you’ll need help from Microsoft’s free PowerToys utility, which you can download for free from GitHub. The latest version is usually listed toward the top of the download page. Next, install “PowerToys,” and you’ll be able to see SVG thumbnails by default.
To enable the ability to view SVG thumbnails in Windows 10/11 File Explorer, there is a tool called Microsoft PowerToys that you can install. For those with a lot of SVG files, this makes it way easier to browse and preview your SVG files in File Explorer.
Open File Explorer. Click on three horizontal dots at the right end of the ribbon tabs and then choose Options from the menu. In the Folder Options window, uncheck the box beside Always show icons, never thumbnails (if it’s checked). Click Apply and hit Ok.
SVG images can be written directly into the HTML document using the tag. To do this, open the SVG image in VS code or your preferred IDE, copy the code, and paste it inside the element in your HTML document. If you did everything correctly, your webpage should look exactly like the demo below.