Update
Unfortunately, as of iTunes 12.1.0.50, this feature no longer works. I don’t know if Apple saw it as a flaw and fixed it, or if it is something that is now broken. If it returns, I’ll update this here again.
I often need to quickly grab app icons, whether it’s for a post here or I’m doing work for AgileBits on the Apps ❤ 1Password page. While it would be great for developers and shops to make clean versions of their app icons more readily available, I found a quick way to snag them if you have the app downloaded in iTunes (large, rounded icons too. Not the square versions from App Store web pages or tools like this).
I believe this is new in iTunes 12, and though I don’t have older versions to check, Chris Ensor says it isn’t in 11.4. Here’s how:
- Click the Apps section (or press ⌘-7)
- Select the app you want
- Press ⌘-i
- In the info window that appears, click the app’s icon; a blue halo should surround it
- Press ⌘-c
The icon is now copied to your clipboard, and you just need a place to paste and save it. Apps like Acorn and Pixelmator are great choices, but you can also go with OS X’s own Preview.
In the first two, press ⌘-n to get a new file prompt based on the dimensions of the icon in your clipboard. Once the blank file opens, press ⌘-v to paste and you can save however you want from there (I recommend a transparent PNG, but you might need to use the Save for Web options and reduce dimensions to get a reasonable file size).
If you go with Preview, simply open the app and hit ⌘-n to create a new file and automatically paste the icon. Save how you like.