Database Icons
The stacked cylinder shape is the standard visual for "database" across technical diagrams and developer tools — architecture diagrams, admin dashboards, backend documentation, database management UIs. This page collects database icon variants across Pathwork's libraries, from a plain outline cylinder to filled or server-rack-adjacent versions, so you can match the exact weight your diagram or dashboard needs.
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Frequently Asked Questions
This convention traces back to early mainframe-era diagramming and has stuck as the de facto symbol for 'database' or 'data storage' across nearly every technical diagramming tool and icon library since. Because it's so widely recognized in technical contexts, deviating from it for a generic database icon can make it less immediately identifiable to other developers.
Database (the stacked cylinder) represents data storage specifically, while server (typically a rectangular box, sometimes with small indicator lights or slots) represents the physical or virtual machine running services. In architecture diagrams, these are usually distinct components — a server icon for compute, and a separate database icon for the data layer — so mixing them up can misrepresent your system's structure.
For general architecture diagrams where the specific database technology isn't the focus, a generic cylinder icon works fine. If you need to call out a specific database technology, check Pathwork's Developer collection for technology-specific logos (like PostgreSQL's elephant or MongoDB's leaf mark), since those carry more specific meaning than a generic cylinder.
Some libraries offer a 'stacked databases' variant showing two or three overlapping cylinders to represent replication, sharding, or a database cluster, distinct from a single-cylinder icon representing one database instance. Check whether your chosen library includes this variant if you need to represent a multi-database setup.
Each icon keeps the license from its source library attached to it, and terms can differ depending on which library a specific icon comes from. Check the license shown on the individual icon's page before using it commercially, especially in published documentation or diagrams.
Not necessarily — the same cylinder shape works in both contexts, though architecture diagrams often use a more minimal, technical-looking outline style to fit alongside other system components, while admin dashboards might use a slightly bolder or filled version for better visibility in a sidebar or menu.