diff --git a/packages/app/src/App.tsx b/packages/app/src/App.tsx
index f0b31fb4d0..c2273156ac 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/App.tsx
+++ b/packages/app/src/App.tsx
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ import {
   AlertDisplay,
   OAuthRequestDialog,
   SignInPage,
+  defaultAppIcons,
   defaultAppComponents,
 } from '@backstage/core-components';
 import { apiDocsPlugin, ApiExplorerPage } from '@backstage/plugin-api-docs';
@@ -91,6 +92,7 @@ const app = createApp({
   apis,
   plugins: Object.values(plugins),
   icons: {
+    ...defaultAppIcons(),
     // Custom icon example
     alert: AlarmIcon,
   },
diff --git a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/createApp.tsx b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/createApp.tsx
index 1e53103152..7b93daf40f 100644
--- a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/createApp.tsx
+++ b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/createApp.tsx
@@ -16,7 +16,10 @@
 
 import { AppConfig } from '@backstage/config';
 import { JsonObject } from '@backstage/types';
-import { defaultAppComponents } from '@backstage/core-components';
+import {
+  defaultAppComponents,
+  defaultAppIcons,
+} from '@backstage/core-components';
 import { darkTheme, lightTheme } from '@backstage/theme';
 import DarkIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Brightness2';
 import LightIcon from '@material-ui/icons/WbSunny';
@@ -25,7 +28,6 @@ import { BrowserRouter } from 'react-router-dom';
 import { PrivateAppImpl } from './App';
 import { AppThemeProvider } from './AppThemeProvider';
 import { defaultApis } from './defaultApis';
-import { defaultAppIcons } from './icons';
 import { AppConfigLoader, AppOptions } from './types';
 import { AppComponents, BackstagePlugin } from '@backstage/core-plugin-api';
 
@@ -112,8 +114,22 @@ export function createApp(options?: AppOptions) {
     );
   }
 
+  const appIcons = defaultAppIcons();
+  const providedIconKeys = Object.keys(options?.icons ?? {});
+  const missingIconKeys = Object.keys(appIcons).filter(
+    key => !providedIconKeys.includes(key),
+  );
+  if (missingIconKeys.length > 0) {
+    // eslint-disable-next-line no-console
+    console.warn(
+      'DEPRECATION WARNING: The createApp options will soon require all app icons to be provided.' +
+        'These icons can be created using defaultAppIcons from @backstage/core-components ' +
+        'and then passed along like this: createApp({ icons: ...defaultAppIcons() })' +
+        `The following icons are missing: ${missingIconKeys.join(', ')}`,
+    );
+  }
+
   const apis = options?.apis ?? [];
-  const icons = { ...defaultAppIcons, ...options?.icons };
   const plugins = options?.plugins ?? [];
   const components = {
     ...defaultAppComponents(),
@@ -141,7 +157,7 @@ export function createApp(options?: AppOptions) {
 
   return new PrivateAppImpl({
     apis,
-    icons,
+    icons: { ...appIcons, ...options?.icons },
     plugins: plugins as BackstagePlugin<any, any>[],
     components,
     themes,
diff --git a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/icons.tsx b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/icons.tsx
index b234a292b1..f06c9da989 100644
--- a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/icons.tsx
+++ b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/icons.tsx
@@ -35,30 +35,30 @@ import MuiPeopleIcon from '@material-ui/icons/People';
 import MuiPersonIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Person';
 import MuiWarningIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Warning';
 
-type AppIconsKey =
-  | 'brokenImage'
-  | 'catalog'
-  | 'scaffolder'
-  | 'techdocs'
-  | 'search'
-  | 'chat'
-  | 'dashboard'
-  | 'docs'
-  | 'email'
-  | 'github'
-  | 'group'
-  | 'help'
-  | 'kind:api'
-  | 'kind:component'
-  | 'kind:domain'
-  | 'kind:group'
-  | 'kind:location'
-  | 'kind:system'
-  | 'kind:user'
-  | 'user'
-  | 'warning';
+export type AppIcons = {
+  'kind:api': IconComponent;
+  'kind:component': IconComponent;
+  'kind:domain': IconComponent;
+  'kind:group': IconComponent;
+  'kind:location': IconComponent;
+  'kind:system': IconComponent;
+  'kind:user': IconComponent;
 
-export type AppIcons = { [key in AppIconsKey]: IconComponent };
+  brokenImage: IconComponent;
+  catalog: IconComponent;
+  chat: IconComponent;
+  dashboard: IconComponent;
+  docs: IconComponent;
+  email: IconComponent;
+  github: IconComponent;
+  group: IconComponent;
+  help: IconComponent;
+  scaffolder: IconComponent;
+  search: IconComponent;
+  techdocs: IconComponent;
+  user: IconComponent;
+  warning: IconComponent;
+};
 
 export const defaultAppIcons: AppIcons = {
   brokenImage: MuiBrokenImageIcon,
diff --git a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/index.ts b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/index.ts
index ab82774cad..2a16a90bfa 100644
--- a/packages/core-app-api/src/app/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core-app-api/src/app/index.ts
@@ -15,4 +15,5 @@
  */
 
 export { createApp, defaultConfigLoader } from './createApp';
+export type { AppIcons } from './icons';
 export * from './types';
diff --git a/packages/core-components/src/defaultAppIcons.tsx b/packages/core-components/src/defaultAppIcons.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..1d02dd5ad2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/core-components/src/defaultAppIcons.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2020 The Backstage Authors
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+import { IconComponent } from '@backstage/core-plugin-api';
+import MuiApartmentIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Apartment';
+import MuiBrokenImageIcon from '@material-ui/icons/BrokenImage';
+import MuiCategoryIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Category';
+import MuiChatIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Chat';
+import MuiDashboardIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Dashboard';
+import MuiDocsIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Description';
+import MuiEmailIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Email';
+import MuiExtensionIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Extension';
+import MuiGitHubIcon from '@material-ui/icons/GitHub';
+import MuiHelpIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Help';
+import MuiLocationOnIcon from '@material-ui/icons/LocationOn';
+import MuiMemoryIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Memory';
+import MuiMenuBookIcon from '@material-ui/icons/MenuBook';
+import MuiPeopleIcon from '@material-ui/icons/People';
+import MuiPersonIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Person';
+import MuiWarningIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Warning';
+
+export const defaultAppIcons = () => ({
+  brokenImage: MuiBrokenImageIcon as IconComponent,
+  // To be confirmed: see https://github.com/backstage/backstage/issues/4970
+  catalog: MuiMenuBookIcon as IconComponent,
+  chat: MuiChatIcon as IconComponent,
+  dashboard: MuiDashboardIcon as IconComponent,
+  docs: MuiDocsIcon as IconComponent,
+  email: MuiEmailIcon as IconComponent,
+  github: MuiGitHubIcon as IconComponent,
+  group: MuiPeopleIcon as IconComponent,
+  help: MuiHelpIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:api': MuiExtensionIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:component': MuiMemoryIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:domain': MuiApartmentIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:group': MuiPeopleIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:location': MuiLocationOnIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:system': MuiCategoryIcon as IconComponent,
+  'kind:user': MuiPersonIcon as IconComponent,
+  user: MuiPersonIcon as IconComponent,
+  warning: MuiWarningIcon as IconComponent,
+});
diff --git a/packages/core-components/src/index.ts b/packages/core-components/src/index.ts
index 9bc2436559..3538cd4186 100644
--- a/packages/core-components/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core-components/src/index.ts
@@ -26,3 +26,4 @@ export * from './icons';
 export * from './layout';
 export * from './overridableComponents';
 export { defaultAppComponents } from './defaultAppComponents';
+export { defaultAppIcons } from './defaultAppIcons';