How to Trademark a Logo: Complete 2026 Guide

Trademarking a logo means registering it as a design mark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), giving you exclusive nationwide rights to use that specific visual design in connection with your goods or services. At Michael Meyer Law, the flat fee for a logo trademark search and single-class application is $500 plus the USPTO filing fee of $350 per class, for a total of $850.

This guide covers every step: what qualifies, whether to file a design mark or a word mark (or both), how to prepare a logo application, and what happens during USPTO examination.

Can You Trademark a Logo?

Yes — logos, icons, symbols, and stylized visual designs are fully registrable as federal trademarks. The USPTO refers to these as design marks or stylized marks, as distinct from standard character marks (which protect a word or phrase in any font or style).

What makes a logo registrable follows the same distinctiveness analysis as any other trademark. The design must function as a source identifier — something that consumers associate with your brand specifically, rather than a generic symbol or a common decorative element. A completely abstract, distinctive logo (think the Nike swoosh or the Apple logo) is strong and registrable. A logo that consists only of a generic shape or a common industry symbol may face challenges.

Logos that are primarily functional — meaning the design is dictated by the nature of the product rather than brand identity — may be refused under the functionality doctrine. And logos that are merely ornamental — designs used only as decoration on clothing or merchandise rather than as brand identifiers — face refusal under the failure to function standard.

For most business logos that serve as actual brand identifiers on products, packaging, websites, or marketing materials, registration is available and valuable.

Word Mark vs. Design Mark: Which Do You Need?

This is the most important strategic question for any business with both a name and a logo, and it is the one most often misunderstood by people filing on their own.

A word mark (standard character mark) protects the text itself — the words, letters, or numbers — in any font, style, size, or color. If you register MICHAEL MEYER LAW as a word mark, you own rights to that phrase as a brand identifier regardless of how it is typeset or displayed. Word mark protection is broader and generally more valuable because it covers all visual presentations of the name.

A design mark protects a specific visual design as filed — the particular logo, icon, or stylized version of your name. If your logo changes, your existing design mark may not cover the new version. If competitors use your brand name in a different visual style, your design mark may not stop them.

The practical answer for most businesses is: file both.

Filing both a word mark for your business name and a design mark for your logo provides complete brand coverage — the name in any presentation, and the specific visual design. This is the standard approach for any brand with both a name worth protecting and a logo that functions as a distinct identifier.

Two separate USPTO applications means two filing fees ($350 each for a single-class application) and two attorney preparation fees, but the combined protection is significantly stronger than either application alone. The incremental cost of filing the second application is typically lower than the first because the clearance search work largely overlaps.

At Michael Meyer Law, multi-application matters are quoted individually — contact Michael to discuss the right filing strategy for your brand before committing to a single application.

Step 1 — Conduct a Clearance Search for Your Logo

A clearance search for a design mark works differently from a name search. The USPTO's TESS database has a design search code system — the Vienna Classification — that organizes trademarks by visual elements rather than words. A proper logo clearance search involves identifying the relevant design codes for your logo's visual elements (animals, geometric shapes, stylized letters, etc.) and searching for existing marks in those categories.

The practical components of a comprehensive logo clearance search are:

USPTO design code search — Using the Vienna Classification, identify the design codes that apply to your logo's visual elements and search TESS for existing marks with similar codes in your class of goods or services. A logo featuring a stylized bird, for example, would require searching bird-related design codes across relevant classes.

Phonetic and meaning search — If your logo includes words or letters, those elements are also searched textually for likelihood of confusion with existing word marks. A design mark that includes text is evaluated on both the visual similarity of the design and the similarity of the text.

Common law search — Unregistered logos used in commerce can create prior rights. A comprehensive common law search covers trade publications, website image searches, industry databases, and business name registries.

The design code search is the step that separates a proper logo clearance from a basic online name search. Most online filing platforms do not conduct a real design code search — they run the text in your logo through TESS and call it done. This misses a significant category of potential conflicts.

Step 2 — Prepare Your Logo File for the USPTO Application

Logo trademark applications require a specific type of image file that meets USPTO technical requirements. Getting this right at filing time prevents a common source of Office Actions and delays.

File format and specifications:

• The image must be in JPG (JPEG) format
• Maximum file size: 5 MB
• Resolution: minimum 300 DPI recommended for clear reproduction
• The image should contain only the mark — no additional text, borders, or explanatory labels
• If you are claiming a specific color or colors as part of the mark, the image must be in color and the application must include a color claim and color description

Color vs. black and white filing — an important strategic decision:

If you file your logo in black and white without claiming any specific colors, your trademark registration covers the logo in all color combinations. This is broader protection. If you file in color and claim specific colors as part of the mark, your registration covers only that specific color scheme — a competitor using your same logo design in different colors might not infringe.

For most logos, filing in black and white (without a color claim) provides the strongest protection. File in color only if the specific color combination is itself a critical brand identifier — think Tiffany blue or UPS brown — and you can demonstrate that consumers associate those specific colors with your brand.

If your logo includes both distinctive design elements and distinctive colors, discuss the color claim decision with an attorney before filing. The choice affects the scope of your protection.

Description of the mark:

Logo applications require a written description of the mark — a precise verbal description of what the logo depicts. The USPTO requires this description to be accurate, specific, and consistent with the image submitted. A poorly written mark description is a common source of Office Actions in logo applications.

A good description covers: what the mark consists of (e.g., "a stylized image of a bird in flight above the word SWIFTLY in sans-serif lettering"), any color claim if applicable, and any disclaimed elements (standard words or symbols that cannot be exclusively claimed).

Step 3 — Identify Your Goods and Services and Select the Right Class

Logo trademarks, like name trademarks, are registered in specific classes of goods or services. The protection runs to those classes — a logo registered for Class 25 (clothing) does not automatically protect you against a competitor using a similar logo for Class 9 (software).

The same class selection considerations from the name trademark process apply here. For most businesses, one or two classes cover the core use. File in the classes where you actually sell goods or services, plus any classes where you have genuine plans to expand within the next year.

One additional consideration specific to logos: if your logo is applied to both the goods themselves (Class 25 — clothing) and the retail service (Class 35 — retail store services), you may need separate class registrations to fully protect both uses. A trademark attorney can advise on which classes are necessary versus which add cost without meaningful additional protection.

Step 4 — Choose Your Filing Basis

The same use-in-commerce (Section 1(a)) vs. intent-to-use (Section 1(b)) choice applies to logo applications.

Use-in-commerce requires a specimen showing the logo actually used in commerce at the time of filing. For a logo used on goods, acceptable specimens include:

• A photograph of the product with the logo on it (label, hangtag, packaging)
• A photograph of the product itself if the logo is applied directly to the product
• A screenshot of a webpage offering the goods for sale showing the logo in close proximity to the goods and price

For a logo used in connection with services:

• A screenshot of a website with the logo and a description of the services rendered
• A photograph of the logo on a business sign or storefront
• Marketing materials showing the logo in connection with the services

The specimen for a logo application must show the logo itself — not the word mark version of your brand. This is a common mistake when a business has both a logo and a name: submitting a specimen that shows only the text name as the proof of use for a design mark application. The specimen must show the actual logo design as it appears in commerce.

Intent-to-use is available for logos not yet in commercial use, on the same terms as for name marks. After the USPTO approves the application and issues a Notice of Allowance, you have six months to file a Statement of Use with a specimen showing actual use (extendable up to three years).

Step 5 — File and Navigate USPTO Examination

Logo applications go through the same examination process as name applications. The examining attorney reviews the application for:

• Likelihood of confusion with existing registered marks — evaluated on both visual similarity of the overall design and similarity of the goods and services
• Descriptiveness or failure to function as a source identifier
• Technical compliance of the image file and mark description
• Specimen acceptability (for use-based applications)

Office Actions in logo applications most commonly involve:

• Specimen refusals — the submitted specimen does not show the logo in actual use as a source identifier
• Mark description issues — the written description is inaccurate, inconsistent, or not sufficiently specific
• Likelihood of confusion — an existing mark with visual or conceptual similarity in the same or related class
• Failure to function — the design is used only as ornamental decoration rather than as a brand identifier

Responding to a logo Office Action requires the same legal analysis as responding to a name Office Action, with additional technical considerations specific to design mark requirements. Attorney fees for Office Action responses run $500–$1,500 depending on complexity.

Step 6 — Maintain Your Logo Trademark

Logo trademark maintenance follows the same schedule as name trademarks:

• Years 5–6: Section 8 Declaration of Use ($325/class USPTO fee) + optional Section 15 Incontestability ($250/class)
• Every 10 years: Combined Section 8 and Section 9 Renewal ($650/class combined USPTO fees)

One maintenance consideration specific to logo marks: if you rebrand or significantly update your logo after registration, your existing registration may not cover the new design. Minor stylistic updates that preserve the distinctive elements of the mark are generally acceptable. A significant redesign — new typography, substantially different icon, new color scheme if colors were claimed — may require a new application.

This is a strong argument for filing your logo in black and white without a color claim when possible — it gives the registration more flexibility to survive moderate visual updates. It is also an argument for periodically reviewing your trademark portfolio when rebranding.

How Much Does It Cost to Trademark a Logo?

The cost breakdown for a logo trademark is the same as for a name trademark:

• Attorney fee (search + application): $500 flat
• USPTO filing fee (1 class): $350
• Total: $850
• Filing both a word mark and design mark: approximately $1,500–$1,700 total (two applications, two USPTO fees, discounted attorney fee on the second application)

For a complete breakdown of trademark costs including Office Action responses, renewal fees, and multi-class filings, see: How Much Does a Trademark Cost? Complete 2026 Fee Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Trademark law involves fact-specific analysis — contact a licensed attorney to discuss your specific situation.

Written by Michael Meyer, USPTO-Registered Patent & Trademark Attorney, Reg. No. 78,575. Michael has been involved in over 400 patent matters and 200 trademark matters before the USPTO. View credentials and verify license.