Current Logo Design Trends

July 17, 2014

These days there are many, MANY options in the world of logos, so many in fact that understanding the different styles can be overwhelming. Discovering and designing the perfect logo for your company is an important step in defining your brand image. Whether you’re in the market to create a new logo from scratch or are interested in updating your existing logo, taking a look at these 9 current logo design trends may give you the inspiration you need to get started.

1. Vintage Type Setting Feel

The three logos above all portray vintage type settings, or type arrangement. Vintage logos usually utilize one or more vintage-style fonts possibly styled with a chalk effect, grungy texture or illustrative filigree or decorative line work, rendering brand specific feelings. While all of them send old school retro vibes, they are organized and styled in a modern, compact way. This logo trend can lend brands a casual, yet modern and professional feel.

2. Clean and Minimalistic

While the vintage typesetting logos are very detailed, another popular trend in logo design is simplicity. At first glance, the logos above, with their clean and minimalistic look, may seem like an easy, fast design but don’t let them fool you. Mastering the art of creating simple, branded icon designs takes thought and consideration, especially when reversing colors out in the TREEHOUSE example above. Along with the simple icons, minimalist logo designs utilize a limited color palette, often sticking to a mere two complementing colors.

3. Sans-Serif Fonts

Sans-serif fonts are categorized as letters that don’t have little feet, or letters with strokes that end bluntly. Sans-serif fonts are known for creating a clean, to-the-point message. Using this style of font has become very popular for company logos and affords logos a tidy, professional look.

4. Icon Made of Lines

Logo icons made of lines, instead of shapes, can vary widely from fairly simple (above: left) to more detailed (above: middle). The key to this design trend is to create an icon that quickly communicates the services your company provides, which can be accomplished by designing with familiar shapes that are recognizable and relate to your brand.

5. Logo Patch/Badge

If you’re interested in following the logo patch trend, you’ll probably want to work with a designer with advanced skills. While the color palette may be somewhat minimal, the style may include dimension which can make these logos quite complex. To achieve this badge look, the logo, or content, is encompassed by a defined, usually smooth, shape. The shape of a logo patch may vary but you’ll know one when you see one; they look like they belong stitched to a jacket or t-shirt!

6. Using Colors Instead of Spaces

Along with choosing a sans-serif font, another way to portray words in a logo is by creating the illusion of space between two words by merely making each word a different color. Using color to separate and distinguish one word from another helps viewers to easily read the company name on the logo without adding extra length. Applying this trend can be a space saver for companies with long names or brands looking to keep their logo compact.

7. Letters as Objects

Many brands choose to morph letters of the company name into an object or icon of it’s own as illustrated in the examples above. In the middle example above, Boss Badkamers, a Dutch bathroom designer, has illustrated to you what they do best: bathroom design. By transforming the “o” in “Boss” into a little bathtub, complete with little feet, water and bubbles, you can easily tell what services the company provides. In the left example, a dumbbell has replaced the “o” in “Caljouw” reinforcing their identity: a health and training company. While it’s possible to get crazy, and maybe a little cheesy with this idea, the icons must relate to your brand.

8. Ribbons Effects

From body building brands, to companies focused on education or even businesses selling frozen yogurt, the ribbon effect is used in logos for companies across all industries. Some ribbon effect logos have the company name inscribed on the ribbon while others use the ribbon as a location for secondary text. In the Two Chipmunks logo above, the one with the cute, little critters on it, the company name is written above the graphics and is considered primary text, while a ribbon boasts the product the company sells, frozen yogurt, as secondary text. This logo design trend is easily recognizable and can be incorporated into almost any logo with ease.

9. Flat Icons

While 3D may be the trend at the movies, when it comes to logo design, flat is in. Flat, 2D design is a current logo trend eliminating fancy design elements like textures, shadows and gradients. Many brands are creating icons and logos that lie flat instead of giving the appearance of lifting off the page. Often flat logos stick to minimal colors, creating versatility and ease of use in many mediums. Often a company will need additional, neutral-colored versions of their bright logos; flat designs are incredibly easy to convert to black, white or neutral gray. Another positive note about flat logos: with their lack of complex gradients and drop shadows, flat designs display perfectly in most printing mediums, from websites to business cards or even on t-shirts.