How to choose a logo font: a practical guide for small brands

A logo font is one of the most important choices a new brand makes, because people see it again and again. The right font makes your name look confident and memorable. The wrong one can make a good business look amateur. Here is a practical way to choose.

1. Start with your brand, not with the fonts

Before you open a font list, answer three questions: who are your customers, what do you want them to feel, and what are your competitors doing? A law firm, a children's toy shop and a coffee roaster each need a different personality. Write down three words, such as "warm, handmade, friendly", and use them as a filter.

2. Understand the main style families

• Serif fonts suggest tradition and trust.
• Sans serif fonts feel modern and clear.
• Script and handwriting fonts feel personal and elegant, but need space and a large size.
• Slab and display fonts feel strong and eye-catching.
• Blackletter fonts feel historic, edgy or craft-like. See our Old English generator for ideas.

3. Prioritize readability

A logo is often seen small: a social media profile picture, a favicon, a business card. Test your name at a very small size. If letters merge or details disappear, choose a simpler font. Avoid fonts with extremely thin strokes unless the logo will always be large.

4. Check how it looks in your real name

A font that looks great in a sample line may look odd with your particular letters. Capital letters, double letters and tall letters such as "f", "l" and "t" can create awkward gaps. Type your actual brand name in the preview on each font page, in upper case and lower case, and look for uneven spacing.

5. Limit yourself to one or two fonts

Most strong logos use just one font, or two at most. A common approach is a distinctive font for the name and a simple one for the tagline. More than that tends to look busy.

6. Be careful with trendy fonts

A trendy style can make a logo look dated in a few years. If you want longevity, choose a classic style and add personality through colour and layout. If you want a trend, be aware that you may need to refresh the logo later.

7. Check the license for logo use

This step is easy to skip and costly to get wrong. Many free fonts are only for personal use. A logo is commercial work, so you need a license that allows it. Fonts under the SIL Open Font License generally allow logo use. Read the license on the font page, and see our guide to commercial use of free fonts.

8. Think about making it your own

Because anyone can download a free font, a logo made with an unmodified font is not unique and can be hard to protect as a trademark. Small changes help: adjust the letter spacing, connect two letters, change one letter's shape, or convert the text to outlines and edit them. A designer can customize a font far more than you might expect.

9. Test before you commit

Put your logo in the places it will really appear: a website header, an Instagram profile picture, a printed label, a dark background and a light background. Use our font image generator to quickly save your name in many fonts, with a transparent background if you wish, and compare them side by side.

A short checklist

• Does it match three words that describe the brand?
• Is it readable at very small and very large sizes?
• Does it work in black and white?
• Does the license allow logo use?
• Is it different enough from competitors?