Marketing
The Best Tools to Create Your Own Logo in 2023
Your logo is the most important part of your brand identity. But hiring a designer can get expensive—especially when you’re just getting started in your business. So why not take the DIY route and create your own logo?
There are a ton of logo creator tools that can help you design a logo that feels unique, on-brand and professional. Let’s take a deep dive into the best tools to create your own logo in 2023. You’ll soon be well on your way to designing and creating the perfect logo for your business.
What Is a Logo?
First things first: Before we dive into how to create your logo, let’s cover what, exactly, a logo is and why it’s such an important asset for your business.
A logo is a design that acts as the face of your company. Your logo will take center stage on all of your brand touchpoints, from your website to your business cards, your packaging to your invoices—and just about everything in between.
Because it’s such a visible part of your brand identity, your logo will be the most recognizable part of your branding—and the single design asset people associate most with your company.
When it comes to logo types, there are a variety of options, like:
- A classic typographic logo (think Coca-Cola)
- A graphic representation of the brand (like Apple’s iconic apple graphic)
- A combination of both graphic and typographic elements (like The Walt Disney Company, which includes both the brand name and a graphic of Cinderella’s castle)
There’s no right or wrong way to design your logo; the key is to create a design that feels true to your company as a brand.
And keep in mind, that can change! The logo you design today doesn’t have to be the logo you use from now until eternity. Brands change and evolve—and so can your logo. The key is to develop a logo that rings true to your branding today—and be open to evolving that logo design down the road, if necessary.
But Isn’t Logo Design Expensive?
Because your logo is such an important asset, you want it to look professional and well-designed. But hiring a professional designer can get extremely pricey—and many freelancers and small business owners just don’t have the budget to pay a graphic designer to bring their logo idea to life.
Luckily, in 2023 you don’t need a crazy budget to get a well-designed, professional, on-brand logo. In recent years, there’s been a rise of free (or almost free) logo creator tools that allow you to create your own logo quickly, easily and affordably—no software downloads or advanced design knowledge necessary.
With these tools, you can design the perfect logo to connect with your customers and take your business to the next level without completely blowing your budget.
So, what are some of the best tools to create your own logo?
Create Your Own Logo: Canva
Canva is one of the most popular graphic design tools on the market. And for good reason! The platform has a simple drag-and-drop interface that even people with zero design experience can easily navigate. They also have hundreds of pre-designed templates to help you get started with your designs—including for logos.
Designing a logo with Canva is easy. Here’s how to create your own logo with one of Canva’s logo templates:
- Navigate to Canva’s logo design platform
- Choose a template from the left sidebar and drag it onto the canvas
- To edit any individual element on the template, click the element and a toolbar will appear that allows you to easily make changes (like adjusting the color, or changing the font type or size)
- Add any other elements (like a background or photo) using the left sidebar
- When you’re satisfied with your design, click “download” on the top right corner of the design editor
Likes:
- Canva is one of the most user-friendly design platforms on the market. It doesn’t matter how much or how little design experience you have—you’ll be able to easily navigate the platform and get the design you want.
- Canva has a huge variety of customizable logo templates to choose from. So no matter what kind of look or feel you’re going for with your logo, chances are, you can find a template that aligns with your vision.
- While most platforms charge for high-resolution files, Canva offers them for free (although you will have to upgrade if you want a logo that’s high-resolution enough for printing).
Dislikes:
- If you decide to upgrade, Canva doesn’t offer any one-time logo design packages. Instead, you’ll have to sign up for Canva Pro, which is $12.95 per month (although they do offer a 30-day free trial of the service).
Create Your Own Logo: Squarespace Logo
Squarespace is one of the most user-friendly platforms in the DIY web design space—so it only makes sense that their logo creator tool, Squarespace Logo, is just as easy to navigate.
Squarespace Logo is a great option if you’re looking for a logo that’s simple and straightforward—but still feels sharp and well-designed.
Here’s how to get started creating a logo with Squarespace Logo:
- Enter your business name into the Squarespace Logo homepage.
- Use the left sidebar to add a tagline, an icon or to adjust the font style, color, size or position. You can also click and drag to change the size or positioning of the icon or text elements.
- When you’re satisfied with your design, click “Save Logo” on the left sidebar. From there, you can download a color, black or white PNG version of the logo up to 5000 pixels (px).
Likes:
- When you’re designing your logo, Squarespace Logo shows you how your logo will look on a business card, a desktop screen and a T-shirt in the lower portion of the design platform. That way, you can see real-world applications of your logo as you’re going through the design process.
- Similar to Canva, Squarespace Logo is incredibly user-friendly and easy to navigate. Even the most novice designers can figure out how to design a logo on this platform.
Dislikes:
- In terms of graphics, design elements and overall design flexibility, the options with Squarespace Logo are fairly limited
Create Your Own Logo: Hatchful
Hatchful is Shopify’s addition to the logo creator tool space. And this one definitely holds its own! Unlike some of the other tools on this list, Hatchful allows you to enter in some key details about your business and design preferences (including industry and visual style) and then generates different logo options you can customize to your own preferences.
Want to give Hatchful a try? Here’s how to get started:
- Click “Get Started” on Hatchful’s homepage
- Choose your industry/business space and click “Next”
- Choose your visual style and click “Next”
- Add your business name and tagline (if applicable) and click “Next”
- Choose all the places you’re going to use your logo and click “Next”
- Review the logo options and choose the one you like best to start editing
- Once you’re in the editing platform, use the left sidebar to change and edit different elements of your logo design (including colors, fonts, layout and icons)
- Once you’re satisfied with your logo design, click “Next” to download your logo
Likes:
- If you don’t want to start from scratch, Hatchful is a great option. Once you choose your industry and design aesthetic, it will give you different logos to choose from. From there, you can edit until your logo design feels right for you.
- Logo design and download are free.
- The design studio is extremely user-friendly and easy to navigate.
Dislikes:
- Many of the logo designs feel generic
- You can’t upload your own logo elements
More Logo Tools to Help You Create the Perfect Logo
We outlined three great tools to create your own logo. But those certainly aren’t the only ones! If you want to explore additional logo creator tool options, here are a few you’ll definitely want to check out:
LogoMaker—This logo maker allows you to tweak and edit your logo as much as you like. Once you’ve nailed the design, you can purchase your logo for $39.95.
LogoMakr—Not to be confused with the aforementioned LogoMaker, LogoMakr is a more affordable logo creator tool that allows you to design a low-resolution logo for free—and purchase the high-resolution file for just $19.
LogoGarden—One of the more affordable premium logo makers on the market, after you create your logo at LogoGarden, you can purchase your high-resolution file for just $12.50.
Ucraft—You can design a logo and get a 600-px wide PNG file for free with Ucraft—or you can opt to upgrade and purchase a SVG file.
DesignMantic—With DesignMantic, you can choose from a variety of pre-designed templates to create your own logo. When you settle on the right design and are ready to download your high-resolution file, it’s just $37.
LogoTypeMaker—This logo creator allows you to create logos for free. But in order to access them, you’ll need to sign up for one of their monthly subscriptions: Basic (€1.99/month) or premium (€4.99/month).
Looka—Looka leverages AI technology to help you create a logo that feels on-brand for your business. Depending on what types of files you need, logo packages will run you anywhere between $20 and $80.
Zillion Designs—Allows you to design a logo and download EPS, JPG and PNG files for free in exchange for mentioning Zillion Designs on your blog or website.
99Designs—Get a custom logo from a professional designer. It’s a contest site for designers, meaning you’ll have dozens of logos to choose from for just $299. While this is a pricier option, if you’re not comfortable managing the design yourself, this is a good middle ground between logo creator tools and working with a professional designer.
Logo Genie—A simple tool dedicated to make logo designing as simple as possible. It’s also one of the most affordable, with a standard logo package coming in at just $24.90.
Online Logo Maker—Online Logo Maker is fairly simple; you can design a logo for free—but if you want to download high-resolution images with a transparent background, you’ll need to join their Premium platform, which costs $34.
Free Logo Services—Design a logo in minutes, then choose from one of two logo packages: Basic ($39.95) or premium ($59.95, which includes unlimited logo edits for a full year).
YouiDraw—This tool is more advanced than some of the others on this list, but if you know a bit about design, you can use their app to build a high-quality vector without investing in expensive software.
Logaster—Another logo creator tool powered by AI, Logaster offers a variety of logo packages that range from free (for a small PNG file) to $64.99 (for a complete logo, business card and social media bundle).
Logo Factory Web—Simple logo creator tool that is free to use.
TextCraft—Want to go retro with your logo design? Try TextCraft and create an 8-bit logo for your business.
Designhill Logo Maker—With over 1.8 million logos created, Designhill has made a name for itself in the logo creation space. This logo creator tool offers packages ranging from $20 to $150.
Things to Keep in Mind
Having a well-designed logo is a must for your business—and using a logo creator tool to create your own logo is a great place to start. But it’s important to stay within legal and ethical boundaries. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you’re designing your logo:
- Trademark violations. Steer clear of logo creators that make logos using recognizable fonts from other brands (e.g., Facebook, Disney, Coca-Cola). Ripping off another company’s design—especially Fortune 500 brands—can land you in legal trouble due to trademark violations.
- Read the Terms and Conditions. You might be tempted to skim through them, but when you design a logo using a logo creator tool, it’s important to actually read the Terms and Conditions. Some sites provide limited usage rights, which means you could be prohibited from using the logo for business purposes. If you’re signing up for a free trial, you also want to be on the lookout for tools that will automatically opt you in for additional services (and additional fees) after your trial period is over.
- Don’t go overboard with collateral. If you’re not sure if you’re going to use your logo design long-term, don’t invest in thousands of business cards, brochures and other types of physical collateral. Only purchase quantities of physical collateral that you’ll be able to use during the lifespan of your logo. Even if you’re sold on your logo design, err on the side of caution and buy your physical collateral in smaller quantities.
Don’t Forget: Upload Your Logo to Your FreshBooks Account
You’ve got options when it comes to creating your own logo. But whatever logo creator tool you use, if you want to use your logo to grow your business and develop your brand, it’s important to include it on all of your brand collateral—and that includes your invoices.
FreshBooks makes it easy for you to create invoices both you and your clients will love. You can customize each one effortlessly—including adding your logo right from the Invoices page.
Get out There and Create Your Own Logo
Having a well-designed logo is a must for your business. And now that you know how to create your own logo, there’s only one thing left to do: Get designing!
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This post was updated in December, 2022.