A business owner gets three quotes for a logo. One is $80 from an online marketplace, one is $600 from a local freelancer, and one is $6,000 from an agency. All three are “a logo”. It’s reasonable to wonder whether the expensive one is just the same thing with better lunch meetings.
It isn’t, but the expensive one isn’t always the right choice either. The price difference comes from what’s done before and after the logo is drawn, how many places it’s designed to work, and what you’re left holding at the end.
What you’re paying for at each level
These are broad bands, not price lists, and plenty of designers sit between them. But in our experience the work at each level looks roughly like this.
Under $200: a marketplace or template logo
You fill in a form, someone (or some software) produces a few options in a day or two, and you pick one. Sometimes you get revisions.
What you usually get: a logo in a PNG or JPG, maybe a vector file if you pay extra.
What you usually don’t get: any research, any thought about where the logo will be used, a check that it isn’t similar to someone else’s, or clear ownership of the design. Some marketplace logos are built from stock icons that other businesses are using too. That isn’t a problem until you try to register a trade mark or a competitor turns up with the same swoosh.
Suits: testing an idea, a weekend market stall, a side project you’re not sure about.
Around $500: a simple logo from a designer
A freelancer or small studio works with you directly. There’s a short conversation about your business, a few concepts, a couple of rounds of changes, and a final logo.
What you usually get: a primary logo, maybe a stacked or icon version, in colour and black and white, with files for screen and print. The designer should have checked it works small and in one colour.
What you usually don’t get: a wider identity. There’s no colour palette beyond the logo, no font system, no guidance on photos or layouts, and no templates. You’ll be making those decisions yourself every time you design something.
Suits: a sole trader starting out, a business with one or two touchpoints (a website and a van), or a refresh of an existing logo that mostly works.
$1,500 to $3,000: a logo with a basic identity
This is where it starts to become a brand rather than a mark. Before drawing anything, the designer spends time on who you serve and how you differ from competitors.
What you usually get: logo variations for different uses, a defined colour palette with print and screen codes, chosen fonts, a short style guide, and often a business card or social profile set designed with it.
What you usually don’t get: much research, large rollout pieces like signage and vehicle wraps, or a full set of templates.
Suits: an established small business that’s ready to look the part, or a new business with a clear plan and a budget to match.
$5,000 and up: a full brand identity
At this level, the logo is one output of a bigger piece of work.
What you usually get:
- Positioning work up front: a written statement of who you’re for and why you’re different (we explain this in brand positioning in one sentence)
- A full logo suite, colour system, type system and graphic elements such as patterns or icons
- A photo style, and sometimes a brand shoot
- A detailed style guide
- Applications designed and ready to use: signage, vehicles, uniforms, stationery, social templates, website direction
- Help planning the rollout
Suits: a business with several staff, multiple locations, a rebrand of an existing business with lots of touchpoints, or anyone whose brand has to work hard in a competitive market.
For a sense of what a brand carried through to a website looks like, see the work we did for On Dusk.
The comparison, side by side
| ~$200 | ~$500 | $1,500 to $3,000 | $5,000+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Talks to you about your business | Rarely | Briefly | Yes | In depth |
| Original design | Not always | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Print and screen files | Sometimes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Colour palette and fonts | No | Logo colours only | Yes | Yes |
| Style guide | No | No | Short | Detailed |
| Designed applications (signage, templates) | No | No | One or two | Many |
| Clear transfer of ownership | Check carefully | Should be | Should be | Should be |
Things to check at any price
Whatever you spend, ask these questions before you agree to anything.
Do I own it? You want the copyright in the final logo assigned to you in writing. Ask whether that’s included. If the designer uses fonts or elements that need a licence, ask what that covers.
What files will I get? At minimum: vector files (SVG, EPS or PDF) for print and signage, PNG files with transparent backgrounds for screen, and colour, one-colour and reversed versions. If you’re not sure what those are, logo file formats explained covers each one.
Is it original? Ask whether any stock elements were used. If you plan to register a trade mark, search IP Australia’s trade mark records for similar marks in your industry before you commit. This is general information, not legal advice.
How many concepts and rounds of changes? More concepts isn’t always better. Three strong, considered directions beat ten rushed ones.
Will it work in the real world? Ask to see it tiny (a favicon, a social profile picture), in one colour (embroidery, a stamp) and big (a van, a sign). A good designer will show you this without being asked.
Which one do you need right now?
Spend in proportion to how many places your brand will appear and how much it has to compete.
If you’re just starting and you’re the whole business, a simple logo from a real designer is usually enough. Spend the rest on a decent website and good photos. Our guide on personal or business brands for sole traders can help with the step before that.
If you’re established, with staff, vehicles and a shopfront, a cheap logo becomes expensive quickly. Every sign, shirt and template gets designed from scratch by whoever’s nearest, and it never quite lines up.
If you’re about to spend serious money on signage or vehicle wraps, do the brand work first. Rewrapping a fleet because the logo didn’t work at a distance costs far more than getting it right.
Count your touchpoints
Write down every place your logo will need to appear in the next two years. Count them. If the list is three items long, a simple logo is fine. If it runs to twenty, you’re buying a brand, whether you budget for one or not.
Our branding and logo design work covers both ends of that range: at the time of writing, logos from $699 + GST and full brand identities from $2,500 + GST. Send us that list of touchpoints, and it will usually point to one end or the other on its own.