Is a free logo really yours?
With Canva, logo generators or artificial intelligence, it has never been easier to get a logo in a few minutes, sometimes without paying anything, and these tools are genuinely useful for testing an idea. But does a free logo really belong to you, and does it do the job a logo is expected to do? Here is what their own terms say.
What a logo is expected to do
A logo is there to set you apart. It lets your clients recognise you at a glance, remember you, and not confuse you with the company next door. To do that job well, it has to meet six conditions:
Unique
It looks like nobody but you and tells what sets you apart, nobody else can have the same one.
Yours
Its rights are transferred to you in writing, you can adapt it, pass it on and use it everywhere.
Registrable
You can protect it as a trademark, so that nobody else uses it in your field.
Complete
It comes in vector files, on a transparent background, in light and dark versions.
Readable
It reads as well when tiny, on a screen or a business card, as when large on a shop sign.
Accessible
Its colours contrast enough to be seen by everyone, and it also holds up in black and white.
These are the six goals I suggest we hold every free option up against, based on what their own terms say.
Online templates, like Canva
Canva offers a free logo maker and thousands of templates to customise. Its help centre is very clear on one point, its logo templates can be used by anyone, so your rights to a logo made from a template are not exclusive and it cannot be registered as a trademark.
Its licence points the same way. It forbids using the elements of its library, illustrations, icons or photos, in a trademark, a trade name or a distinctive sign, with fonts as the only exception.
On the file side, the free version has its limits. Downloading with a transparent background and the SVG vector format, the two things a logo needs to sit on any medium, are reserved for paid plans.
Canva itself presents its templates as a good way to start when exclusivity is not a priority, and for a logo that is truly your own, it recommends working with a graphic designer.
How online templates score
- Unique? No, templates can be used by anyone.
- Yours? Partly, your creation yes, but not the library elements.
- Registrable? No, not from a template, according to Canva itself.
- Complete? Partly, the transparent background and SVG are reserved for paid plans.
- Readable? To check, it depends on the template chosen and the display size.
- Accessible? To check, contrast and colours are left to you.
Logo generators
Looka, LogoAI or Wix's logo maker assemble a logo in a few minutes from your name and your industry. Trying is free, and it is the usable files you pay for. Their terms all tell the same story:
- Looka gives you full ownership of the purchased logo, but of the logo as a whole. Its icons and fonts come from a database, Looka cannot guarantee the rights to those elements and does not remove them from its database after your purchase.
- LogoAI states that commercial use of its logos guarantees neither exclusivity nor trademark registration.
- Wix says it cannot guarantee that the logo you choose is not already used or owned by someone else, and that you may or may not be able to register it as a trademark.
For trademark registration, they all refer you to a specialised attorney, which is the right answer, but which makes it clear that exclusivity is not part of what you are buying.
How logo generators score
- Unique? No, no guarantee of exclusivity, and elements reused for other customers.
- Yours? Partly, the logo as a whole, not its elements.
- Registrable? Partly, maybe, maybe not, with no guarantee.
- Complete? Partly, provided you pay for the files.
- Readable? To check, it depends on the generated result.
- Accessible? To check, checking the contrast is up to you.
Logos created by artificial intelligence
With ChatGPT or Canva's image generator, a few words are enough to get an image. OpenAI's terms assign you their rights in what is generated, but they immediately add that the output may not be unique and that other users may receive similar output. Canva's terms say the same about its AI tools.
The real question is copyright. In the United States, the Copyright Office concluded in January 2025 that, with current tools, prompts alone do not give enough human control to make the user the author of the image, and American courts refuse to protect a work without a human author.
In Europe, the Court of Justice of the European Union protects a work when it is the author's own intellectual creation, reflecting their personality through free and creative choices. The Court has not yet ruled on AI-generated images, but a logo produced entirely from a prompt is unlikely to meet that condition. In practice, you might be unable to do anything if someone uses an image very close to yours.
Trademark law, for its part, does not ask who drew the sign, only that it is distinctive and free of earlier rights. An AI-made logo can therefore in theory be registered, provided you check that it does not resemble an existing trademark, which Canva itself recommends doing with a specialist before any filing.
How AI-made logos score
- Unique? No, the output may not be unique.
- Yours? Partly, the rights are assigned to you, but copyright remains uncertain.
- Registrable? Partly, in theory, if it resembles no existing trademark.
- Complete? Partly, usually a plain image, with no vector file.
- Readable? To check, fine details and generated text often hold up poorly at small sizes.
- Accessible? To check, checking the contrast is up to you.
Registering your logo as a trademark
In Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, registration is done with the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP). It costs €244 for one class of goods or services and protects the trademark for ten years, renewable for €263.
Once the trademark is published, holders of earlier trademarks have two months to oppose it. That is where a logo built from a template or from a shared icon library becomes fragile, since it can resemble a sign that is already protected, or lack the distinctive character registration requires. Before any filing, a search of the BOIP trademark register shows what already exists.
The scorecard, goal by goal
| Online template | Generator | AI | Made to measure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unique | No | No | No | Yes |
| Yours | Partly | Partly | Partly | Yes |
| Registrable | No | Partly | Partly | Yes |
| Complete | Partly | Partly | Partly | Yes |
| Readable | To check | To check | To check | Yes |
| Accessible | To check | To check | To check | Yes |
The picture is blurry, and that is precisely the problem. With free options, the answer often depends on the tool, the plan or the use, and many points are left for you to check.
When a free logo makes perfect sense
These limits do not stop a free logo from being a very good choice in many situations, as long as it stays online and temporary:
- A one-off event you will only promote on social media.
- A prototype or a project to pitch, stating clearly that the logo is temporary and was generated for the occasion.
- A test page, to validate an idea or collect sign-ups before launching anything.
- A social media account that is just starting, while you see whether it finds its audience.
- A personal, non-profit or internal project, with no brand ambitions.
It is also a good option when you have time, but no budget yet. A few hours on a free tool are enough to test a product you do not yet believe in for the long run, and to keep the investment in a real logo for the day it has proven itself.
In all these cases, what matters is accepting the limits, with a logo others may have, uncertain rights and, often, no vector file for printing.
A tip, whatever your logo
Whether it is generated or drawn by a designer, show your logo to friends, family and people you trust to tell you honestly what they think, before using it, unless it is truly urgent. It matters even more for a generated logo. And if you know someone with an eye for it, someone who draws or creates things, even without being a designer, show it to them too, their view will be precious.
And if the project takes off, brings in money and you feel it can grow, that is the right time to turn that first logo into a real, unique one, which you can print without trouble, register as a trademark and roll out everywhere, with all the possibilities that opens up.
Because a unique logo, one you carry with pride, does far more than identify you. It accompanies your work every day, on every quote, every business card and every conversation, and gives confidence to the people discovering you. You can see a few logos I have drawn for companies and independents.
A logo that ticks every box
€550 excl. VAT
That is the fixed price of a logo drawn for you at EYN Studio, and it meets all six goals:
- Unique, drawn by hand on a blank page, from what makes your company different.
- Yours, with a written transfer of rights, on payment of the final invoice.
- Registrable, since it is original, and the check before filing can be done separately.
- Complete, delivered in every format, in light and dark versions, with a short usage guide.
- Readable, designed to hold up at every size, from a small screen to a company vehicle.
- Accessible, with colours chosen to contrast well and stay perceptible to everyone.
All the details, from the steps to the files delivered, are in how much does a logo cost.
Your questions
Can you register a logo made with Canva as a trademark?
Not if it is made from a template or from library elements, Canva says so in its help centre and its licence forbids it, fonts excepted. Its help centre accepts a logo created from scratch with fonts and simple shapes, but its licence only provides an exception for fonts, so it is best to have it checked by a specialist.
Is an AI-created logo protected by copyright?
In the United States, no, for lack of a human author. In Europe, the question has not yet been settled for AI, but copyright protects a human creation reflecting free and creative choices, which a logo generated from a simple prompt is unlikely to demonstrate.
Do I own a logo bought from a generator?
Often the logo as a whole, yes, but not its elements, which remain available to other customers, and with no guarantee of exclusivity. Read the tool's terms before paying, the answer is almost always there.
How much does a custom-designed logo cost?
Expect €300 to €1,500 on average with an independent designer. At EYN Studio, logo design comes at a fixed price, €550 excl. VAT, with the transfer of rights included. The details are in how much does a logo cost.
Want a logo that looks like nobody but you? I draw them by hand, on a blank page, and everything is presented here.
Thanks for reading
Written by
Lexy Callemeyn
Graphic designer & web developer
Hello! I'm Lexy, a graphic designer and a developer of websites and apps for 12 years. Every project is unique to me: I draw logos and I build custom websites for freelancers and companies, from the first sketch to going live, to help them reach their goals with a strong identity online.
A question, a project in mind? Write to me, or discover my work through the links below.
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