What Is the Google Logo?
The Google logo is the name Google in blue, red, yellow and green letters, in a sans-serif typeface. Google moved to this style on 1 September 2015, replacing the serif letters it had used since 1998.
Google is the search engine and technology company that Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded on 4 September 1998 in Menlo Park, California. Since 2015 it has been a subsidiary of Alphabet. The multicoloured wordmark is available as the Google logo SVG. Google also uses a four-colour G as its icon.
Google Logo Facts
| Introduced | 1 September 2015; typeface updated in May 2026 |
| Symbol | None in the wordmark; a four-colour G serves as the icon |
| Logo type | Wordmark: the name Google |
| Earlier mark | A serif wordmark based on Catull, by Ruth Kedar, from 1999 |
| Owner | Google LLC |
What the Google Logo Means
The Google logo spells a deliberate misspelling. The name comes from googol, the number 1 followed by 100 zeros. It hints at the vast number of websites the founders wanted to search.
The colours carry their own message. When Ruth Kedar drew the 1999 logo, she broke the order of primary colours on purpose.
- The pattern: blue, red and yellow repeat across the first letters.
- The break: Kedar put a secondary colour on the L.
- The idea: in her words, the break showed that Google does not follow the rules.
Google Logo History
The Google logo history runs from a homemade design in 1997 to a sans-serif wordmark built for small screens.
| Year | What changed |
|---|---|
| 1997 | Larry Page makes the first computerised logo using GIMP |
| 1998 | A Baskerville Bold logo, later with an exclamation mark |
| 1999 | Ruth Kedar's logo, based on the Catull typeface, drops the exclamation mark |
| 2010 | Flatter letters, a subtler shadow and a more orange second o |
| 2013 | A flat logo with no shadows |
| 2015 | A sans-serif wordmark in brighter colours |
| 2026 | A modified Google Sans replaces Product Sans |
The 2015 change had a clear reason. Google said its old logo was built for a single desktop browser page. People were using its services on phones, TVs, watches and car dashboards, so the logo had to work everywhere.
The new letters were set in a typeface called Product Sans. In May 2026 Google quietly swapped it for a modified Google Sans, with no announcement.
Google Doodles
The first Google Doodle appeared in 1998 and honoured the Burning Man festival. Page and Brin designed it to warn users that they were away. If the servers crashed, people would know why.
That small joke set a pattern.
- A Doodle: a one-off drawing that takes the place of the wordmark.
- The standard logo: the four-colour name Google returns to afterwards.
For more brands like Google, browse our tech logos, or see the Android logo and YouTube logo from the same company.
Frequently Asked Questions
What font is the Google logo?
The 2015 logo used Product Sans, a sans-serif typeface. In May 2026 Google switched to a modified Google Sans.
Who designed the Google logo?
Ruth Kedar designed the serif logo Google used from 1999 to 2010. Larry Page made the earliest version in 1997.
Why is one letter in the Google logo a different colour?
Kedar gave the L a secondary colour to break the pattern of primary colours. She said it showed that Google does not follow the rules.
When did the Google logo change to sans serif?
On 1 September 2015, when Google replaced its serif letters to suit phones, watches and other small screens.