This article is about the major international fast food restaurant chain and corporation. For the unaffiliated defunct fast food chain in Alberta, Canada, see Burger King (Alberta).
Burger King's first restaurant opened on July 23, 1953 as Insta-Burger King in Jacksonville, Florida. The "Insta" name came from the broiling machines and milkshake machines used in the early restaurants. The Insta-Burger King name seems to have been inconsistent, as some early franchisees opened outlets under that name as late as 1956.
Burger King
1954–1959
Designer:
Unknown
Typography:
Custom
Launched:
1954
After Insta-Burger King experienced financial difficulties in 1954, two Miami-based franchisees David Edgerton and James McLamore purchased the company and shortened it to present-day Burger King.
1959–1970
Designer:
Unknown
Typography:
Custom
Launched:
June 1959
In 1959, the King mascot introduced in 1954 was added atop an updated wordmark and new slogan "Home of the Whopper". As of 2022, this logo is still used at the chain's oldest active location in Naperville, Illinois, which has only ever received an interior renovation.[1][2] The 1959 logo, wordmark, or sign illustrations continued to be used in most advertising until mid-1970, and new restaurants continued to use this era's "Home of the Whopper" building signage until even later.
1969-1999
January-July 1969
Designer:
Unknown
Typography:
Custom
Launched:
January 3, 1969
According to its trademark filing, this logo has a "first use" date of December 6, 1968 (most likely internally), though its "first use in commerce" date and earliest extant sighting both date to January 3, 1969. It served at most as an alternate to the existing branding, and seems to have only been test-marketed, being tweaked (as seen below) before becoming widespread. Despite its limited application, it introduced the basic template for all of Burger King's logo designs thereafter.
July 1969–1994
Designer:
Unknown
Typography:
Custom
Launched:
July 1969
The "bun halves" logo would be tweaked in mid-1969, smoothing the shoulders from the Rs in "Burger" and K in "King", likely to avoid ink spread at small sizes. This version would be used on new pylon signage as early as July of that year, and wouldn't begin regularly representing the chain until December. It would only fully supplant the 1959 branding by mid-1970. The final location to display this era's signage, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, had its main sign replaced in 2016. A taller freestanding one in the rear parking lot would survive until Late 2022.
This logo was briefly revived for a commercial during Super Bowl LIII in February 2019. In May of the same year, a recreation was used on drink cups to promote the third season of the Netflix series Stranger Things (set in 1985), which featured a typical restaurant from the era in the food court of the Starcourt Mall.
1994–1999
Designer:
Unknown
Typography:
Custom
Launched:
May 1, 1994
Introduced on May 1, 1994, this logo is a modified version of the 1969 logo with the text looking more uniform than in the original. It was initially used in tandem with the preceding logo, but within several months had replaced it outright.
Despite being superseded in 1999, the Australian analogue to Burger King, Hungry Jack's, has retained a version of this logo with their own name since 1997.
On July 1, 1999, Burger King unveiled a new identity designed by Sterling Brands. It features the 1994 logotype with half of its corners squared, stacked between two updated buns and partially enclosed by a blue "swoosh", a common design device at the turn of the millennium. By 2006, most remaining instances of the preceding logos had already been replaced by renovations.
On December 21, 2020, Burger King began rolling out an updated identity, taking inspiration from the original 1969 design. It had previously been trademarked on May 1, 2020. Its website and mobile app were updated to include it on January 7, 2021, alongside massive overhauls to both.
