This page only shows primary logo variants. For other related logos and images, see:
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McDonald's Famous Barbecue
1940–1948
McDonald's traces its beginnings to May 15, 1940, when brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the first McDonald's Famous Barbecue restaurant in San Bernardino, California.
McDonald's Famous Hamburgers
1948–1953
The restaurant changed its name to McDonald's Famous Hamburgers to reflect their change in focus from barbecue to hamburgers in December 1948.
McDonald's
1953–1961
The restaurant's name was shortened to McDonald's in 1953. McDonald's Corporation was founded on April 15, 1955, and this became the company's first logo. Despite being replaced in 1961, this logo was still used on some commercials until 1968.
In 2021, this logo was revived in Japan for vintage packaging to commemorate the 50th anniversary of McDonald's Japanese division. It is also used on McDonald's Headquarters in Chicago.
1961–1968
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September 13, 1961
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On September 13, 1961, McDonald's, under the guidance of Ray Kroc, filed for a trademark for a new logo depicting an overlapping, double-arched "M" symbol with a line drawn through it, known as the "Golden Arches" and designed by Jim Schindler, McDonald's then-head of engineering and design. It would come to define the company's brand identity throughout the ensuing decades. Although it was officially replaced in 1968, this logo is still used at some locations, including the oldest surviving McDonald's location in Downey, California (which opened in 1953).
1968–1975
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Helvetica Neue Black (modified)
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November 18, 1968
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On November 18, 1968, McDonald's filed a trademark for a revised version of its "Golden Arches" logo, with the line removed from the "M" and the wordmark being changed to a different typeface (presumably a heavily modified version of Helvetica Neue Black) and placed "inside" the Golden Arches. This logo made its debut in the 1968 Big Mac introduction commercial. Despite being replaced as the corporate logo in 1975, it was still seen on most packaging and advertising until 1984 and on most signage in the United States and internationally until 2006, when the chain began its "Forever Young" redesign; today, only a few locations remain worldwide that still use this logo on signage. This logo was designed by the company's head of constructions and engineering, Jim Schindler, who was tapped by company president Fred Turner to design a logo after Turner failed to come up with a logo.
This version of the golden arches logo has been used in various forms since 1968, all of which can be seen below.
1975–1993
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Helvetica Neue Black (modified)
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On April 24, 1975, the previous logo was placed inside a rounded red square, with the wordmark being recolored white. Despite changing in 1993, but was still used at most locations worldwide until the 2006 redesign. By 2004, it had been removed from most packaging worldwide (except in Indonesia, which used it on certain packaging until 2010). However, a few select locations still use this logo for signage unaffected by the 2006 redesign.
1993–2003
Around 1993, McDonald's began using a version of its logo that omitted the wordmark entirely and added a drop shadow (which had been used for McKids earlier in 1990). However, this would not become one of its main logos until 1995, when the company introduced a new packaging style. Certain types of packaging continued to use this logo until 2006, and it remained internationally on several packaging and items until 2010.
May–September 2003
In May 2003, McDonald's began using a version of its 1993 logo that removed the drop shadow (similarly to its 1997 "My McDonald's" and "Did Somebody Say McDonald's?" campaigns) and placed it inside a rounded red square. However, this version, which was only used on commercials and print ads, was short-lived, as the company unveiled its first major redesign in September 2003. However, this logo was used again only in France starting in 2006.
2003–2006
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Helvetica Neue 75 Bold
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September 2, 2003
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On June 12, 2003, McDonald's unveiled a significantly revised version of the logo it had used in some capacity since 1968, which removed the red square from the 1975 version and thickened the Golden Arches. The logo's unveiling coincided with the announcement of its "I'm lovin' it" advertising campaign, which was launched in Germany on September 2, 2003, before launching in the United States on September 21. Despite being replaced as the main logo in 2006, it was still used on some packaging (such as that of the Happy Meal) until 2009; it is still used as a main logo in some countries including Australia.
2006–present
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Akzidenz-Grotesk Bold (2006–2014)
Lovin' Sans (2014–18)
Speedee (2018–present)
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September 28, 2006
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On September 28, 2006, the 2003 Golden Arches were redesigned to more closely resemble their 1968 counterpart, coinciding with the company's first restaurant redesign in decades (officially titled "Forever Young").
2018–present
In October 2018, the 2006 logo was placed inside a rounded red square. This version, officially named "the Token", is similar to the logo that McDonald's used for a few months before the 2003 rebrand (as well as a variant of the 2006 logo still being used in France), and was accompanied by the introduction of the new corporate font Speedee (named after one of McDonald's first mascots), which replaced the Lovin' Sans font the company had been using since 2014. Primarily used on packaging and promotional media, it was unaccompanied by the "I'm lovin' it" slogan until 2020, when it was officially revived with a commercial aired during Super Bowl LIV.
External links
